Mistakes of the Great Beings
by Refia
Summary: When a young Saurian named Ignika escapes his dimension, the Sailor Senshi get a problem on their hands. Fate brings grave mistakes and new chances in life... Can they save the world this time?
1. The Saurian Child

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**1. The Saurian Child**

He was scared. Terrified. The world around him was alien and strange, hostile even, at least from his point of view. He had tumbled out of the gate into this… forest, only a few minutes ago. Enough for him to quickly observe his surroundings. The forest was strange, paths of stone running through it, and along those paths tall poles stood that gave light without fire, illuminating the night. That wasn't really what scared him. The forest, while strange, still held a sense of familiarity that put him at ease.

But then he had reached out with his mind, one of his greatest weapons, to look beyond the borders of the forest. And what he had seen there was what had terrified him. One glance, it didn't last even a second, had shocked him. Beyond the woods was a strange, hostile, noisy world, full of buildings that reached the sky, weird lights and an overwhelming amount of noises.

Shaken, scared, he had crawled into some bushes, taking place between the roots of an old tree. This forest would keep him safe. It had to. He had to be strong, until the others came to look for him, came to get him and take him back home. Until then, he had to protect himself. The boy tightened his grip on his wicked, black scythe.

Hesitatingly, he placed the tip of his scythe on the ground and focussed, gathering the will and power needed for this course of action. His mind reached out to the borders of this forest, and erected an invisible barrier of life energy there, that would prevent any creature from entering. It was the best he could do. He didn't think there was anything powerful enough here to step through his shield.

Content he was safe for now, the unfortunate child laid down on the grass, then curled himself up on the ground, his tail wrapped around his shaking form. It was night, he had to sleep and rest. Tomorrow was another day, and hopefully the others would have come for him by then. He did his best to ignore all the strange and unfamiliar sounds and noises in the distance, and didn't succeed fully. Tears ran down his face, and it took him a couple of hours to finally fall into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

"Come on, Chibiusa! You can't be serious." Hotaru laughed as they were approaching their favorite place of the neighborhood – the park where they fist met.

"You bet I am! And then Chioko was all like..." Chibiusa portrayed the shocked expression of the unfortunate girl. Hotaru laughed again. The two girls walked happily, having almost forgot about Setsuna, who was taking them for a walk today. She was walking behind the gossiping girls, smiling as she watched her younger friends.

It has been almost a year since Chaos was defeated. Sailor Senshi could finally return to their normal lives. After graduating Usagi, Minako and Ami entered college, mostly thanks to the efforts of the latter. Usagi didn't want to at first ("I saved the world six times, jeez! Why should I go to college!?"), but Chibiusa managed to convince her that if she doesn't, she'll forever remain a silly annoying brat and will never become a Queen. Seeing as Usagi had nothing to do with her life anyway, and that Mamoru returned to his university abroad, she had no choice but to comply. Rei and Makoto, however, decided not to get any more education. Rei went back to working at the Hikawa Shrine, and Makoto went to a cooking school to become a good chef and open her own restaurant someday. She also took up a part-time job at a restaurant.

Michiru, the excellent violinist she was, was offered a concert tour in Europe, and she gladly took the opportunity. Haruka went with her, sometimes playing the piano to accompany Michiru, and other times taking part in various races, winning money. As for Setsuna, Hotaru and Chibiusa, they continued their normal life as usual – Hotaru and Chibiusa at school, Setsuna at the art university, where she studied to make her dream of being a fashion designer come true.

The company finally reached the park. Chibiusa and Setsuna went in right away, and Hotaru had to stay behind to tie her shoe. Having done so, she ran to catch up with her friends...

And stopped abruptly, having made only a couple of steps into the park's territory. Hotaru turned around, confused. For a moment she thought she sensed something at the park entrance... An energy surge? No, nothing like that. The feeling wasn't strong, and besides, the park entrance looked like it always did. "Must have imagined it..." Hotaru mumbled.

"Hotaru-chaaan!" Chibiusa yelled and waved her to catch up.

"Coming!" she called out, and ran towards her friends who were waiting for her further down the path.

* * *

He had sensed it. Somebody or something had crossed his barrier. No, it wasn't just one thing, he realized upon further inspection, three beings had passed through his defense. It worried him greatly. Only beings with great power could withstand his powers of Life. Curiosity mixed with fear, and he reached out with his mind to observe the intruders.

They were strange, and unlike any creature he had ever seen before. No, he quickly corrected himself, there had been one kind of beings who had resembled these life forms somewhat. Even so, looks didn't tell everything, and further mental inspection quickly revealed these creatures to be entirely different than anything he was used to. They seemed so fragile to him. No tails, sharp teeth or claws for natural defense. For a moment he wondered how they could even remain on their two feet without a tail to balance them.

He refused to believe these things had been able to penetrate his barrier. There had to be more to them for that. His mind probed even deeper, and he knew that he risked being detected this way, but his frustration and fear had won it from his caution now. He wanted to know how they had passed through his shield, what powers they had and how great these were. As he looked deep in their soul, he found what he was looking for: the core, the source of their power. It was very different from any powers he was used to. They did not truly seem to be part of them like his powers were a part of him. Almost as if they couldn't use them, at least not in their current state.

Perhaps that was good, he thought, for what he saw certainly was worrisome. These creatures held power of a very raw kind, elemental yet at the same time not quite elemental. Otherworldly might be the best way of describing it. They weren't ordinary powers, that was for sure, and aside from himself, he had never encountered another being with this level of power. He had always thought he had been unique in the amount of power he had, but apparently not so in this dimension. He grabbed his Scythe nervously. Caution was needed. Perhaps they wouldn't notice him and leave again. Silently, he moved a bit, so he could see them with his eyes now, and not just with his mind. And then he waited, tensed and nervous.

* * *

The three girls had been walking in the park for quite a while now. Chibiusa kept talking about various things to Hotaru, who didn't seem to be paying much attention. Setsuna was busy thinking of a new dress design, which she would later include in her yearly project. Finally, Hotaru stopped, unable to ignore the feeling she had from the moment she entered the park.

"Something's not right." she said, looking at Setsuna.

"Is it?" the older girl asked.

"Yes. It's way too quiet here."

"I thought you liked the quiet, Hotaru-chan." Chibiusa said, confused.

"It's not that..." she sighed.

"I agree that something is off." Setsuna said. "We haven't met any other people during our walk."

And then it dawned on Chibiusa. Yes, how could she not notice it before? No little kids at the playground, no couples kissing on the many benches, no ice cream men... Even birds were few.

"And... What should we do?" she asked, worried.

"I don't know... I don't sense any evil in this place." Setsuna said.

"I did feel something when we entered the park, but I thought it was nothing." Hotaru bit her lower lip. "It wasn't evil, though..."

Suddenly, Setsuna noticed movement in the nearby bushes. She looked in that direction, waiting for what would happen next. A few minutes of total silence passed, and nothing happened. But the woman knew she had seen something move, and by the looks on their faces, so had Chibiusa and Hotaru.

"Show yourself!" Setsuna commanded, in the sternest and coldest tone she could muster. Still nothing happened at first, but then the bushes rustled as something came their way.

* * *

He flinched as he saw the female glance his way. She knew he was there, she had seen the movement in the bushes when he had tried to back away unnoticed. He tried to keep still, hoping she'd let it be, but it was not to be, for she called out to him to reveal himself. The child clenched his jaws and the grip of his weapon tightened. His thoughts were racing as he debated what to do. Eventually, he settled on obeying the command. That way, he could still make the first move should it be needed.

Hesitatingly, he stepped forward, scythe ready in his clawed hand, tail sweeping from left to right out of agitation. Then he emerged from the woods, coming face to face with those who had gone through his barrier, who had intruded upon his fragile feeling of safety. He studied them carefully, his golden eyes observing the creatures before him one by one. They had expressions of shock and surprise on their faces, though the tallest did her best to hide it. Had they never seen a Saurian before? It was possible, he realized, as this world was not his own.

Silence reigned as he waited for any of them to make a move or speak.

* * *

Setsuna considered herself a woman who didn't speak often because she chose to be that way, it was her nature. That she was _rendered_ speechless by something was unusual indeed, yet what emerged from the bushes did just that. When she had called out, she had expected a youma or something akin to it, or at the very least an attack, or completely the opposite, a plea to not hurt whoever appeared.

The creature before her and her companions did neither, seeming content to just stand tensely, wicked looking scythe ready and raised, and stared nervously at the three girls. In all of her long life, Setsuna could not remember a creature like this. Not just in terms of appearance, but power as well. She could feel it, though she wasn't sure why, the great power housed in the being before her.

The creature was bipedal and reptile-like, as tall as Chibiusa, with a long, sleek tail keeping it balanced. Regardless, its back was almost upright, at an angle of eighty or seventy degrees or so. Each of its feet ended in three long, clawed toes pointing forward, with a fourth smaller one pointing the opposite way and not touching the ground. Birdlike feet, almost. The hands that held the scythe had five fingers that ended in sharp black claws. Tail, limbs and neck were covered in horned golden scales, while the rest of its skin was white and streamlined, like a dolphin's. Over its body it wore a gold colored tunic that reached almost to its knees.

It was the head that was the most puzzling and alien in appearance. It was like one crossed a human skull and a lizard's one. The proportions were mostly human, the creature even had a nose and shoulder-length white hair. At the same time, it had no cheeks, allowing it to open its jaws far wider than any human could. Sharp carnivorous teeth were lined neatly in the jawbones, leaving no doubt about the being's diet. Its ears were strangely frilled, like the sails some reptiles had even now, and the eyes were gold in color, with narrow, snake-like pupils.

Chibiusa stared at the creature with her jaw dropped, then backed away a bit. What was this thing? She wasn't as experienced as other Senshi when it came to fighting demons, so now she was a bit at loss of what to do. Especially since this one didn't seem to be directly threatening or attacking her...

Hotaru backed away, too, but kept her gaze on the creature. It was strange, alien, frightening even, and yet... She could feel the same energy as back there at the park entrance. Which wasn't evil, and felt somehow... familiar.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Setsuna finally asked.

The creature frowned and didn't immediately answer. Perhaps it couldn't understand them, or not speak at all? Setsuna's concerns were unnecessary, as the being spoke, its voice as strange as the creature looked. It was harsh, yet hissing at the same time. If a snake were to suddenly learn to speak, its voice would sound like this creature's, Setsuna decided.

"What do you want from me?" it asked with a young, male voice. Clearly, the creature was still but a child. "How did you break through my barrier?"

"What barrier?" Chibiusa demanded, confused. She hadn't seen, noticed or felt any sort of barrier.

Hotaru, however, realized that she hadn't been imagining things when she had entered the park. "So it was a barrier..."

"Yes. Nobody could pass through it, I was safe here," the reptilian child continued. "Yet you three passed through it with no problem. How?"

"We just... did?" Chibiusa said, still confused. The being wasn't as frightening anymore, partly thanks to his voice. It was also clear that he wasn't going to attack them anytime soon.

"Why would you need a barrier?" Hotaru asked.

"Not to mention that you still haven't told us who or what you are, and why are you here," Setsuna added sternly.

"I am Ignika," the creature replied, with a certain pride in his voice. "Child of Life, highest creation of the Great Beings, son of Angonce." The look in his eyes saddened. "And currently a refugee in this dimension…" Ignika's shoulders slumped and he bowed his head. To the three girls, he seemed to be on the verge of crying. "I did not come here by choice. I… We… were being chased, and I got separated from my family… Then, I… a friend pushed me through a dimensional gate so I could escape… But because my pursuers were right behind me, it was a random gate, and I tumbled into this forest last night…" He glanced around worriedly, tears still threatening to break free. "I looked around a bit… But this world is scary, so I erected a barrier to prevent anyone from coming into this forest… To protect myself…"

The Senshi were silent for a while. All hostility and cautiousness they felt vanished as they heard those words. Now they could truly see that, despite his frightening appearance, Ignika was but a child. A lost and scared child...

"_Who possesses enough power to make a barrier around the whole park, AND wields a dangerous weapon._" Setsuna reminded herself.

"I am Setsuna Meiou, also known as Sailor Pluto, Warrior of Time, Guardian of the Time Gates. I am one of the protectors of this dimension." she said, in no less dignified manner than Ignika. "These are Hotaru Tomoe and Chibiusa Tsukino, Sailor Saturn and Sailor Chibimoon."

Ignika looked confused, but gave a respectful bow nevertheless. Setsuna could see that the other two girls were also confused by the words he said before, but she wanted the introductions to be over first. Also, since Ignika was obviously chased by an enemy, she needed to find out if they can come after him, and explanations can wait.

"Can your enemies open dimensional portals as well?" she asked.

"As far as I know, the Great Beings only gave the power of Dimensional Gates to two Saurians, one of which has died of age recently, the other was the one who sent me here," Ignika replied. He understood why she asked. If she was a guardian of this world as she said she was, naturally she would want to know if her world was in danger first.

"Good," Setsuna said with a nod. "Maybe we could sit down over there," she made a gesture to the nearest bench. "It will be easier talking that way."

Ignika looked hesitant. "I don't think… I could sit down there comfortably…" When the three girls frowned and looked slightly confused, he wagged his tail. Chibiusa giggled, then carefully approached the Saurian. Ignika focused his gaze on her, watching the pink-haired girl's every move. He knew they harbored no ill intention, his probing of their minds and hearts had told him that much. Still, they were alien creatures to him, so he was cautious. Before he knew it, the girl had grabbed his hand and tugged him along.

Her skin was strange to him, soft, but not as smooth as his own skin that wasn't scaled. Also, he noticed she had small hairs covering her arms. Strange to him. True, certain life forms on his home world were furred as well, but none of them were bipedal, intelligent beings. This world was so strange and alien, so frightening… But these powerful beings seemed kind enough. Perhaps, maybe, they could help him, at least until his family came for him. Because they were going to come for him, weren't they?

* * *

**Next chapter: Ignika's tale!**

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* * *

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Thanks to Tioko for co-writing, beta'ing and generally giving support.


	2. Ignika's tale

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

Author's note: I will reply to reviews at the end of each chapter, if possible.

**2. Ignika's tale**

"The world I come from is known to us Saurians as Voya, but the Great Beings called it Bota Magna," Ignika told the three females quietly, almost shyly even. Despite his initial doubts and protests, he had sat down on this 'bench' together with the three strange and powerful females. It was a bit hard for his tail, but he could manage for now. The three girls seemed very comfortable, but they didn't have a tail hindering them, he realized. As per their request, he was telling them a bit more about himself.

"The race of Saurians, to which I belong, are the current dominant species on Voya, and have been so for many generations. We lived in small groups called clans, scavenging through the lush jungles of our world for food and water. It was a simple life, hard at times, but natural and good." The white-haired boy sighed deeply, and Setsuna, Hotaru and Chibiusa exchanged confused glances.

"But times changed. One day, so the stories go, a star fell down from the heavens and smashed into our world. The star brought with it a great and long winter, destroying our jungles and our homes. Quite likely, we would not have survived, for we Saurians aren't made for cold. Or weren't, at least," Ignika continued. "But then, while the winter raged on, they came to our dying world: the Great Beings. They were wise and mighty, and they travelled through the heavens in search of places in need of their knowledge. Their voyage brought them to Voya in its hour of need. And everything changed…"

"What do you mean?" Hotaru asked quietly. She had been listening very carefully so far, the story fascinating her. However, she had noticed that when he spoke that last sentence, Ignika's eyes had taken on a sad gleam. It made her think things had changed for worse.

"The Great Beings healed the wounds the fallen star had dealt our world, and they brought back the warmth and light of the sun. They erected a great fortress made of brilliant crystal and diamond, and from within they governed our world for the next five centuries." Ignika paused for a moment to smile a bitter smile, caused by thinking of the old days. He had lived to see them all.

"The Great Beings took a liking to our race, and they taught us some of their wisdom. But more importantly, since they would not stay forever, they decided to alter our species, so that in the future we would be capable of surviving a disaster of cosmic proportions, like the falling of a star, on our own." The Saurian bowed his head, saddened by the memories. "And so they created me."

Chibiusa gasped, her eyes wide. "Created?" she asked in shock. "You have no parents?" Setsuna frowned, and Hotaru looked away. It reminded them of how the youma were created in professor Tomoe's lab... Noticing that, Ignika quickly replied:

"No, it's not like that. My parents had died before I hatched from my egg. But Angonce the Kind, one of the Great Beings, found my egg and cared for it. Maybe he sensed something from my developing form inside that pleased him, he never told me. Regardless, the Great Beings took my egg and cared for it until it hatched. And then they modified me under the watchful eye of master Angonce."

Hotaru involuntarily shivered. Ignika's words reminded her of what had been done to her, of how her father had enhanced her body with cybernetic parts to keep her alive. Had these Great Beings done something similar to Ignika? She eyed him worriedly. He looked and seemed quite normal... Well, as normal as an alien from another dimension can be.

"The Great Beings strengthened my body and granted me the Element of Life. From that moment on they called me Ignika, which literally means 'life' in their tongue. From that moment on I was far greater and far, far more powerful than any of my kind could ever hope to become. The power of Life is at my fingertips!"

"Life..." Hotaru whispered quietly, looking at her hand. It was strange, the way he spoke those words. Hotaru looked at the Saurian. He had straightened his back somewhat, to show he was proud. Yet at the same time, his eyes blinked with tears he refused to spill, betraying the sadness he felt. As Sailor Saturn, Soldier of Ruin, Hotaru knew how hard it was, to have such power.

"I can make you age in a matter of seconds, or reduce you to a baby the next. I can turn you into a bird, or a weapon for me to wield. I can bring inanimate objects to Life and make them do my bidding, I can give or take away life energy with a wave of my hand. I can bind and shape matter into whatever form I desire, or destroy any living matter with the blink of an eye. I can speed up the processes of your life until they reach their point of exhaustion, or make their decay slow down till it comes to a halt, rendering you immortal…"

Silent tears ran down Ignika's saddened, pained face. "I became the Child of Life. From then on I had the duty to care for all forms of life, and appreciate them, give them harmony. Forces of Ruin were to be destroyed. And for that purpose, the Great Beings forged the Death Scythe, the weapon wielded by the Child of Life."

A soft chuckle came over his lips. "I find it ironic to this day. But, I'm drifting off…" Ignika then shrugged and wiped his tears away. "I reached the physical age of ten in a week, and haven't aged since then. I am eternal."

"Really?" Chibiusa couldn't help but ask. "And you don't mind it?"

"Huh?" Ignika looked at her, confused.

"I mean, being ten years old for eternity..." Chibiusa fiddled with her fingers, not really looking at anybody. Setsuna smiled sadly. All of Crystal Tokyo and the present day Sailor Senshi knew about the Small Lady's problem. The Saurian, however, was clueless about it.

"Why do you ask?"

"Oh, um, no reason..." She finished quickly. She couldn't help but remember just how much danger she put the whole world into because of her mad desire to grow up and become a proper Princess...

"No, I do not mind. I had plenty of time to get used to it... And, more importantly, my ascension from a powerless egg to the mightiest Saurian proved to the Great Beings that their plan to help our race could work. We could be granted powers, of any kind, even powers as destructive and great as Life. And so they went to work, and carefully bestowed many different kinds of forces upon the Saurians. They made sure we would be able to withstand disasters like falling stars with these."

Ignika sighed and shook his head. "The Great Beings were wise, but they overestimated the intelligence of our race, I fear. Master Angonce explained to me, as I stayed in his fortress and was tutored in many things, that the powers granted to our race were made so as to encourage unity among our people. Most powers filled the shortcomings of others, and likewise the other way around. And after a few centuries of teaching my kind, centuries of prosperity, the Great Beings departed, and master Angonce with them. I was left behind, innocent, young and inexperienced, to watch over all of Life, and love it."

"I take it that those times of prosperity did not last?" Setsuna remarked, with an eyebrow raised. It wouldn't surprise her in the least. She had seen the history of mankind pass before her eyes, and it was filled with wars and bloodshed that shattered peace.

"Indeed," the golden eyed Saurian answered with a sigh. "For the first few decades, centuries even, it remained the way the Great Beings had desired it to be. It was during this time that I discovered my egg hadn't been the only one to survive after my parents died. One other egg hatched, a direct relative of me. And I began to search, oblivious to the world around me. Saurians live very long, a millennium averagely, so there was a chance my family still lived. And I did find her, my sister. She was almost five hundred by then, and was weakened and crippled by an illness that had claimed her a few years after the Great Beings departed. She was dying, and so I used my powers for the first time without supervision."

Ignika smiled a bit sheepishly and ran a clawed hand through his white locks. "I accidentally set her age back by three hundred years or so, making her twenty according to the human terms I saw in your minds. Not that she minded," he added the last part very quickly. "We got to know each other, and we became close, like a brother and sister should be. She took over master Angonce's role of looking after me, despite the fact that I was a hundred times more powerful than her. Seeing as I was condemned to live eternal, now that I had Life itself in my veins, I asked her to share my fate of eternity, and she accepted. She is immortal to this day."

"What is her name, Ignika?" Hotaru interrupted, curious.

"She is called Traveller," came the reply. "She was named after her power of Teleportation. To this day, she is the sister I am closest to, though I love all of my family."

"I thought you said only one more egg besides your own survived," Chibiusa chimed in. "So how can you have more than one sister?"

"You don't need to be bound by blood to be family," Ignika explained happily, thinking of his other family aside from Traveller, and how much they meant to him. Then his eyes saddened once again as he remembered in what circumstances he had met them. He shook his head as if to drive his sad feelings away, and continued his story.

"Traveller and me journeyed over Voya together, so that I could carry out the duty given to me by the Great Beings. I observed all forms of living creatures and cared for them, while the Death Scythe removed all that brought disorder and chaos. At first, that wasn't a lot, as Voya still went along the path the Great Beings had set it on: a path of peace and harmony. That changed around seven hundred years ago."

"What happened?" Setsuna wanted to know.

"Rumours began to spread among the Saurians that there was one Saurian who was more powerful than all the others: me. The Great Beings had never told my race of my existence, believing it would only lead to strife, as well as hardships for me. They were right." Ignika sighed once more and looked a bit helplessly at those who were listening to his tale. "Some Saurians admired the honour the Great Beings had given me. Others feared my might, and were of the idea that I had to be removed in order for balance to remain. And still others desired my power for themselves. For he who controls Life, can dominate all, because in terms of power, I am unmatched."

"How familiar," Setsuna remarked. The guardian of time wasn't at all surprised, in fact, she had expected it to go this way. If there is power, there will always be one who desires it, to rise above all the others. She understood why the Great Beings had given such a burden to a child now, too. Ignika was far too innocent and even somewhat naïve to even think of using his powers for world domination.

"Truly?" Ignika asked, slightly surprised. "Similar situations have appeared in this dimension as well?" When the three girls nodded in confirmation, Ignika bowed his head, saddened and somewhat worried. Should word of his existence, as well as his power, leak out, he didn't doubt he wouldn't be safe here either.

"I have to be careful here then, so I will not be seen," he decided, with a thoughtful look on his face. Then he continued with telling his story. "So after the rumours began, and were confirmed, my life became hellish, and has been for the last seven hundred years. It was constantly fleeing from the two groups who either wanted me dead or wanted my powers, while those who were neutral at times hid us and let us live amongst them. But in the end, we always ended up fleeing some more. Since that made chase began, my Death Scythe has been used often." The child's grip on his weapon, which was twice as tall as he was, tightened. "The poor fools. Neither ever realized that either claiming my powers or killing me would bring forth the end of our world."

At this, Hotaru's eyes went wide and she turned her head sharply to study the Saurian's face. His expression was cold and hard, and spoke of contempt and pity. What did he mean by his words, she wondered. The one blessed by Saturn didn't even need to voice that question, as Ignika went on explaining it.

"The Great Beings, in their great wisdom, did more than just grant me the greatest of powers. I was more than just a prototype for an empowered Saurian… I was their failsafe in case the world they had harmonized would cease to function as they wished it."

Emotionlessly, almost as if he didn't care about what he was about to tell them, he raised his hand and stared at his golden scales.

"If war or famine claims Voya, if the balance between what is good and bad should tip too far in the favour of what is bad, a countdown will begin. The world will know this when my scales and eyes turn from gold to silver, and then slowly from silver to black… And when I am as black as the night…" A bitter smile appeared on Ignika's face. "I will automatically, inevitably, drain all life from Voya, and render it a completely dead world. Then the Great Beings, wherever they are, can start over, in the hope of doing better than the last time they tried…"

The three humans stared at the Saurian child between them in shock, rendered speechless by this revelation. Ignika ignored their stares, however, or perhaps he wasn't even aware of them as he still stared emotionless at his golden scales. After a few minutes of total silence, he spoke again.

"A few times, it almost came to that, and often have my scales been silver with shades of black. Fortunately, I and my family were able to loose our pursuers every time, or get rid of them completely, righting the balance once more."

"You were running for seven hundred years?" Chibiusa exclaimed, disbelievingly. Hotaru found it hard to believe as well. She tried to imagine herself in the mad chase, and couldn't... She simply wouldn't have last that long.

Ignika merely nodded. "Yes. But, it wasn't all bad. After all, I did meet my family this way. One day, after already a hundred year of running or so, our enemies had me and my sister cornered, and she fought bravely, but we were heavily outnumbered. I could defeat them all, but so many enemies in one blast would be dangerous for my sister, so I held back, deciding only to unleash my full power should we be defeated, or if my scales were almost fully black."

His expression brightened considerably as he added: "But it wasn't necessary. Unexpectedly we got help from two other Saurians. Two sisters, Gravitas and Nightmare, wielding gravity and fear as powers, respectively. Nightmare would follow her older sister everywhere, so when Gravitas saw us in a tight spot and decided to help, Nightmare went along. With their help we floored the enemy, and they stayed with us after that. And so I got two more sisters. But that wasn't the end of it…"

He paused for a moment, searching for the right words to continue. "It so happened that a few decades later, the four of us were protecting a village that had sheltered us for a while. It was being targeted by our foes as a trap to lure us to it, and we were aware of that. But they had been kind to us, so we were honour bound to help them too. Again we got unexpected help during the battle, as an invisible ally cut down enemies left and right. That was Chameleon, a Saurian with the power of chameleon, and he too stayed with us after that. He's my only brother, and it is nice to not be the only boy in the family."

"Fear and chameleon?" Hotaru said slowly, a frown on her young face. "Those are unusual powers. Why would the Great Beings give something like power over fear to your race?"

"You're not the first to think of it as an immoral power," Ignika replied. "But most people see only one side of this power. Nightmare has the power to sow fear, from small doubt to pure terror, in the hearts of others, that is true. Many have even died from fright, I will admit. However, like she is able to create, she is also capable of taking away. Often has she taken away my, or others from the family, fear, giving us strength and courage to face the hardships of our life." He blushed shyly, avoiding their stares. "I have to admit, though, she doesn't do this often, preferring to cause fear. Some might even call her sadistic by the glee she sometimes brings nightmares with, but she is my sister, and she loves me as I love her."

"Still, I think…"

Whatever Hotaru was thinking had to wait, for she was interrupted by Ignika jumping to his feet, Death Scythe ready in his hands. The Saurian child was looking around suspiciously and sniffing the air. His eyes were closed, and he seemed to be concentrating deeply. The three humans gave him odd looks, not understanding what he was doing.

"Ignika, what's…" Chibiusa began, but Ignika interrupted her.

"Something's happening, I can sense it…" he said quietly, more to himself than to his companions. Suddenly, his eyes snapped wide open in shock and he turned his head in what seemed to the girls a random direction.

"The dimensional walls are being broken!" he exclaimed. "Someone's coming after me, and there are too many of them to be my family!"

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**Next chapter: Power of Life!**

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Again, thanks to Tioko for co-writing, beta'ing and generally giving support.

**Review replies:**

Chaser Warring on Everything: that's the kind of person Ignika is. He has mental powers, after all, and could sense that Setsuna, Hotaru and Chibiusa harboured no ill intend towards him in their hearts. And so he saw no reason to keep information from them. He still is a child, after all, and can be quite innocent and naive. As for the ideas of Saurians, it just came to me. I'm a reptile-lover, and the idea of intelligent dinosaur-like beings struck me as cool. There are also some influences of other fandoms in this (no cross-over, though). Thanks for the review. =)


	3. Power of Life

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**3. Power of Life**

Even as Setsuna, Hotaru and Chibiusa got to their feet, space and time were ripped apart as the walls of their dimension were torn open. A big black circle appeared a few feet above the ground, and out of it tumbled six figures. In general appearance, they were identical to Ignika, the only differences being the size and colours, as well as the weapon they each carried. The six Saurians climbed to their feet, weapons ready as they saw their prey.

Ignika stood his ground, feet firmly planted on the forest floor, Death Scythe wicked and frightening in his grip. His golden eyes were narrowed, and not once did he take his gaze of the six new invaders. The child was visibly tensed, waiting for anyone to make a move.

"The doom of the world…" the tallest Saurian whispered. He had black hair and eyes and held a lance in his right hand. "The mistake of the Great Beings…" He glanced at his fellow Saurians. "My brothers, we must kill him and spare our world."

"Then you will condemn Voya to a fate worse than death," Ignika spat in reply, his voice trembling with anger and a bit of fear. He glared at his enemies. "Poor fools, even after all these eons, you still do not get it? The Great Beings tied Life itself to me. Kill me, and the elemental power housed within me will no longer be held under control. Life energy would be unleashed upon our world, bringing everything to life!"

Ignika took a threatening step forward, causing some of his foes to back away. "How often do I have to tell you this? Think about it: everything alive… Could you live in a world where the light screams as the darkness extinguishes it, where the air in your lungs begs to be let out, where the rocks will chase you to sate their hunger? Can you really bring such disaster upon Voya?"

"We've heard this tale before," the leader replied. "Lies, I tell you. Lies to make us waver, to make us fear and worship you. But we shall do no such thing. No Saurian has the power to bring forth such disasters. Not even you!"

Ignika let out a low growl. "Is there nobody with the power of Truth under you? Let him use his power on me then, and see that my words are the truth!"

"Your powers are strong enough to deceive even the power of Truth," another one of the hostile group replied. "We do not believe you, cursed child, and never will. Your existence is a threat to our world. Far too many desire your power, and it is only a matter of time before you yourself are corrupted, and walk the path of conquest. We won't have it. For the sake of Voya, you must die."

To everyone's surprise, the Child of Life laughed. "And I suppose you are the ones to bring forth my end? You know my power, you know what I can do. I am willing to spare you. I do not wish for unnecessary violence. Go now, it is your last chance."

Unfortunately, his words fell on deaf ears. "Powerful you may be, cursed child, but we have the strength of unity on our side, as well as a variety of powers even you can not hope to win against!"

"Fine," Ignika seethed, his anger overruling his nervousness and fear. The Death Scythe gleamed in the sunlight as he raised it. "Let us see if you are right!"

His words had barely faded, or the fight begun. The lance-wielding Saurian immediately fired of a stream of electricity from the tip of his weapon, while his five comrades spread out into different directions. As Ignika leapt to dodge the electricity, another Saurian called forth on his power of cyclone, sending forth swirling winds to trap the Child of Life.

Ignika noticed the danger, and with a casual wave of his hand, he brought two nearby benches to life. The two objects raced towards the creator of the cyclones, who had to stop concentrating on his attack or get pummelled by two angry benches. He went for the obvious choice and ran, but the alive pieces of furniture raced after him.

Just as Ignika wanted to mentally congratulate himself on getting rid of one opponent, he suddenly found himself surrounded by at least a hundred Saurians. He gasped.

"The power of Illusion!" he cursed, as he frantically began to reach out with his mind for the source of the illusion. Doing so distracted him, however, and a blast of electricity came from behind the illusionary crowd. The unfortunate child noticed it and tried to dodge, but was unable to prevent the attack from grazing his side.

Angered, Ignika waved with his scythe, planning to unleash Life once more, but a sudden feeling of weakness overcame him, and he sank to his knees, leaning on his Scythe. The illusions around him vanished, and he could see one of his opponents' weapon – a dual headed staff – glowing with a sickening yellow light.

"The power of Hunger…" Ignika gasped, as more of his strength was being drained. Maybe he wasn't as powerful on his own after all? He shook his head. No, that wasn't it. He could destroy them, but he didn't like killing any living being, and using his full powers now would risk harming those humans too…

"Dead Scream."

Suddenly, a sphere of purple glowing energy came flying in Ignika's direction, and hit the Saurian draining his strength. Confused, the Saurians looked around to find out where the blow came from, and saw three human girls in the distance.

"Foul, ignorant creatures... When you break into someone's dimension, do not forget about its protectors!" Setsuna looked at them and tapped her staff on the ground. "Called by a new era, Soldier of Time, Sailor Pluto!"

"Bringer of a new era, Soldier of Silence, Sailor Saturn!" Hotaru readied her glaive.

"Child of a new era, Princess Soldier, Sailor Chibimoon!" Chibiusa took out her wand

"In the name of our planet... We'll punish you!" exclaimed the three.

The inhabitants of Voya were all startled by the sudden, unexpected appearance of the three Sailor Senshi. The one hit by Pluto's Dead Scream was knocked out cold on the ground, the other five glanced nervously at each other, unsure of what to do. Just like Ignika, they were strangers to this dimension, and unused to humans, or Sailor Senshi for that matter. And despite not having the mental capacities of Ignika, the antagonistic Saurians possessed senses acute enough to know that these female creatures brimmed with power.

The hesitation of his opponents gave Ignika the time to recover. He climbed to his feet, then glanced down at his wounded side. Applying only a minor surge of power, he healed the wound, then directed his gaze at his stunned opponents, eyes ablaze with rage. The Child of Life spared a moment to study his unexpected, but very welcome, saviours. Their clothing was strange and colourful, and they wielded strange weapons. But aside from that, it was clear to him that these were the same females he had been talking to earlier. In the heat of battle, he had completely forgotten about them.

Still, it seemed more had changed than just their weapons and clothing. Somehow the power he had sensed in them was now no longer carried deep within, far and unreachable, but at the surface, ready for use. The power these three emitted amazed him, and confirmed his earlier suspicions that they were of the same level – almost – as his own. He closed his eyes for a moment and nodded. They had come to help him, and he was grateful, but the battle was still not over. He could muse over these strange creatures later.

Ignika directed his attention to his foes again. All kindness and childish innocence were gone from his features, his face and expression were cold and hard, his eyes mad. They had tried to kill him. Now it was his turn.

"You are enemies," he hissed, his voice cold and void of any emotion. "You threw my mercy into the wind and did not listen to reason. You tried to take my life, a child's life. You're not worthy of the gift of Life. I, Ignika, Son of Angonce, shall take it back from you!"

His cry of fury snapped the Saurians' attention back to the fight. Once again, Ignika found himself surrounded by a powerful illusion of hundred opponents. This time, though, the Child of Life ignored it completely. He raised his Death Scythe, then slammed it hard on the ground, creating a shockwave of Life energy that knocked his foes on their backs. The illusion vanished abruptly and Ignika stormed towards his nearest opponent. He lashed out with his weapon, only to find it blocked by his enemy's sword. Not caring about that, Ignika hurled his power of Life at the other Saurian, raising the amount of energy inside his enemy to unimaginable heights. His body unable to contain all the power, the Saurian collapsed, knocked out of the fight. But Ignika had already left him behind, seeking a new target.

Blasts of sonic and cyclone were fired at him simultaneously. Ignika rushed straight towards the attack, the sheer power radiating from him knocking the attacks aside. He then hurled a wave of pure Life force at his two opponents, overcharging their bodies just like he had done with the Saurian of Illusion a moment ago. But as he did so, electricity was fired at him from behind. Ignika was unaware of it, too busy with his current attack. Only when Sailor Saturn jumped in front of the blast with raised glaive, did he turn to look.

"Silence Wall!"

The attack of electricity bounced harmlessly of the shield. The lance-wielding Saurian cursed, but did not get the time to attack again, for a certain pink-haired Sailor Senshi attacked his open side.

"Pink Sugar Heart Attack!"

Many energy blasts in the shape of cute pink hearts struck him, knocking him down and out. Only two more enemies remained. And as they saw their allies fall under the combined forces of the Child of Life and these weird females, they decided to try and flee. But they had not counted on Sailor Pluto appearing suddenly in front of them, Garnet Rod ready.

"Dead Scream."

Two more bodies fell down, and the park grew silent again.

Relieved, the four warriors let out a sigh and lowered their weapons. Saturn, who still stood protectively before Ignika, turned to face the white-haired child. "Are you alright?" she asked, slightly worried.

Ignika nodded. "I am, thank you, eh… Sailor Saturn, was it?" When the female warrior nodded, Ignika blushed a bit. She had saved him from that treacherous back attack with that powerful shield of hers. Not that it would have been lethal had he been hit, but still, any damage prevented was welcome. Now that his fury had calmed down somewhat, he felt uncertain and shy again. Saturn noticed it, and gave him a warm smile.

"What do we do with these intruders now?" Sailor Pluto interrupted them, indicating with her staff to the fallen Saurians. Ignika immediately stepped forward, his gaze determined but merciful. He had spoken in rage when he had declared to take their lives away, but now his mind was clear again. He would not kill unless necessary, and he would punish these in his own way.

"Leave them to me, guardian of time." He raised his Death Scythe once more, which started to glow darkly. Life energy shot from the blade into the fallen ones' bodies. Reaching out with his mind and might, Ignika gave his enemies a push back down the road of evolution. Before the startled eyes of the Sailor Senshi, the six Saurians began to shrink and change, until they weren't Saurians at all anymore, but six simple, common and harmless lizards.

"I have turned them back into what we Saurians were millions of years ago," Ignika explained. "They have now been punished… and spared."

Chibimoon nodded approvingly. After having spent so much time in the 20th century in the company of Sailor Moon, Chibimoon understood well the concept of mercy and compassion even towards your enemies. She wanted to say something to the young Saurian, but was also interrupted when Sailor Pluto stepped in front of Ignika and looked at him sternly.

"You said your enemies had no way to cross into this dimension, and yet they did. How?"

"I've been wondering about it as well," Ignika replied, feeling a bit uneasy under the guardian of time's stern gaze. He thought about it for a moment. "Olmak would never betray me, and Gateway has died years ago so I don't get how…" He stopped there, as his eyes widened in realization. "Of course! The power of Adaption!"

Seeing the confused frowns of the Senshi's faces, the Saurian explained: "One of the Saurian powers is Adaption: the wielder of that power can copy a power he sees another Saurian use. If somebody saw Olmak create a dimensional gate for me, they could have copied it… Meaning my enemies do have a way into this world…" He looked at Sailor Pluto with an apologizing look in his eyes. "I'm sorry to…"

Suddenly, he was interrupted as well, but not by Pluto. His ears had picked up a noise in the distance, that grew louder and louder with each passing second. In all of his life, he had never heard such a sound before. It was harsh and whining, and it hurt his ears. He covered them quickly with his clawed hands.

"What in Angonce's name is that awful noise?"

Apparently he was the only one who didn't know, for his three companions all gasped in surprise, their eyes wide but knowing.

"Oh no," Chibimoon exclaimed. "It's the police! Somebody must have warned them upon noticing he couldn't enter the park."

"Or when someone heard the sounds of our battle," Saturn added.

"We have to leave," Pluto announced. She closed her eyes and relaxed, allowing her transformation to disappear. There was a flash of light, and then Sailor Pluto was gone, leaving a slightly tired Setsuna Meioh in her place. Two more flashes and Sailor Saturn and Chibimoon vanished as well, and Hotaru Tomoe and Chibiusa Tsukino returned.

"What's going on? What is a po-lis?" Ignika asked, feeling afraid and nervous. He didn't like the way these three humans were nervous as well. They knew this world, and if they too had a bad feeling, things had to be bad.

"It would take too long to explain that," Setsuna said curtly. She kneeled down in front of the child and placed a hand firmly on his shoulder. "All you need to know is that there are other humans coming. And it would not be a good thing should they see you, trust me. So we have to leave now, and you need to lower your barrier."

"But where will I go?" Ignika demanded, now almost beginning to panic. Everything was happening so fast now, with little time to think about his decisions. He didn't like that. He wasn't Chameleon, who acted first and then thought about it a week later or so.

"With us," was all the stoic older woman said.

"But Setsuna-mama, we cannot go into the city with Ignika like this. It would only cause more panic!" Hotaru chimed in.

"True," her mother admitted. She glanced at Ignika again. "You said you can manipulate and change all forms of life... Can you change your body?"

Ignika smiled a nervous smile. "I… I can, but, I've never tried it before…"

"Now is a good time to try," was the reply he got.

The child swallowed hard, but nodded. "O… Okay…"

He then took a deep breath and did a step backwards. He clenched his fists and concentrated, gathering the power he needed for changing his form. Shapeshifting had always been an aspect of his power of Life, but in the hundreds of years he had existed, he had never used it before. He was happy just looking the way the Great Beings had made him, and felt no need to change. But now it was needed, and thus he had to use this power for the first time in his long life.

Wisps of golden energy began to circle around Ignika's body, and his hair came upright, as if there was a wind blowing from under him. Before the eyes of Setsuna, Hotaru and Chibiusa, Ignika's form began to change. First his feet, going from birdlike to humanlike, and from there on further up. The scales on his legs vanished, as did those on his arms, and his tail and claws disappeared. The child clenched his jaw as he felt his face change, a rather painful experience. Gone were the sharp, carnivorous teeth, human teeth had replaced them. His tunic and accessories remained, as they were not part of his body.

The light died down, and Ignika no longer was a Saurian. He looked like an average human child of ten year old would. His hair was still white and shoulder-length, his eyes still golden and his smooth skin decidedly pale. Slowly, Ignika let out the breath he had held during the transformation, and he opened his eyes.

Content that it had worked, he attempted to do a step forward, only to fall flat on his face as he could not maintain his balance. Embarrassed and grumbling, he pushed himself up from the ground, his cheeks red.

"How in the name of the Great Beings do you humans stay up without a tail?"

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**Next chapter: Eiju Genkai!**

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If you notice any mistakes, please do tell me.


	4. Eiju Genkai

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**4. Eiju Genkai**

Takeshi Asumu was bored. It had been almost an hour since he was, together with other policemen, stationed at the entrance to the park, waiting for experts to arrive. They were ordered to be here because several people reported an abnormality going on in this district. Apparently, there was some kind of an energy barrier preventing anyone from entering.

"Pfft... How can people be so stupid?" he thought, remembering some other recent cases. One was an old lady claiming that her cat was kidnapped by aliens, then there was a guy who painted huge weird signs all over the main square to prevent a 'global catastrophe' that would happen if the almighty spirit entities weren't calmed down by those pictures. Oh, and let's not forget several sect members who danced nude on the flower bed right in front of the city hall. And now this. "Must be solar spots causing stuff or something..."

Just as he was pouring himself coffee from the thermos he always had in his car, something happened. A group of people came out of the park: three women and a young boy who was leaning on one of the girls.

Putting the cup on the car roof, he ran over to them and said: "Stop!"

The eldest one in the group, a lady with long dark-green hair, raised her eyebrow. "I beg your pardon?"

"I'm afraid I'll have to ask you several questions." He took out a writing pad and a pen. "First of all, may I know your names?"

"I am Setsuna Meioh, this is Usagi Tsukino, Hotaru Tomoe and..." Setsuna looked at Ignika, not sure what to say. In their haste, they hadn't had the time to come up with a human name for the disguised Saurian. They couldn't possibly introduce him as Ignika.

"Eiju." Hotaru said. She wasn't sure where that name came from, but 'long life' just seemed to fit well with Ignika.

"Eiju?" Takeshi repeated with a frown on his face.

"Yes. Eiju Genkai. He's my classmate." Chibiusa chimed in.

Ignika dared to look up from the ground and at the pink-haired girl. He had no idea what she just had said, or why they had given him a different name. But he kept silent, as they had implored him to do when they left the strange forest. They'd take care of everything, and if he just said nothing, everything would be alright.

"Is that so? Why is he dressed like that, then?" the policeman inquired sternly. Something just felt off here, but he couldn't put his finger on what exactly it was.

"Our school is organizing a play, and we went to the park to rehearse. Eiju brought his costume along," the girl from the future explained smoothly. She didn't let the tone of the officer's voice discourage her, or else her lie would be exposed. "Now we're going back, 'cause during a battle scene he tripped and hurt his leg."

Officer Takeshi scribbled something on his notepad, then proceeded to study Ignika again. The child avoided the man's gaze altogether. Finally, the policeman pointed at Ignika's bare feet. "Where are his shoes?"

Chibiusa gasped and slapped her forehead. "Oh my, I must have forgotten them in the park. Sorry Eiju-kun!" She then turned to Takeshi, who was writing something down again. "Is it okay if I go and look for them?" When the policeman nodded approvingly, Chibiusa turned around and ran quickly back into the park. Seeing the girl enter the park with no problem, he thought: "There isn't any barrier, alright."

"Is there anything else you need to know, officer?" Setsuna asked calmly. There was nothing about her appearance that betrayed how nervous she in truth felt. If they were caught in their lie, they'd have a whole lot of explaining to do.

Takeshi finished writing something down again, after which he shook his head. "Just one more thing, miss. Did you notice anything strange or peculiar when in the park?"

"Nothing aside from the fact that there was nobody," the guardian of time lied. She glanced at Hotaru. "What about you, Hotaru?"

"Nothing, Setsuna-mama, but I was too busy caring for Eiju with his injured foot, after all," Hotaru lied just as smoothly as Chibiusa had. She indicated meaningfully to Ignika who was still leaning on her for support. If he didn't, he'd loose his balance and fall again.

"Very well," the policemen concluded with a sigh. "That would be all. Thank you for your cooperation."

"You're welcome, officer," Setsuna replied. The policeman walked back to the car and told another one to call the main office and say that the barrier information was faux. Setsuna then placed a hand on Ignika's shoulder and addressed him and Hotaru. "Come, my car's around the corner. Let's go quickly to spare your feet, Eiju."

Ignika had no idea what a 'car' was, but he obediently went along. In this strange dimension, where he wasn't safe from his enemies either, these three women were all he thought he could rely upon so far. At least until his family came for him.

As they walked, Ignika did his very best to remain quiet and to not look around. He had no desire to see more of this noisy world outside the forest. The air here didn't smell good either. All around him he could hear loud rumbling, things zooming by at a high speed and sometimes shrill sounds too.

"Don't be afraid," he heard Hotaru say next to him. "It all went fine. Once we get home, you'll be safe."

Ignika didn't reply, merely kept walking and supporting on the black-haired girl next to him. Setsuna brought them to a strange contraption made of metal on four wheels. When the young Saurian dared to take a peak at his surroundings, he noticed it was a vehicle, for there were other things like it riding around. The Great Beings had had vehicles, but very different from these. Saurians didn't. They walked, and that was that. Judging from what Setsuna had said before, Ignika decided that this was a 'car' and that it belonged to Setsuna.

The green haired woman opened the strange machine and indicated for Ignika and Hotaru to get inside. With a bit of urging from Hotaru, Ignika obeyed. The benches inside the vehicle were from leather from a very high quality, the child observed. In fact, he had never seen such leather before.

Now that he no longer had a tail, Ignika could sit down comfortably inside the car. Hotaru took place right next to him, and put a strange belt around his waist. For safety, she explained when she saw the child's curious looks. Once the disguised Saurian wore his seatbelt, Hotaru fastened her own while her Setsuna-mama climbed in the driver's seat. Just as the oldest of them had buckled her own seatbelt and started the engine, a familiar fourth person got inside the car, pulling the door close behind her.

"Ah, Small Lady, I take it all went well?" Setsuna asked with a smile.

The pink-haired girl nodded eagerly and with a big smile. "I just walked far enough in the park until I was out of sight, then took an unofficial exit. I don't think anybody noticed me, Plu."

"Very good," the guardian of time replied, after which she focused her gaze on the road ahead. "Let's go home, there's a lot that we still need to do."

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Ignika wasn't sure if he would survive this ordeal. He was afraid, and felt trapped like a beast inside this strange, roaring metal vehicle. In the world around him, other such vehicles passed in many directions, all following an uncountable number of different roads. Enormous tall buildings flanked these roads, illuminated with lights in all sorts of colors, all of which shone without fire. Strange poles with boards on them stood everywhere, the boards carrying weird symbols – this world's alphabet, the boy presumed. Besides these things, there were also many humans walking around. More than many, in fact, he had never seen so many living creatures in one spot like this. Where did they all live? How could this stone forest provide enough food for them? He didn't see anything aside from humans, nor was there any vegetation around. Did they eat each other?

He shied away from the outer world and turned his attention to the inside of this car. That in itself was weirder than anything he had ever seen. This vehicle moved without anything visibly making it move, and when Setsuna turned a wheel in a direction, the vehicle turned in that direction as well. There were also a lot of lights shining behind and besides the wheel, and very strange music – if it could be called that – came from apparently out of nowhere. Who was singing or making it?

Hotaru looked at the transformed child besides her. She knew that she could hardly imagine what he had to be going through now, but she did know that it was all incredibly shocking at the very least. In an effort to comfort him, she placed her hand firmly on his shoulder. When Ignika looked at her, she smiled, and he shyly smiled back.

"It's going to be alright, Ignika," she said with all the confidence she could bring up.

"Yeah!" Chibiusa added with a big smile of her own. "Hotaru-chan's house is very nice and big, and it has a very large garden, so it won't be as noisy as it is here in the city."

Half of the meaning of her words was lost on the poor child, but he nonetheless nodded and muttered a thanks. Then he closed his eyes, determined not to open them again until they were wherever Setsuna was taking them. He had seen enough of this world for now.

"I know you have a lot of fears and questions at the moment, Ignika," he heard Setsuna say calmly from the front seat. "And we will do our best to provide you with some answers when we are home. Until then, please, do not worry."

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Ignika felt the vehicle slowing down and finally coming to a halt. The car stopped roaring as well, and he heard Setsuna announce that they had arrived. The Saurian child finally dared to open his eyes again. Hotaru helped him undo his seatbelt, then opened the door for him. Ignika immediately scrambled out of the metal contraption, forgetting that he still couldn't walk too well in his new body. As of such, as soon as he set a step outside the car, he found himself loosing his balance and falling again. Chibiusa helped him up, then let Ignika support on her. Now that he stood relatively firm on his feet again, Ignika took his chance to observe his surroundings.

His eyes went wide with happiness. All around him there were lots and lots of nice, lovely plants, going from beautiful flowers to tall trees. It looked ever better than that strange park had, because it was all so… neat. There was a big field of grass, surrounded by beds of many pretty flowers, who all looked as fine as possible – as if somebody had removed all unhealthy plants and flowers – and those flowers were in turn surrounded by many trees, giving the whole the illusion of looking like an open spot in a forest. The only thing that was unnatural was the path of unnaturally smooth and neat stone the car had travelled upon, and the large construction in the middle of it all.

With a shock Ignika realized that that big construction was actually the house of these people. That Chibiusa girl certainly hadn't been kidding when she said it was big! It almost was like a private fortress. A house to Ignika was a simple hut made out of sticks, branches and bark. This 'house' was a tall construction of stone and fine wood, Ignika could even spot some of the finest glass he had ever seen. Perhaps this house was not that at all, but simply this dimension's version of a Great Beings' fortress? These women held great power, after all, they might be the Great Beings of this world. To the Saurian child, it would explain why they lived in such a wondrous fortress all by themselves, surrounded by very beautiful nature.

He breathed the fresh air in deeply. It smelled so much nicer here than it that awful forest of stone. Here, there was clean air, a beautiful sky and best of all, life. Ignika needed Life around him to feel healthy and happy. And this, this was perfect.

Chibiusa looked at Ignika's happy expression and giggled. "You like it here, I take it?"

Ignika nodded eagerly. "It's perfect, and beautiful! I haven't seen this much beauty since my life in the Fortress of the Great Beings…" His voice trailed of and Ignika sighed. Thinking of those happier times made him sad again, and that wouldn't do. He had to enjoy this place as long as he could. Who knew where else he had to go from these females. The child cursed his inability to walk properly in this new body, for he longed to go and explore these grounds and study the fascinating and new flora and fauna around there.

That had to wait, however, as Chibiusa turned away from the garden and walked in the direction of the house. Ignika, having to support on her to stay on his feet, had no choice but to go along.

"Let's introduce you to all the new things inside first," she explained. "And teach you how to walk properly. It won't be fun for you if you have to rely on any of us for support all the time."

With the pink-haired girl from the future serving as support, Ignika managed to get inside the house. His eyes were wide and his head seemed to want to turn in every direction at the same to observe all new things around him – which was practically everything.

The entrance, for example, was a marvel in itself. It was situated under a low roof supported by nicely crafted wooden pillars and arches. Two doors made out of wood and glass normally closed the entrance, but they were opened now since Setsuna and Hotaru had already gone inside and left the door open. Once inside the entrance hall, more marvels awaited the disguised child.

Inside the house was as fine as it appeared on the outside. The walls were smooth and white, the floor was made of polished and beautiful wood. Strange but colorful pictures and object decorated the walls. There were also more of those strange lights that gave light without fire lined on the ceiling.

The two reached the living room, which again was a surprise for the child. Furniture the likes he found here was completely new and alien to him, and the carpet seemed to be made of an unnatural material, which was true for many objects and things in this place. Ignika didn't really like that. Being the Child of Life, he preferred all things used to build to come forth from natural materials, alive or dead perhaps, but natural at least.

Inside the living room, the two found Hotaru and Setsuna, the latter of which had just put down the phone after checking if there were any messages.

"Chibiusa, your mother called. Our walk in the park took way too much for her liking, apparently." The woman smiled. "I'd better take you home."

"Aww... But I wanted to show so much to Ignika!" Chibiusa frowned. Ignika was confused. Weren't they already home? And how did Chibiusa's mother call? There wasn't any other person here, and Ignika didn't hear anybody calling...

"Don't worry, we'll be fine on our own." Hotaru came to the kids and made Ignika lean on her for support. "I'm sure your mom will allow you to come later." She smiled

"And also, I need you to tell Usagi and the other Senshi that I'm calling a meeting here tomorrow."

"Huh?"

"I doubt that the Saurian who made the dimensional portal was among the ones we defeated. Meaning that they can come again any time, and thus are a threat."

"Oh... Well, in that case..." Chibiusa sighed, then smiled. "Bye, Ignika. Have fun with Hotaru-chan." And she left the room, followed by Setsuna.

After a few moments of silence Ignika asked: "Where are they going?"

"Setsuna is going to drive Chibiusa home." Hotaru explained. Seeing Ignika's confused look, she continued: "She doesn't live with us, but with her family in another part of the city."

"City?" Ignika frowned.

"Yep, that's where we just came from. The place where the park is." It felt nice to be explaining simple things to the Saurian. It sort of reminded her of the time when she was little – which wasn't that long ago – and asked all kinds of questions to Haruka-papa and Michiru-mama.

"You mean that big stone forest?" It didn't help his confusion much, but at least he knew what it was called now.

"Uh-huh. But that's something I'll explain later. We have things to do." The girl smiled.

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**Next chapter: Table manners!**

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Still no reviews. This fic that bad?


	5. Table manners

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

Author's note: replies to the three reviews I got will once again be placed at the end of the chapter. Thanks guys!

**5. Table manners**

"We have things to do." Hotaru smiled.

"Like what?" The boy asked.

"We need to teach you how to walk." Hotaru let go of Ignika and took his hands. "Come on, follow me." She started slowly walking backwards, pulling Ignika along.

Insure, Ignika made a couple of small steps, but lost his balance again and would have fallen if Hotaru haven't caught him. The boy sighed. Just why was it so hard?

"I think I know what the problem is." Hotaru said and helped the boy to stand up again. "You're still trying to walk like a Saurian, like you still have a long tail behind you."

"I... Well, it's true, but, what to do about it?" Ignika frowned.

"To walk like a human, you need to stand straight. Like this." She came behind the boy and straightened his back, like a dancing teacher would. It felt strange to Ignika. He wasn't used to this pose, but at the same time felt that this was right for this body.

Hotaru came in front of him again and took his hands again. "Try walking now. Don't bend your back."

Ignika took a deep breath and nodded at her. Hotaru started pulling him along. One step, two steps, three, four, five... On the sixth he lost his balance again. Hotaru caught him, a smile beaming on her face. "See? It isn't that hard after all!"

"I suppose... But it's hard to keep my back straight." Ignika frowned again. Of course he was happy he had done a few steps almost on his own, but he knew that it was not enough.

"Well, there is a way to help that, too. People use it all the time. It's boring, but helpful." Hotaru helped Ignika to his feet and led him to one of the walls, which was empty except for some of Michiru's paintings. She made Ignika stand with his back against the wall. "Now, stand so that your heels, your shoulder-blades and back of your head will touch the wall." Seeing as Ignika had difficulty doing so, she helped him out, as well as lowered his shoulders properly and positioned the arms. "There. Now, you have to stand like that for some time while I go make us something to eat."

"But how will it help?" The boy asked, confused and uncomfortable.

"Eventually, it will make your body remember this position, thus ridding us of the problem." She walked to the door and said: "I won't be far, so if you need me, call."

Hotaru headed for the kitchen. Making a meal for an alien was something strange and at the same time exciting. She kept thinking about what to give him. "I mustn't forget that he doesn't know how to use any utensils, though..." She thought and frowned. The list of possible dishes instantly became much shorter.

Hotaru reached the kitchen and opened the fridge. "Aha! That will do." She exclaimed and took out the fried chicken legs left over from yesterday. During their life together as a family, Setsuna got so used to cooking for all of them that she often forgot that Haruka and Michiru were away, and remembered it when it was already too late to make less food.

"Now, let's see what else..." Hotaru eyed the fridge. There also were vegetables stewed with soy sauce, but she doubted Ignika would like them. Hotaru closed the fridge and looked into the wall cupboard where they kept dry foods and cereals. "Hmm... Rice won't do... Pasta won't either..." Her gaze fell on a packet of instant-made mashed potatoes. "Nice."

Hotaru put the chicken into the microwave and put on the kettle to boil water. That done, she put the plates on the table. She also took two forks from a drawer, reasoning that eating with chopsticks will be too hard for Ignika, which was another reason why she chose mashed potatoes as garnish. The microwave beeped, indicating that the chicken was done, and Hotaru took it out. There were four pieces on the plate, so Hotaru evenly divided them between her plate and Ignika's. Thinking again, however, she decided to give Ignika three. He's the carnivore here, after all. Meanwhile, the water boiled, and Hotaru made the mashed potatoes.

Looking at the table, she realized something was missing. She took two glasses from the cupboard and went to the fridge again to take some juice. "Apple juice, mmm..." She was about to close the fridge when her gaze fell on the top shelf. There was a nice, tasty sponge cake with cherries and chocolate.

Hotaru's eyes lit up. "He must have never tasted something like this!" She took the cake out. "Oh, it will be a perfect dessert!"

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While the older girl did all that, Ignika stood straight and still against the wall, his thoughts going at a rapid pace. He was having a hard time keeping up with all the new things, no matter how hard he tried. Already today he had seen more things than in the long centuries of his life. He observed the room quietly, with a bit of fear, trying to figure out what all the things in here were for. It was hard to concentrate because his back was aching from standing in such a new and difficult position. How he missed his tail… Still, he knew he had to learn to walk and stand like this if he was to keep up this disguise. Not only would it make him blend in, it would also confuse his enemies. He wasn't worried about his family not recognizing him, they knew his scent and recognize him by that.

He wondered what that Hotaru female was doing. He could hear her talk to herself in the other room. She said she was going to make them something to eat, and he was confused by that. One couldn't 'make' food, right? You catch it, or collect it from the trees or plants on which it grows. There were no trees, plants or preys in the house, as far as he could smell, so how could she prepare food? Unless she already had some in the house… It was possible, and made him fear for what she'd give him. He smelled no fire, so she couldn't be preparing or warming up any meat. That meant vegetables or fruits. He could eat those, if needed, but at heart he was a carnivore, and preferred meat to everything else.

Regardless of what she'd feed him, the child found himself liking Hotaru. She was calm, composed and compassionate, and when he looked in her eyes he saw something familiar: the look of someone who had an enormous weight on his or her shoulders. She also seemed to want to help him adapt, and he was grateful for that.

Not that he didn't like the other two humans he had met, far from it in fact. It was just that the Chibiusa girl was a bit too excited than he was currently comfortable with. And he wasn't sure what to make of that Setsuna woman. She was stern and a bit aloof, reminding him a lot of his sister Gravitas. Only Gravitas was far worse when it came to aloofness. All in all, though, he was happy he had met them, for they had helped him tremendously and had given him a feeling of safety, despite all his nerves and fears about this place. As long as he had people he could rely on, he didn't mind being in scary places.

Just then, a strange, unnatural beeping sound came from the room Hotaru had vanished into, and Ignika wasn't sure what to make of it. Part of him wanted to go and see, but he still wasn't confident in his own ability to walk in this new body, so he remained where he was. He hoped she would come back soon and explain some more things to him.

Sure enough, after a few more minutes, Hotaru emerged in the doorway leading to the kitchen, a curious and slightly excited look in her eyes.

"The food is ready, Ignika, will you come and eat?" she asked gently. She then came closer to him and said: "Try walking by yourself now. I'll catch you if you fall."

He swallowed audibly, uncertain and undecided for a moment, but then he decided to try anyway. He took a deep breath and steeled himself, then hesitatingly set one step, followed by another. His paces were stiff and wooden at best, but he seemed to be keeping his balance at least.

"Keep your back straight, keep your back straight!" he constantly repeated to himself in his head. He looked straight ahead, moving nothing but his legs, his gaze focused on Hotaru's form before him. One moment it seemed he would fall as he stumbled, but he managed to recover and went on, while Hotaru kept walking backwards towards the door. By the time they had reached it, his paces had become slightly more fluent. The purple-eyed girl was pleased. It seemed Ignika was a fast learner. She clasped his hand in hers, then gently tugged him along.

"Come, let's eat."

She took him with her into another room, one that was perhaps even stranger than the last. There were many weird machines in it, more strange lights, and a peculiar round, flat piece of wood elevated by four metal pillars. Surrounding it were more pieces of weird furniture, that resembled those 'benches' from the forest somewhat. Ignika correctly guessed they were meant to sit on. On the round piece of wood stood two round plates of nice white stone, together with two glass cups, two smooth, straight sticks and some very odd looking metal objects. On the round stone plates laid what Ignika guessed was the food. He could smell some sort of meat on it, and though it smelled nice, he was hesitant and uncertain, for it looked so strange. There also was some kind of pale-yellow mash near the meat, and he was unsure what to make of it. He assumed that it was food too, but what?

Hotaru made him take place on what she called a 'chair', right in front of one of those plates with food. He stared hesitantly at it, not quite willing to taste it. The white-haired child simply watched as Hotaru took her place as well. He observed her curiously as she took those sticks in her hands. Was she going to eat wood?

Hotaru smiled, a bit unsure. "Well, now it's time to learn a bit about human culture."

"I thought we were going to eat...?" Ignika said, confused and a bit disappointed.

"We are, but in human society, there are special traditions concerning how to eat food. They are called 'etiquette'. And if you want to blend in, you'll have to follow them."

"Now, these," She moved the sticks in her hand. "Are called chopsticks. Most foods are eaten with them, but to make things easier for you, we won't be using them now." She put the chopsticks away, and took the metal object near her plate. "Instead, we will be eating with this. It's called a fork."

Ignika took the one placed near his plate, and studied it curiously. It didn't have to get any stranger than this. Why eat with tools? What was wrong with using your hands? Besides, this fork looked so… unpractical. When he first placed his gaze on it, he had thought it was a weapon. Apparently not. He realized Hotaru was right again, too. If he wanted to blend in, he'd have to learn.

"So… what do I do with this fork?"

The girl replied: "There are several ways to use it, but for now, take it like this." Hotaru took the fork like one would normally take a spoon. Ignika followed suit. "Scoop the mashed potatoes like this." She did so, and Ignika did the same. "And eat." Hotaru smiled, put the potatoes into her mouth, then took out the fork. "Now repeat all that."

Ignika frowned and hesitated. The yellow mash looked far from appealing. It smelled a bit weird, and though he had studied it thoroughly with his Life powers, he still couldn't quite determine what exactly it was. It had some bits of plant in it, yet at the same time, it wasn't really a plant at all… He sighed as inaudibly as possible, and cast a quick glance at Hotaru. She was looking at him expectantly, no doubt wanting him to try. It wouldn't do to disappoint her, he knew. He might be primitive in her eyes, but he was well brought up, and had manners. Master Angonce had seen to that. Steeling himself, he tasted the mash.

It surprised him both pleasantly and unpleasantly. Pleasantly in that it was not as bad as he had feared, unpleasantly that it still wasn't that good. It had a bit of an earthy taste, far from appealing to a carnivore like him. But he could stomach it, he decided. Hopefully the meat would be better, though. Otherwise, he'd have a problem on his hands.

Seeing that Ignika wasn't really impressed by the mashed potatoes, Hotaru made a mental check not to cook them anymore. She wasn't that good at cooking, anyway. Nevertheless, she decided to move on. "Well, okay. You can eat some more of the mashed potatoes, or put the fork aside, because eating the chicken with hands is acceptable in human society. Even though some people prefer to eat it with a fork yet again."

Ignika raised an eyebrow. "Chicken?" He was happy he could eat with his hands again, he was more familiar with that. But he didn't know what she meant with "chicken". He hoped it was the meat, though.

"Yep, the meat. Chicken is a bird, you see, so it isn't usually referred to as meat," Hotaru explained.

Happily, Ignika reached out to take a piece, but then got an idea. If eating with tools was needed in most cases, he might as well practice. He impaled one piece of bird on his fork and held it up, studying it carefully and sniffing it. It smelled good, and if it was a bird, probably would taste so, too. Shrugging, he tore out a hump of meat from the main piece with his teeth, then swallowed it after munching on it only a few times. He was not used to having teeth that could be used to mash the food fine in his mouth. He was a carnivore: tear out humps of meat, cut them crudely with your teeth into finer pieces, then swallow them whole.

"Stop." Hotaru said sternly. Ignika stopped eating and looked at her, confused. From the look on her face, he realized he did something wrong. But what? Isn't this what she told him to do?

"Put it back on the plate." Hotaru noticed Ignika was confused. "Back where you took it from." Ignika did as he was told. "And pluck the fork out."

"What did I do wrong?" The boy asked, clueless.

Hotaru sighed. This is going to be harder than she imagined. "What you did was perfectly understandable, knowing where and how you lived. But…" Hotaru looked in his eyes. "Humans don't do that."

The white-haired child let his shoulders slump and gave up. He was confused, he was hungry, it was all so new here… He pushed his plate away. "I'm not hungry anymore." He didn't understand what he had done wrong. He had done exactly as Hotaru had instructed him, and now she was angry at him for it. He was embarrassed, by the way she was looking at him, he guessed she was shocked, in a bad way. He tried to get out of his chair, not caring if he still couldn't walk well.

"Wait... I didn't want to upset you..." Hotaru realized that she got too carried away by her teaching, and that comment indeed was too harsh.

"Then why get angry! I did what you told me to!" Ignika shouted.

"Yes, but what you did was not what I meant!" Hotaru said, and then sighed. "Just sit down, I'll explain."

"What is there to explain?" the boy yelled back, his frustration at all his confusion, all the new things he had to cope with, surfacing. "Why is it so important to eat with weapons anyway? Why aren't your hands good enough? Be satisfied with what nature gave you!"

Hotaru was taken aback. Indeed, why? "I... I have never thought about it..." She said, unsure. "I'm sure there is an explanation, but... I can't give it now..." She sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you... It's the first time I have to teach someone basic things... It's hard to know how to teach children when you were one yourself not too long ago..."

"Despite my current appearance and intellect, I'm still a Saurian at heart!" Ignika continued, seemingly ignoring Hotaru's words. "I've been brought up in the best way a Saurian could: by the Great Beings themselves! You can't be mad at me for being the way I was raised!"

"I didn't say anything about that!" Hotaru paused and looked at him. "Yes, you are a Saurian, yes, you are well raised, by the standards of your people at the very least, yes, you could live happily in your world without any concerns or worries about manners. But, you aren't in your dimension anymore, and you have to live as a human. Who knows how long you will be stuck here."

"I don't care!" he bit back. "This dimension is scary and impractical. The way your race behaves, baffling to say the least. I don't want to be like you, and I don't plan to. I'll just stay here and never leave, disguise myself as a plant if needed! At least, until my family comes for me, because they will come!"

"So that's it, huh?" Hotaru said in a low, quiet, hurt voice. She was looking at her hands now. The time when she was a cyborg came back to her. She remembered how hard it was to get used to all those machine body parts, how she wanted to give up and never leave her house. "How dare you... How dare you give up like that! Do you even realize what you have just said?" Not waiting for an answer, she continued. "You were offered shelter, protection, help... Does it matter that little? If you hadn't met us, you would have died, barrier or no barrier! This world has dangers that you haven't seen even in your worst nightmares!" She sighed deeply, trying to calm herself.

Ignika scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Me? Dying? I don't think so. And if you meant during the battle, the only reason I suffered so much damage was because I held back. If I had unleashed my full power, which I am always very capable of, nothing here will remain standing for miles around!" He glared harshly at her, annoyed she underestimated his powers. "And I don't give up. I never do. If I had, I would have allowed myself to be killed ages ago, having my revenge by taking the rest of the world with me!"

"Haha. You know what? You're not the only one who can destroy the world. As Sailor Saturn, I happen to possess the power over Death and Rebirth. It also made me being hunted by the other Senshi who feared my power! But that aside. This world only has nine protectors who possess supernatural powers. Eleven if you count Chibiusa and Tuxedo Kamen. But what I want to warn you about is a thousand times worse." Hotaru stood up and came close to Ignika. "Humans have harnessed the power of destruction with their technologies and machines, more than capable to destroy the world. They use those weapons to threaten each other, even though they know that it will be a war without survivors!" She took out her henshin wand. "I can show you a memory, if you allow me to. It will explain everything better than any words that can ever be spoken."

Ignika shook his head in pity. "You don't understand, do you? Destruction by power or technology, it's all the same and simple. Your powers of destruction are simple, and crude, meant to do simply that: destroy. I am different, and far more terrible in that aspect…" The boy closed his eyes, for it hurt to talk about himself this way. But it was true, and had to be said. He glared at Hotaru. "Destruction is nothing. At best, it is a mercy. The way the world would be destroyed should I do it, is far more terrible. Or didn't you listen when I told my enemies just that? When you destroy the world, everything dies, plain and simple. When I destroy the world, everything lives, and that is so much more terrifying…"

Ignika sighed and shivered slightly. "Don't you see? It doesn't matter what you humans can do with your technology. A mere flick of my powers is enough to make it turn against you. I could even turn your own Silence Glaive against you, and then where would you be? I bring destruction by giving Life, and it is painful and heavy to bear. But nobody will ever understand!" The last sentence was shouted.

"My powers were meant to bring harmony and understanding. You just serve a purpose of destruction, should the situation require it. All my life people have been after me and the forces I wield. None of them understands the burden my powers are, or the doom I represent. If you get killed, the world is safe from your destruction. If I get killed, it only gets worse. So don't think you can understand, because you don't! Nobody ever does, not even my family can, loving as they are." Tears ran down his face now, tears of anger and injustice. "And here I am now, I, the greatest creation of the Great Beings, arguing with an equally powered being because I can't apparently even eat with manners!"

This sudden reminder of what their argue started with made a laugh escape Hotaru's lips. She shook her head, came over to the crying boy and embraced him, letting him cry on her chest. She stroked his hair and said: "Shhh... I'm sorry... For what I said... I know, it is a very heavy burden... But, that is the exact reason why I have to warn you. If humans kill you, and they can do that, no matter what you think, then my planet, my dimension is doomed." She sighed. "I have had my share of trouble and suffering in life. The fact that I'm standing here talking to you is a miracle. Twice. And table manners, well... I just thought we should start with simple things, because you will have to learn much more than anybody ever had to in your world."

"But I already have learned more than anybody in my world!" the child sniffed. "I'm the only Saurian who had education…" Finally, after a few more moments of crying, he wiped his tears away and broke free from the embrace. He sank down on the chair again and steeled himself. "Okay… Tell me how to do this."

Hotaru smiled and sat on her chair again. "It's simple, really. When I said that chicken can be eaten with hands, I meant it. Just, don't take the whole piece and chew meat off the bone. Instead, tear bits from it with your fingers and eat those." Hotaru showed him how to do it. "Some people just do that with a fork. Oh, and the more you chew, the better. We humans evolved from herbivores, you see, so..."

"Herbivores?" Ignika frowned. He remembered how herbivores ate on Voya. "Why would you need to chew then? Don't herbivores swallow rocks to mash the food in their stomachs?"

"Not that kind of herbivores..." It was the first thing that came to Hotaru's head, and thankfully, it was quite fitting as an answer. "I suppose I could give you a lecture on how life evolved here on planet Earth, but you have too much to learn even without that."

"Oh… Sorry…" The golden-eyed child returned his attention to his plate. He took the piece of chicken again, pulled of a small piece with his other hand and took it in his mouth. He tried his best to chew on it, which wasn't at all easy because he wasn't used to it, then swallowed. He looked uncertainly at Hotaru. "Was it good this time?"

"Yep." Hotaru smiled. "Now, be sure to eat it all, because then I'll give you something really tasty when you finish."

"What?" Ignika asked, curious and uncertain.

"It's a surprise." Hotaru winked and started eating her own meal. It was cold already, but it didn't matter.

Shrugging, the disguised Saurian continued his meal. Now that all his nerves and anger had gotten out of his system, he felt better, and could focus better on the meal. He didn't think much of the 'mashed potatoes', but the meat was good. It was soft and had a nice white color, not blackened by the fire at all. He wondered how she had made it so well. Very soon, all three pieces of meat, and half of his potatoes, were gone, and Ignika sat back, waiting for Hotaru to finish.

It didn't take Hotaru long to finish, either. She stood up, took the plates and put them in the sink (because instant mashed potatoes get horrible if being left in the fridge, anyway), and took some paper napkins that were lying on the table not too far from it. She gave one to Ignika and said: "Wipe your hands and mouth with this." and did so herself when he took it. Then she opened the fridge and took the cake from the top shelf.

Ignika did with the strange sheet of material as instructed. It looked kind of peculiar, and again he wasn't sure what it was made of, though inspection with his Life powers revealed some vegetative materials at the core. He then looked at Hotaru and what she was doing. The purple-eyed girl had opened a weird white box with light coming out of it. Inside, he could see many shelves, with on those all kinds of unnatural materials having food wrapped inside them. It felt kind of cold in there, and he knew that things that were cooled usually decayed far slower than things not cooled. He put two and two together and realized that weird white box was used to preserve food. Quite handy, he had to admit. Hotaru then took a plate with a weird looking thing on it from the top shelf and put it on the table. Ignika blinked, unsure what it was. He gave Hotaru a questioning look.

"It's called a cake. I know that it must look really weird to you, but wait until you taste it." She put the cake on the cooking table and took two saucers from the cupboard, then cut two pieces from the cake and put them on the saucers.

Smiling, Hotaru put the dessert on the table and took a teaspoon for herself. "Well now, you can eat it." She sat on her chair again. "I'll be eating properly with a spoon, and you can just take it with your hands."

Ignika nodded carefully and took the weird piece of food in his hands. He studied it from all angles, sniffed at it to try its scent. It smelled quite sweet, and to be honest, delicious. It certainly wasn't meat, but that didn't matter. The smell was alluring. He hesitatingly took a small bite and munched. His eyes widened once again that day. It didn't only smell sweet, it tasted very sweet too, like somebody had succeeded in pulling pure sugar from the few plants that had some of that rare sweet in it. He might be a carnivore by preference, but this was good! He happily took another bite and eagerly started devouring the piece, trying to not be overeager at the same time, and making sure his bites weren't too big as to be unmannered.

Hotaru's face was beaming with smile as he watched Ignika happily eat his cake. Chuckling, she realized what her parents found so cute when she was little. At that moment, Hotaru heard the front door being slammed shut and her Setsuna-mama saying "I'm home!" A few moments later, she came into the kitchen and put the bags with food she bought on the cooking table. "So, how have you been without me?"

"Oh, pretty good." Hotaru smiled and looked at Ignika. "We were just learning some table manners, right?"

Ignika, whose face was all covered with cream, nodded.

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**Next chapter: Double edged blades!**

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**Review replies:**

Raven: Glad you like the story. Don't worry, I'll continue.

SoulLoss: Thank you for reading the story! And you are correct, this is a crossover with Bionicle, at least somewhat. I consider this a crossover with an AU of Bionicle where the Great Beings never created Mata Nui, instead doing what they did. Otherwise, there would be two Ignika's, and we can't have that. About the adventures of the Sailor Senshi, I wasn't planning on repeating all of it, just some references now and then, if I need it for the story. Thanks for the score, and thanks again for reading. I appreciate it.

Mt-At: Well, yes, you could say Ignika is this story's equivalent of a Toa of Life. But there's no need to compare, as there won't be any Toa in the story. I want every Sailor Moon fan to be able to read and understand this story, without flooding them with terms of another universe and fandom. If I wanted that, I would have made this a full crossover. Right now, it's just a Sailor Moon fanfic with influences and elements of another fandom added to it to spice things up and find a good plot. Thanks for reading!


	6. Double edged blades

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

Author's note: I don't know if this should be repeated again, but because it is better to prevent than to fix, I'll say it once more: replies to reviews will be given at the end of each chapter.

**6. ****Double edged blades**

"Table manners?" Setsuna repeated, looking at Ignika. "So I see..."

Hotaru smiled shyly. "Um, oh, that... I just decided he deserved some cake. After all, he had learned to walk with his back straight, and to use a fork a bit." Hotaru sounded proud of the young Saurian.

Setsuna smiled. "Well then... Good job. But regardless of that, you still have to go and wash your face now. Come, follow me."

Ignika nodded and jumped off his chair. He still stood a bit wobbly at first, but he quickly regained his balance, straightened his back and walked after the green-haired adult. She took him back in the hallway, and then further down it until they reached a staircase. Ignika knew what that was, he had seen those in the Fortress of the Great Beings. This one was made of wood though, and was like the rest of the house nicely decorated.

The two ascended the stairs and emerged in another hall on the first floor. Setsuna lead the way, coming to a halt by the first door on the left side of the hall. She opened it and mentioned for Ignika to go inside.

"In here."

The boy hesitatingly entered the new room. He jumped a bit when the light was suddenly turned on, but he quickly calmed down. It was just another one of those weird lights without fire. He took his chance to look around. If possible, this room was the strangest of all he'd seen today. It was quite clean and neat, with walls, ceiling and floor of polished, smooth white stones and tiles. Many weird objects and contraptions were found all around, some made of stone, others of those unnatural materials. There were strange kinds of cups and what he thought of as vases with weird liquids in them. He could look around here for a day and still find new things. He wondered why Setsuna had brought him here, though. She wanted him to wash his hands and face, no? As far as he knew, one needed water for that. And there was no water to be found in this room.

"This room is called 'bathroom'. Here humans do everything related to personal hygiene. You're familiar with that, I suppose?" Not waiting for an answer, she led the boy to the sink and turned on the water.

Ignika blinked, looking at the object that spouted water. He glanced at Setsuna. "Where does the water come from? Does that object have water powers?"

Setsuna chuckled. "No. Humans have found a way to draw water from lakes and deliver it to houses through a system of tubes. It's hard to explain, and you only need to know how it works." She closed the water tap. "Now, to turn on the water, lift this handle up. The more you do, the stronger the flow will be." She showed how to do it. "Don't overdo it, though, or you can accidentally break it. Also, you can adjust the temperature. If you turn it left, it's colder, if right, then hotter. Is that clear?"

The white-haired boy nodded slowly. "I think so… Can I try?"

"Yes."

The Saurian boy hesitatingly reached out to the tap and gave it a light tick upwards. Water slowly came out, at an average temperature. Smiling, Ignika turned the tap a bit to the right for colder water, and raised it a bit more for a faster stream. Then he held his hands under the water and washed the cream from the cake off, then did the same with his face. Once he was sure he was clean again, the pushed the tap down, ceasing the water flow.

"Good." Setsuna smiled. She then came to the wall where towels were hanging on hooks, took one and gave it to Ignika. "Wipe the water with this towel, and let's go back down. I have something else for you to do."

"What exactly?" Ignika asked curiously, as he dried his hands of on a towel. Setsuna just smiled and mentioned at him to come along. Seeing no reason not to do so, he followed the woman again as she took him downstairs into the living room. Once again the Saurian boy found himself marveling and wondering about all those strange objects.

Setsuna came over to an armchair and took the bag that was lying there. "Now, let's dress you up as a human." With those words, she took the clothes she bought out of the bag and laid them out on the couch. Since she was a future fashion designer, she could tell the sizes quite accurately by just looking at the person, so buying the shorts, t-shirt and socks were no problem to her. She wasn't as sure about the underpants and sandals, though...

"Come over here." When the boy did, she gave him the underpants and said: "Start with this. Underpants. You hold them like this, so that these two seams are in the front, put your feet through these two holes, then pull them all the way up." Having explained, she turned the other way. "Oh, and _don't _tuck your tunic into them."

The boy looked at the underpants with wonder for some time, but put them on nevertheless. The fabric felt strange, but not too bad. Straightening his tunic, he said: "I'm done."

Setsuna turned back to him and nodded. "Good. Now take your tunic off." The Saurian briefly wondered why couldn't he do so in the first place, but the answer was more than obvious. Meanwhile, Setsuna took the t-shirt. It was a nice pale-yellow in color and had a dark-grey lizard picture on it. The image was stylized, and the lizard looked like it was crawling up the t-shirt. She didn't really know why she chose this particular one, but it seemed quite fitting, and was neither too baggy, nor too tight-fitting.

"Now, let me help you with this one..." Setsuna came over to the boy and held the t-shirt so that it would be easy for him to put it on. "It's called a t-shirt. Put your hands through the sleeves here and here." Ignika did as was told. "Now pull it over your head. Like this." Setsuna helped him do it. Looking at the boy, she smiled. The t-shirt fitted perfectly.

The next item of clothing to put on were shorts. They were knee-length and quite baggy, made of pale-beige fabric. The top of the shorts was like on training pants – with sewn-in elastic and a lace, and there were two extra square-shaped pockets sewn on the sides of the shorts' legs. The pockets could be closed, as they had velcro fasteners. Setsuna was quite satisfied with them, partly because she bought them on a sale.

"These are called shorts. You can tell where the front is by these pockets. They're always in the front." She put her hand in a pocket to show what she means. "Same goes for any other kind of shorts or pants. Now, just put your feet here and pull them up, just like with the underpants."

Ignika did as she told him. All these new clothes were a bit much to take in, to be honest. The 'tee shirt' wasn't that bad, it was in a way just a tunic that was too short. The child didn't get why it was so oddly colored, nor why there was an image of a lizard on it, but he had to admit that he liked the image. It suited him, he knew. The 'underpants' and 'shorts' would take far longer to get used to, however. He felt restricted in them, the movements and freedom of his legs hindered too much for his liking. Of course, those 'pockets' were handy to put small things in, and if humans wore these then he had no choice but to go along, but overall, he didn't think much of them. At least the color of the shorts was a bit more natural for a piece of clothing. When he had first saw these clothes, he had wondered what sort of animal had hides like these. But a quick scan with his powers revealed that they were made, like almost everything here it seemed, of unnatural materials. That disappointed him a bit, and he made a mental note to ask Setsuna or Hotaru later why this was so.

Setsuna looked at the boy, satisfied with how he looked. Now, all that was left for him to wear were socks and sandals. "Sit down over here." The boy obeyed, and Setsuna continued: "You probably noticed that humans don't walk barefoot. I have bought you footwear, but first put these socks on." She gave them to the boy. Those were simple white socks, nothing special. "Just pull them on your feet so that this part is on your heel." Ignika did as he was told, and Setsuna gave him the sandals. Those were simple open brown sandals made of artificial leather with two fasteners – one to adjust the sandal so it fits well around the foot, other to hold it on. This time the young woman decided not to bother with explanation much. She simply said: "These are sandals, and you wear them like this," and put them on Ignika herself.

Once she was done, Ignika climbed to his feet, testing out the feeling of walking with something on his feet instead of barefooted. It was yet again something he would definitely have to get used to, but luckily it wouldn't be as hard as the shorts. His human feet weren't that great to begin with, preferring his Saurian form overall, and these 'sandals' actually helped to stand firmly on his two feet thanks to their hard surface. The child was glad for them, regardless of being unused to footwear.

Setsuna then took the disguised boy to a mirror in the hallway. Ignika knew what it was, having seen mirrors before in the Fortress of the Great Beings, so he wasn't startled when he suddenly found himself staring at his reflection.

"What do you think?" the adult woman next to him asked, curious about his opinion of his new look.

"It's… different," Ignika replied shyly. It was the first time he saw his human body, too. It was definitely a shock, to say the least. He looked so strange, so deformed, so… fragile. He missed his claws, scales and tail. They gave him a sense of natural safety. This new body didn't do that at all.

At this moment, Hotaru came down the stairs and approached the mirror as well. She smiled as she looked at Ignika. "These new clothes suit you."

"I guess..." The boy said, still looking at himself. Hotaru could feel he was sad about something.

"Setsuna-mama... Now that Ignika is deftly dressed, maybe we should take him to the garden?"

"Hmm, yes, that is a good idea. Lead the way." Setsuna smiled.

* * *

Being outside felt good to the Saurian boy. Ignika didn't think much of being inside all the time. He needed fresh air, plants and life around him, or he'd go nuts. The Great Beings had known that, and he had always stayed in the inside gardens of their Fortress when he still lived with them. The Great Beings had showed him many kind of plants he had never seen before there, and taught him their properties and what they could be used for.

The garden of Setsuna and Hotaru was different from the one of the Great Beings. It was more ordered, more neat and structured. The Great Beings had let the vegetation go where it wanted in their garden, only keeping one main path through it. This was not the case here. Flowers had to stand with flowers, in places meant only for flowers. Same for the trees and bushes. And surrounding all of that was grass. Ignika knew grass, but he had not seen such large open fields full of it before. Voya had been, after all, a jungle world. Great plains had not existed there.

Regardless of how different it was, he still was very pleased and he ran around from one plant to another, trying to see if he recognized it, observing or studying it and trying to find out what properties it had. The child liked the flowers Hotaru called 'roses', they were beautiful but had thorns and could hurt you. Kind of like his family. They were a beautiful family, at least according to him, but they could hurt you if you weren't careful.

Ignika noticed Hotaru looking at another patch of flowers a few feet away from him, and got an idea. She had taught him a lot today, so maybe he should now try and teach her something? With that idea in his head, he approached her hesitatingly and slowly. The more he walked, the better he became at it, but it still felt a bit weird to him.

"You like flowers?" he asked with a smile. The boy always liked it when there were others who admired what forms life could take. He knew all too well what that feeling was like.

Hotaru nodded. "They're pretty, but fragile. Sometimes I wonder what a plant would want should I be able to want."

Ignika grinned and gently grabbed her hands. "Let's find out, shall we?" Those words spoken, the white-haired child with golden eyes reached out with his power of Life. He granted the purple-eyed girl whose hands he held a little bit of his power, and Hotaru's hands began to glow golden as they brimmed with Life energy. She looked at the Saurian boy, startled and confused, but Ignika merely indicated at the flowers.

"Touch one. I've given you a little bit of Life powers. Temporarily, of course."

Hotaru did as he asked of her and touched one of the flowers. Immediately she felt her energy flowing from her hands into the plant, and she felt the urge to make the energy do something, change the plant into what she wanted it to be. She had the power to do so now. The girl remembered her wish to know what a plant would want should it be able to want. Her course of action was obvious. The energy she commanded now immediately responded to her desire and did as she requested. Once it was done, the glowing of her hands stopped, and she did a step back while taking a deep breath. For a moment, she had been able to control Life like Ignika could.

"Water…"

Her eyes snapped open upon hearing the strange, tiny and shrill voice. Hotaru looked around, not sure who had spoken just now. Ignika laughed and pointed at the flower she had touched. When she did, her eyes widened in surprise.

The flower was 'looking' at her, its petals stretched out helplessly to her. Then it spoke again, with the same pleading and tiny voice as before: "Water, please!"

Hotaru stood frozen, not believing what her eyes were telling her. She had done this, she knew. With the power Ignika had lend her, she had given this flower the ability to express its wants and needs. She looked helplessly at the Child of Life besides her, unsure of what to do. Ignika merely smiled again. He waved his hand, almost casually, and the flower returned to normal. What Life had given it, Life had now taken back.

"That's… that's an amazing power, Ignika…" Hotaru finally stammered after a few more minutes of silence.

"I agree, it is amazing," Ignika said with a nod. His face turned grim and his eyes dark the next moment, however. "And yet, the same power I've let you use just now, can be a maddening curse, a terrifying ability, one that can even bring death."

When he saw the expression of disbelief and incomprehension on Hotaru's face, the boy went on and explained: "You have experienced it yourself now, how amazing it is to give life to something. Letting flowers speak, it seems harmless enough, doesn't it? And yet… When one can't control this ability, it isn't harmless at all anymore. This was just one flower. But what if you can't control your ability? What if you keep bringing things to life, give them a voice to express their needs, what then? Madness, that's what. Think about it: everything around you, all alive, all begging, shouting, screaming their demands at you, wanting you to fulfill them. Everywhere you go, hundreds of voices, all at once and never stopping…"

Hotaru gasped as realization began to dawn on her. Satisfied that she understood, Ignika added: "Life is always a double edged blade. You can create wonders and miracles with it, and desire to do nothing but good with it, and still bring forth a living hell for all that lives. You have to be extremely careful with it. It is not like any other power, or even the power to bring the end of a planet, no offense meant to you."

"None taken," Hotaru replied quietly, not quite sure what the boy was getting at.

"Destruction is simple, the result the same. It is predictable, and thus easy to use. I do not say that it is an easy power to bear, not at all, but it is simple in its use. Life is different. The results can always be unexpected, the consequences disastrous… It's not as simple as choosing between life and death. My powers extend to the endless grey zones between both, and that makes them so terrifying and difficult to use and bear. To wield the power of Life… It is a privilege for me, but also a great burden. I hope you can understand that now…"

The thought was still a bit hard to grasp, but Hotaru nodded nevertheless. "How could the Great Beings do that to you...?" she said quietly. "Bestow so much upon a child..."

Ignika shook his head. "No. They trained me to control my power perfectly, to keep peace with my powers, to love the nature and people around me, like a child should..." He sighed, looking at the flowers. "They did not know that the power to give life would have to be used for destruction..."

"Alas..." Hotaru sighed. "They're not the only ones to make such mistakes, though."

Curious, Ignika looked up at her. Hotaru nodded and continued: "Throughout human history, genius scientists created new things and technologies, and other people, whose mind were on nothing but war, turned them into weapons. The energy source that gives light to our houses and the power for the machines to work can also destroy a whole continent, if not the whole planet, and in such a way that life won't return there for decades, and when it does, it'll be deformed beyond recognition. And the inventor had no idea..." Hotaru didn't specify it more than that on purpose, thinking that Ignika had much to learn even without knowing about atomic energy.

Ignika thought about this information. So this dimension too, wasn't free of evil? He should have known, what with Setsuna and Hotaru being the guardians of this world. If this dimension didn't have evil, there wouldn't be any need for guardians. Regardless, there was still another question that bothered him.

"Hotaru, inside the house there are a lot of materials that are unnatural. Even my new clothes aren't free of those kind of materials. Why is this?"

"Well..." Hotaru thought for some time. "It's kind of hard to explain how it came to be this way, and you'd better ask Setsuna-mama about that. But in the modern world, there are too many people for nature to be able to fill our needs. If we made clothes out of natural materials only, there won't be a single blade of grass in the world. So we mix them with synthetic material. Which can't be worn all by itself, alas, as the skin won't be able to breath." She paused. "Everything else is pretty much the same – unnatural materials substituting natural. Problem is..." She sighed. "The production of those materials harms nature yet again. So one often wonders if this is really the right way to go."

"A double edged blade, yet again…" Ignika muttered. "I wonder, is that the way all universes and dimensions work? Can nothing ever have only the desired outcome, and no more than that?"

To that, Hotaru didn't know the answer, and she remained silent.

* * *

**Next chapter: Many meetings!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Yes, the similarities between Hotaru and Ignika was one of the first things I thought of when writing this story. As for Bota Magna and the Spherus Magna System, the way I see it, the Saurians come from a dimension where the Great Beings could not save their home planet (and thus did not create Mata Nui). When they came across Voya and helped it, it felt familiar to them, and because of that they named it after a part of their destroyed home. However, this does not mean that the real Spherus Magna system does not exist. I think it still does, but in three pieces and with no chance of saving. But the inhabitants of Bara Magna should still exist, yes. Those that survived the Shattering, that is.


	7. Many meetings

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**7. Many meetings**

The rest of Ignika's day wasn't too eventful. He had spent most of his time in the garden, and came back inside only when Setsuna called him to eat dinner. He had found that Setsuna was indeed a better cook than Hotaru, as the meal was great, no matter how unusual it tasted to him. It was meat stewed in 'sauce' and 'pasta', perfect to practice using the fork. After that, they drank 'tea', and Ignika received some more cake. This time, however, he had to eat it with a spoon.

Some time later, when the company was sitting in the living room, Ignika found it hard to keep his eyes open, and he yawned. This, of course, didn't go unnoticed by Setsuna.

"Feeling sleepy?" Ignika nodded. Setsuna closed the magazine she was reading. "Let's go to sleep, then." She stood up from the armchair and mentioned the boy to follow her.

Setsuna led the sleepy Saurian up the stairs again. "As you already know, humans like to divide their homes so there is a special place for each activity. Sleeping is no exception." She pointed at the door to the right of her. "This room belongs to Haruka and Michiru, who are away for the time being and will be back in two days. That room" She pointed at the opposite door "Belongs to Hotaru." Setsuna passed to the next door. "This is my room. If you need anything, feel free to come and ask. And this," She made it to the last door. "Is the guest bedroom where you will be sleeping."

The adult woman opened the door and went inside, switching in the light on the way. Ignika followed closely, looking around in wonder. This room too was filled with many new things, but he was too tired to study them. He had seen enough new things for now, he wanted to sleep to give his mind some rest. The only question was where he had to sleep. Normally, a soft spot of leaves under a tree would do for him, but this room didn't have leaves, let alone trees. His eyes followed Setsuna as she walked over to a strange wooden construction, standing on four short pillars. The highest part of the thing was half a metre above the floor.

"This is a bed," Setsuna explained patiently. "We humans sleep in these." She pulled back the plain grey covers and mentioned for Ignika to come over. "Remove your socks and sandals, then lay down on it."

Ignika did as he was told and deftly removed his socks and footwear, but didn't immediately climb in the bed. He eyed it a bit warily, unsure if one could really sleep on such a thing. Hesitatingly the boy reached out with a hand to touch the mattress. It felt soft, which he hadn't expected. Encouraged, he climbed in the bed and laid down on his back.

"Lay your head down on this," Setsuna explained, pointing at the pillow. The Saurian child quickly corrected his position and waited. Smiling, Setsuna pulled the covers over the boy, covering him warmly up to his neck. "You sleep under these covers, they will keep you nicely warm during the night. It may be late in spring, but the nights can still be cold at times." She studied him carefully. "Are you comfortable?"

Ignika nodded eagerly. "It's very warm and soft. Even my chamber in the Great Being's Fortress wasn't this comfortable."

Setsuna smiled again. "Sleep well then. You know where the bathroom is, what it is to be used for, and if you need somebody, you know where me and Hotaru are. I'll wake you up tomorrow morning, so you can prepare for when the other guardians come."

"O… Okay…" Ignika yawned again. "Thank you, Setsuna."

"You're welcome," was her reply. The green-haired woman then went to the door, switched off the light and prepared to leave. "Goodnight, Ignika. Sleep well." Then she closed the door and left the disguised child to his own.

Ignika took a deep breath and then let out a sigh. So much had happened today, so much he had learned. But all in all, he decided, it could have been worse. He had met people who wanted to care for him, like his family did, and for that he was grateful. They would help him, of that he was certain. He only hoped that tomorrow would go as relatively well as today had, when he had to meet all those other guardians and probably do a lot of explaining again. But it could wait, now he only wanted to sleep and regain his strength.

And in the soft bed and under the warm covers, it didn't take long.

* * *

The next morning Ignika woke up earlier than the girls, and had to spend his time alone until they would wake up and cook him something to eat. Having to rely on others to get food for him was strange and not at all pleasant, but he wasn't sure what kind of the food in that white box he would be allowed to eat. Besides, some foods could be poisonous unless cooked. He sighed. So many new, strange things...

He went to the garden, sat under a tree and started thinking about the upcoming meeting with the other guardians of this dimension. What were they like? Adults, like Setsuna, young teenagers like Hotaru, or children like Chibusa? Would they be hostile, seeing him as an invader, a threat to their world? Or would they protect him like Setsuna and Hotaru did? Would they blame him for the inevitable battles with Saurians to come, or would they fight at his side? For fight he would, this dimension faced a danger from his world, it was his duty to take care of the matter.

So caught up was he in his ponderings, that he didn't notice how time flew by. He snapped out of his thoughts only when Hotaru came right in front of him. "Good morning."

"Huh? Oh, Hotaru, yes, it's a good morning indeed." The startled boy quickly said. The sun was already shining brightly, while he woke up at dawn.

Hotaru chuckled. "It's just a way of greeting among us humans, not a comment about the weather." She sat next to the boy. "Setsuna-mama left somewhere, but promised to be back before the meeting..." She looked at the Saurian. "What are you thinking of?"

"Well, to be honest, I'm a bit nervous about the meeting... Not sure how the other Sailor Senshi would react to me."

Hotaru smiled. "Well, I don't think you should worry that much. All of them have really nice, personality, they are great friends and comrades." The boy didn't seem much relieved, but nevertheless nodded. "There's still quite some time before the meeting, however. Why don't we go inside and eat first?"

"Okay..." He stood up and followed Hotaru inside.

* * *

A few hours later, two girls could be seen walking along the road to the Outers' residence. One of them had short blue hair, and was wearing a white knee-length skirt and a pale-blue blouse. The other girl had raven-black hair that reached down to her hips, and was wearing a tight-fitting black top with a strass dragon pattern and light grey pants.

"Why do you think Setsuna called a meeting at her house instead of my shrine?" Rei asked. She wasn't exactly fine with leaving her duties as a Miko, especially since it was Sunday, when most people are free from work and have time to fulfill their spiritual needs. But her duty as a Sailor Senshi also wasn't a thing to be disregarded, so she had no choice but to come.

"I don't know... But I think there is a reason, and it might be quite serious. After all, she knows that your shrine is a much more convenient meeting place for us." Ami answered. She was fine with going such a long way to have a meeting, though regretted that she didn't have more time to study.

As they were walking down the path towards the house, Rei noticed a white-haired boy in the garden. She stopped and looked at him. Her spiritual senses told her that there was something unusual about this boy, some kind of strong energy... Very strong energy. "Strange boy..." She muttered.

"Rei-chan?" Ami called.

"Ah, yes, Ami-chan, let's go." Rei followed her friend to the entrance and rang the doorbell.

The door was opened by Hotaru. "Oh, hello, Rei-chan, Ami-chan. Setsuna-mama is not here yet, but please, come in."

* * *

Ignika's powers told him of two approaching figures, and he figured the first guardians had arrived. He stayed in the garden for now, observing them from a distance. Two more females walked up to the house. For a moment he thought one of them saw him, sensed him or noticed him, but the feeling passed quickly. Then Hotaru opened the front door of the house and let the two in. Feeling more curious than scared for the moment, the transformed Saurian ran to the back of the house and entered through the back door. He wished to look at these two newcomers from up close.

He closed the door quietly behind him, trying not to draw any attention, hoping to avoid being noticed. He heard voices coming from the 'living room' as Hotaru had called it. He tiptoed to the kitchen door and carefully leaned his head through the door opening, gazing through the living room. Hotaru had taken the two new guardians to sit in the 'couches' as Setsuna had called them. They were asking what was going on, but Hotaru was avoiding giving a straight answer for now, for which he was grateful.

He studied the guardians carefully. They hadn't seen him still, which was fine with him. One of the girls had blue hair, and she carried a locked power within her just like Hotaru and Setsuna did. She wasn't in the state she could use them, which calmed him a bit. A scan of her mind with his powerful will revealed to him her powers were water based. Ignika liked water, Life on Voya had begun in the oceans and seas after all.

The other girl was very different. Her hair was long and black, reminding the boy of his sister Traveller. She too wasn't in the state she could use her powers in, but still he could feel some sort of power radiating from her. Not a physical power, but more a powerful will or something akin, just like he had great mental capacities besides his great elemental Life powers. He scanned her mind and found out she carried the power of fire, which seemed to suit with the fierce spirit he felt from her. When he tried to probe a little bit deeper in her mind, however, she seemed to sense him and turned around, looking straight at him.

"Come out." She said. Ignika had no other choice but to obey and enter the room. "Didn't your mother tell you that eavesdropping is a bad thing?"

"I never had a mother..." The boy muttered, looking at the ground.

Hotaru came over to the boy's side and put her hands on his shoulders. "This is Eiju. And, well, he's the reason why we're here..." She said, for the lack of better words.

"So I guessed..." Rei said. "A human with such a strong energy is quite a rarity..."

"Um... Thank you, I guess..." Ignika said.

"Now, now, Rei, don't rush things... Can't you see the child is shy and ashamed of being caught?" The blue-haired girl smiled. "I'm Ami Mizuno. You can call me Ami-chan."

"My name is Rei Hino. Rei-san for you." The black-haired girl said.

Ignika blinked, staring at the two new girls with a confused look on his face. He glanced at Hotaru. She didn't look confused, so he guessed adding those meaningless words at the end of names had some meaning. "I'm confused, Hotaru. Are their names Ami or Amichan, and Rei or Reinsan? How many names do you humans…" He stopped himself quickly, clasping a hand before his mouth and quickly looking back at the ground. "I didn't say anything!"

Rei and Ami looked at each other. This certainly wasn't something they expected. "So you're not human..." Rei slowly said, put her back against the couch and crossed her arms. Her eyes were fixed on the boy. "Then what?"

"Rei-chan, take it easy... Certainly you know that Setsuna wouldn't have let him stay in her house if he was evil or dangerous, let alone let him meet us. Although I admit, it's pretty strange." She sighed. Then she smiled and looked at the boy. "Don't be afraid, little one. We won't hurt you."

Ignika wasn't convinced and raised an eyebrow. It was his turn to cross his arms and look at them. "I've heard that before," he said bitterly and a little angry. "It's that I could sense your pure spirits, else I wouldn't trust you as far as I could throw you."

Before either could get offended, Hotaru explained quickly: "Please, Ami-chan, Rei-chan, don't be angry with Eiju. He's far from home, without his family, all against his will. And he's never seen humans before until now."

Ami frowned. "He looks human…" she began, but Ignika interrupted her with a smile.

"I'm a shapeshifter. What you're seeing is not my true form," the child explained eagerly, always happy to put his powers in a positive daylight. He looked at Hotaru, to see if he didn't say too much. She didn't seem to mind. Ami and Rei only ended up more confused, however, and they stared in disbelief at the white-haired child. They hadn't met a friendly being who took on a human disguise as of yet.

"Setsuna-mama will explain everything once she gets back," Hotaru assured her two friends. Just then, however, the doorbell rang again.

As Hotaru walked towards the door, she couldn't help but think: "Oh, Kami-sama, it's definitely not going well... I wish Setsuna-mama came home soon..." She opened the door.

"Oh, Mako-chan, Minako-chan, come in. Rei and Ami are already waiting in the living room." Hotaru smiled.

"Thanks." Mako said. She was wearing a tight-fitting white t-shirt with open shoulders and a pale-green skirt, while Minako came to the meeting wearing a light-yellow sundress.

The two came to the living room. Minako asked: "How are you guys doing?" And, upon noticing Ignika: "And who's the new lad?"

Rei chuckled. Minako's mood was just so sunny, she couldn't help but smile. "Apparently, a very strong shape-shifting lifeform from another dimension."

"Is he now?" Makoto asked, coming over to an armchair. "Well, I guess the location of the meeting is justified then." Having sat down, she introduced herself to the boy: "I'm Makoto Kino. You can call me Mako-chan. And this is Minako Aino."

Ignika made a small bow. "I am Ignika, but apparently I need another name as a human, so I suppose you can call me Eiju Genkai. Whatever that means." That last part was added in little more than a whisper, meant mostly for himself. He then moved on to more serious matters, namely studying these newcomers with his powers.

This Makoto girl had a very determined spirit, probably was headstrong as well, and her physical strength was greater than any of the other girls in the room. More impressive was the power locked within her, however. An investigation with his powers revealed to him that Makoto wielded some power related to thunder and lightning, a powerful and destructive force. Though, of course, nowhere near as powerful as Life.

The second girl was more confusing, power-wise at least. And he had never seen such an upbeat and cheerful and sunny spirit before. She seemed like the total opposite of his youngest sister Nightmare. Her powers were even more puzzling. He couldn't put an element on them. They felt strong and powerful, but not in the same way the others' powers were. It was as if the source of her power wasn't something physical, but an emotion. Like… love? Could somebody really have the power of love?

"Eiju Genkai?" Ami raised her eyebrow. "Who gave you that name?"

"Umm... Hotaru and Chibiusa..." Ignika said.

"I see... Well, 'Eiju' mean 'long life', 'Genkai' means 'mystery'. I guess it's fitting?" Ami smiled.

"Well, yes, indeed..." Ignika nodded.

Then, Hotaru came into the living room, carrying a tray with a big teapot, cups for all, and some biscuits. "Anybody up for some tea?"

Before anybody could answer, though, the doorbell rang again. "Oh, that must be Chibiusa and Usagi." She handed the tray to Minako and went to open the door.

"Hello, Hotaru-chan!" Chibiusa gave her friend a hug, and turned around to wave Usagi's parents who were just about to drive away.

"Hi... Usagi-chan, Chibiusa, come in. The others are already here."

"See?" Chibiusa looked at her so-called older sister angrily. "I told you we should have left half an hour earlier, but nooo, Usagi's favorite anime was on..."

"Hey, you're not the one to talk here, Chibiusa! Who overslept and then spent two hours looking for her phone because she forgot what time is the meeting?" Usagi put her hands on her hips.

"But you didn't remember either...!"

"This is going to take a while..." Hotaru thought. Then said aloud: "Umm... Why don't you go to the living room?"

"Ah, yes, of course. Sorry, Hotaru-chan." Usagi smiled.

The three girls entered the living room, and Chibiusa said: "Hi, Eiju!"

Minako smiled: "It's okay, we already know some things, you can call him Ignika."

"Eiju? Ignika? Hey! Why am I always the last to find things out?" Usagi frowned.

"Because you're always too late." Rei shrugged.

"Hey! That's not fair!"

Ignika could only stare at the argument going on before his eyes. Oh, he was no stranger when it came to arguments. Nightmare and Chameleon did it practically all the time. But still, these were the guardians of this world? How safe could it be then, he wondered. Still, he took his time to study this 'Usagi' girl. He already knew Chibiusa and knew her powers, but Usagi was as new as the others were. He did notice that the two resembled each other a lot somehow, but he couldn't immediately put his finger on how. Sisters? Siblings?

A fraction of his mental powers revealed to Ignika that the girl with long blonde pigtails had a very big heart, and a very kind spirit. Kinder perhaps than any he had ever come across. This was a spirit who cared for all that lived, just like him. He liked that, and it pleased him to see it in this dimension. Her powers were, however, hard to understand, just like Minako's had been. They seemed based on light, love and other such happy things. Strange, very strange. He wondered how these girls had received their powers, or what its source was. Had it been granted to them by some higher life forms, too?

His thoughts were interrupted, however, as a portal opened in the far end of the room. The girls immediately fell silent, looking at it. Out of the portal came Sailor Pluto. The portal closed, and she transformed back into Setsuna, wearing her usual flawless lilac suit.

"I see that everybody has gathered?" She said and glanced at every single girl. "Then let us begin the meeting."

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**Next chapter: Confrontation!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Though this is kinda a spoiler, I'll answer anyway: yes, a Great Being will appear in the story, even play quite a major role. But that's only around chapter 28 or so. As for action, you'll get some in chapter 9. Thanks for reviewing!


	8. Confrontation

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**8. ****Confrontation**

Ignika didn't say much while Setsuna told the other Sailor Senshi what she had learned from him yesterday. Only occasionally did he, shyly, add something, or murmur his agreement. As the story unfolded before them, the others' eyes widened, occasionally they gasped and more than once they glanced in Ignika's direction in shock or amazement. He felt uncomfortable under all of it. Yesterday, he only had to deal with three strangers. Now there were five more, and he felt odd and out of place. He wasn't human long enough yet to even begin acting like one convincingly, and it made him feel stupid between all these human girls. He wished there had been at least one male.

"Now, let me sum it up..." Ami said. "The new threat to our world is a race of bipedal sentient lizards with supernatural powers who call themselves Saurians and are after Ignika. Am I correct?"

Setsuna nodded. "Yes, basically, it is so."

"Jeez... And to think our world has suffered enough..." Usagi sighed.

Chibiusa glared at her. "Hey, don't forget about the future. There are plenty of bad things that technically haven't happened yet, even though we have dealt with them a long time ago."

"True..." Usagi sighed again.

Ignika blinked. "What?" There were many strange things he had heard and seen so far, but this was the strangest. "Have already dealt with the problems that haven't even happened yet?"

"It's a long story..." Chibiusa said.

"Indeed." Rei nodded. "For now, we have a much more important problem on our hands."

Makoto rubbed her chin, thinking, and said: "The portal they made was in the park... It is possible that the next one will be there again."

Setsuna nodded. "It is indeed very possible, and we must keep watch over it in order to counter every attack."

Ami looked in Setsuna's eyes and said slowly: "Setsuna... You were at the Time Gate again?" The adult woman nodded. "And what have you seen there?"

"Everything." She sighed. "But nothing that I could tell you. Sometimes I can give hints about the future, but few... You know that."

Ignika looked at the green-haired woman with newfound respect. Time was one of the few powers the Great Beings had not given the Saurian race. But he did remember that they had made plans for such a child, just like him, but they hadn't found a suitable host, and so the plans were put to rest.

But Setsuna had the power of Time, and he knew it had to be a burden, especially if she could travel through time and know the future. To know but not be able to tell out of fear for the future, it was a burden. Just like him, just like Hotaru. Great powers and an even greater burden.

"Well, I guess we need to make a schedule... But that can wait until we're back to my shrine." Now that things were more or less clear, Rei wanted to end the meeting as soon as possible so she could return to her work.

"I think we're forgetting something." Minako said. Others looked at her, not quite getting what she meant. "Ignika said that his family will come for him one day. What if they mistake us for enemies, or worse, what if we do?"

Rei raised her eyebrow. "A valid point from Minako? Wow."

But unlike Usagi, Minako just smiled. "Ignika, could you please describe your family, so that we know them when we meet them?"

"Well… My brother Chameleon has brown hair and eyes, and his scales and skin are sand-colored. His tunic will probably be brown, too, and he wears golden bracelets with emeralds in them. He's armed with two daggers…" the white-haired child replied shyly and hesitantly. "Sister Traveler has black long hair and a black tunic. Her eyes, scales and skin are blue, and she has armor on shoulders and shins. And she wields a trident."

He paused for a moment, to see if they were keeping up. Once he knew they were, he continued: "Then there's sister Gravitas and Nightmare. They'll mostly stick together, and use a shield and katana respectively. Sister Gravitas has green eyes and scales, grey hair and skin, and her tunic is silver in color. She has golden bracelets with rubies on her ankles. Nightmare has red eyes, scales and skin, and black hair. Her tunic is red too, and she has a golden tiara and bracelets."

Uncertain, he looked at the assembled group of girls. "Does that help?"

"Not really, but we'll try to keep it in mind." Minako laughed.

"Don't listen to her, she's joking." Hotaru said, smiling. "I'm pretty sure we won't miss a group like that."

"Well, duh." Usagi said.

Rei sighed and shrugged: "As usual, Usagi has nothing good to say."

"Hey, it's not my fault! You guys have said all the important things already!" The blonde frowned.

Chibiusa smirked. "That's because you had nothing to say in the first place."

"That's it!" Usagi suddenly grabbed Chibiusa, made her fall on her lap, and started tickling her. Everyone watched the scene for some time, but then Mako coughed to get their attention.

"Well, now that the most important points are settled... Ignika, do you have any questions you'd like to ask while all of us are here?"

"Well… You all must have a lot of experience…" the boy began shyly. "So maybe you could tell me how to be a good human?"

The girls looked at each other, smiling, some even chucking a bit. "Well, it's too hard to say in a few words..." Ami said. "I doubt you could tell us how to be a good Saurian, either."

"Besides," Chibiusa chimed in. "You already have Hotaru and Setsuna as teachers, and they're good at that."

Hotaru smiled. "Thanks... But it will be even better when Haruka-papa and Michiru-mama finally come back."

"True." Setsuna smiled. She missed them as well. "Anything else you'd like to know?"

"Well, I was wondering… You see, once my family comes, we won't be able to immediately leave again, Voya isn't safe for us anymore… So I'll give them human shapes too, but…" He looked questioningly at Setsuna and Hotaru. "Will you be able to teach four more Saurians to be humans?"

Hotaru's eyes widened as she thought of that possibility. It was one thing to teach a ten years old child, but four adults at once... "I... I don't know..." She started nervously.

"Do not worry about that too much." Usagi said, happy to be able to make a valid point. "Five Saurians are indeed too much for one household, but!" She raised a finger. "Do not forget that it is our common duty to protect the universe and help people in need, so we can solve the problem."

Makoto chuckled. "Indeed. They can live with different Senshi. Some of us live alone, so we won't have to worry about other people finding out."

"If you think you can… Not to be rude or anything," he added his apology quickly, not wanting to offend the guardians of this universe that had obviously been through a lot already. "But I know my family, and I know you might not find them the easiest persons to deal with. I'm a child, and eager to learn, but others…"

It was true. He loved his family dearly, but they were an eccentric bunch at best. Gravitas was so aloof they often wondered if she even was aware of her surroundings, Chameleon so reckless that even being in a new dimension wouldn't make him more careful, Traveller insanely protective of her little brother, and Nightmare could easily be mistaken for a sadist, though one with a caring heart then. Could these people deal with his odd brothers and sisters, he wondered.

"Well, as a wise man said, 'Deal with problems as they come'. So for now, we must focus on protecting the city from Saurians and not allow them to get their hands on you." Ami said.

Rei, whose patience was running rather thin, stood up. "Well, now that that's settled, I think the meeting is over."

Ignika raised an eyebrow at their antics. Ami's saying didn't make much sense to him. "The Great Beings made that mistake, and it cost them dearly, at least, that's what Master Angonce seemed to imply." He glanced at Rei, uncertain and a bit disapproving. "And why be so hasty to leave? Why do you not ask any questions about the enemy you will be facing? I know my race, I know the powers granted to them by the Great Beings. Valuable information, yet nobody here asked for it yet. Is this the way in this dimension? Seems foolish to me."

"My haste is caused by the fact that I have duties besides being a Sailor Senshi, and I don't like disregarding either of them. That's why our usual meeting place is my shrine, I can carry out both of them that way." She sat back down. "As for not asking about the enemy, there are several reasons for that. One: no matter how great your knowledge is, I doubt you remember every single Saurian on your planet. Two: even if you manage to tell us all that, you simply can't know what Saurians will come to the next attack. Three: you can't know who exactly will be there to counter an attack, because we will be keeping watch in turns. Because of the last two reasons, it's impossible to think up a strategy beforehand. And lastly," She looked at the young Saurian. "Our usual enemies, the youma, always had a variety of very different powers based on practically everything, and things were going so that we didn't even know when a new youma was born until it attacked an innocent soul. So finding out the problem and thinking up a quick decision of how to deal with it is the style we're used to. That's all."

"You underestimate me," Ignika snapped. "My mind is far greater than any of you seem to think. I remember every power the Great Beings granted our race, and I could tell you, so when those powers do get used against you, you'll react just that one second quicker because you'll know the full extend of their powers." He didn't really like the attitude of these guardians. Deal with it as it crosses your path? That's one step down to destruction. "I know roughly how rare or common the powers are, so I could tell you the chances of encountering such a Saurian. I could tell you a whole lot, but apparently such knowledge isn't needed." He glared at all of them. "Deal with it when you encounter it? Let me tell you something, I knew what I was dealing with for five hundred years, and look where I wound up!"

With that said, the disguised Saurian child stormed out of the room, straight to the garden, hoping to calm down there, because he was boiling by the other guardians' seemingly lack of worry. These weren't mindless soul stealers or whatever, these were intelligent individuals coming to attack, with dangerous, deadly powers. How could they be so careless? How did this dimension survive for so long? He didn't understand, his powerful mind couldn't grasp it. Only Setsuna seemed reasonable worried, or else she wouldn't have called the meeting in the first place. Not for the first time, he wished his family was here. They knew perfectly what they were dealing with, they could respond accordingly, correctly and immediately.

"Please…" he whispered between clenched teeth. "Get here soon…"

At that moment, he heard quiet footsteps behind him. He didn't turn around. He was angry, and didn't care about whatever those Senshi would say to him. Still, he was a bit startled when Setsuna put her cold hands on his shoulders.

"Ignika. What you said is perfectly understandable, reasonable and logical. But you mustn't forget that they are children." Ignika looked up at her, not quite understanding. "An average human lifespan is 80 years. A human reaches maturity only when he or she is 18, and usually become fully independent adults only by 25 or so. And when they reach 60 they are already too old." She sighed. "You speak with the wisdom of centuries of your life, but they have lived less than 20 years in this world, and spent less than five years fighting. To them, the world is still very simple and bright." The old woman sighed again. "But I know it isn't so."

"There are enemies coming," he seethed, still mad. "Enemies with powers you can't begin to imagine. They can be like my brother's, chameleon so good the user is practically invisible. Will they have time to improvise as an insanely well-camouflaged dagger slits their throat? Will they be able to improvise if a Saurian with teleportation teleports them to the sun? Will they be able to fight against the power of fear, like Nightmare has? Can they resist the overwhelming fear, as it builds up so much the body and mind can't handle it anymore and crumbles? Can they?"

He turned around and glared at the guardian of time. "I've seen it happen, time and time again, and those are only three powers. There will be no time for improvising, for dealing with it as the moment comes. It is being prepared, or die. How do you think I survived all these years? I knew it was coming, I knew what was coming. Do they know? And if they don't, how can they be prepared?"

Setsuna sighed. "Calm down. For now, we have an element of surprise on our side. The enemy doesn't know our powers and thus isn't prepared to counter them. If you know what you have faced and will be facing, so do they. But our powers are of a different type and source. Each of us is blessed with energy of a whole planet. Do you honestly think it is that easy to kill us? Also, we Senshi exist as far as our planets exist. If we die, we are always reborn. All the girls you have met today, except for Usagi have died and been reborn five times in their short life in this century, not to say about the countless millenia before and after."

"The enemy is relentless, Setsuna," Ignika replied bitterly. "Five hundred years, remember? Five hundred years they've been fighting, searching, destroying. Battling against the power of Life itself. Never giving up, never stopping. What does a long life mean, what does rebirth mean, if the enemy keeps coming, patient, dangerous and deadly? It can outlast you. You are not immortal like I am. Regardless of your rebirth, you die, leaving the world defenseless for the small moment the enemy needs. I wish I could calm down, but you are underestimating this enemy. This enemy has time, and patience."

"True. But believe me when I say this, this time the enemy won't wait and try to outlast us. Great battles are coming, and it is uncertain who will say the last word. But for now, it is safe to wait and act as the situation goes." She took her hands off the boy's shoulders and did a step back, indicating that the talk was over.

"I suppose you do know better than me," Ignika called after her. "And maybe I am worried too much. Five hundred years of running will do that to you." He sighed deeply, and let his shoulders hang. The white-haired boy shook his head sadly. "I wish the others were here. They would understand, they'd calm me, comfort me…" Ignika glanced over his shoulder at Setsuna. "Tell me this: will they come?"

"Yes. And perhaps sooner than you think." She turned away and walked towards the house, but stopped halfway. "As for comfort, speak with Hotaru. That girl had a very hard life herself, even though it involved only one rebirth... If anybody can understand anything, it's her." And she went inside, leaving the boy alone in the garden.

Ignika shook his head. "Hotaru? Perhaps… But did she spend five hundred years of her life running?"

There was nobody to answer, and for once, Ignika liked it that way.

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**Next chapter: Truth of his words!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: I have a pretty good idea of how I'm gonna portray the Great Being that will show up in the story, don't worry. Still, thanks for the tip, as well as thanks for reading and reviewing! =)


	9. Truth of his words

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**9. Truth of his words**

The next day after the meeting Rei, Ami and Minako went to the park as planned.

"I still can't believe you agreed to skip college for this," Minako said for the thousandth time during their walk. "I mean, you know me, I'm not that good of a student, anyway, but, you?"

"Well... For a student like me, I think it isn't a sin to skip several days of college... Besides, I have already taken all home assignments for as much as three weeks, so no problem at all." Ami blushed.

Minako just shook her head. To her, skipping college was having fun and definitely not making up for it.

"Besides, Ignika's words left me quite worried." She took out her mini-computer. "Should a portal occur, I want to analyze it and gather data in order to predict the location of the next one. And you, Rei?"

Rei was silent, and quietly probed around with her spiritual powers, looking for any signs of abnormality. "Ignika's words worried me, too. Perhaps we're indeed overconfident."

"Chillax, we have beaten all the villains who came our way, even Sailor Galaxia and Chaos. What can possibly go wrong?" Minako carelessly said.

Rei didn't reply, for her senses told her something was off. They were warning her of approaching danger, and she knew from experience to heed the warnings. And currently, she knew of only one danger that threatened her world, and so she knew what she was being warned of.

"A gate is opening…" she told her two companions. "I can feel it… This way!" Not waiting for a response, she ran of in the direction she felt the disturbance from. Ami and Minako were right behind her, trusting their friend. As they ran to the place where the dimensional walls were being breached, they transformed into their Senshi forms, ready for battle.

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Just as Sailor Mercury, Mars and Venus arrived at the place of the disturbance, next to a small pond, the portal opened completely, allowing four creatures to pass through. This was the first time these particular Senshi encountered a Saurian looking like a Saurian, and their appearance startled them, regardless of having been informed beforehand of these alien creatures' looks.

The four Saurians all looked different, indicating they each possessed a different power. One was a male with red scales, yellow skin and long black hair. His weapon was a staff that looked like a snake wrapped around a branch. The second was a younger male, with blue scales, pale green skin, and just as the first black hair, albeit short. His weapons were the claws on his hands, each being two foot long and wickedly sharp, as well as unbelievably hard and strong. A trait all Saurians with his power shared, the Great Beings had altered their claws to be stronger.

The other two were female Saurians, though they differed greatly. They weren't of the same age, which explained the difference in size. One was as tall as a grown man, the other more the size of a teenager. The tallest carried two short swords, one in each hand, and had sand-colored scales and skin, her hair being brown and long. The other carried a glaive, and her scales were black, her skin and hair red.

"Find the child!" the male with the staff ordered. "Sniff him out, then capture him. We need him alive!"

The others nodded soundlessly, but just as they prepared to head in different ways to search, somebody called out to them, freezing them in their tracks.

"Stop!" Sailor Venus called. "How dare you break the walls of this dimension and threaten Life itself!"

"We shall not allow you to destroy our world. I, Sailor Mercury, Soldier of Wisdom, shall see to it!"

"Do not mess with the forces you do not comprehend! I, Sailor Mars, Soldier of Flame, shall teach you respect!"

"And I, Sailor Venus, Soldier of Love, will make sure you never forget what you learned! Together..."

"We'll punish you!"

The Saurians gaped at them. First, they never had seen a human before, so that was a shock. Secondly, they found the outfit of the Senshi ridiculous, for it offered no protection, and left places uncovered that didn't even have any natural form of defense. And finally, they were stunned, trying to figure out if these three females had been serious about that speech. They would have laughed, if the situation wasn't so serious and if they didn't have a mission to complete. Regardless of looks and silly speeches, these were hindrances that had to be removed. The male with long claws, however, realized something from the Senshi's words.

"They know of the Child of Life," he told his companions. "They mentioned Life itself, which can only mean him…"

"You're right, Density," the staff-wielder replied. He turned his snake-like eyes to the Senshi and hissed. "Where have you hidden the child, creatures? Speak, or cease speaking forever."

"I believe that's our line!" Venus replied with confidence. "And we'll never tell you!" She then proceeded to attack, aiming for the one with the claws, who looked the most dangerous to her. "Venus Love and Beauty Shock!"

To the Senshi's surprise, the Saurian made no attempt whatsoever to dodge the attack. He simply smirked and triggered the power granted to him by the Great Beings. Before the startled guardians of Earth, Venus' attack passed harmlessly through the Saurian. His power over density control had allowed him to alter the density of his own body, so that he became near ghost-like. Any physical attack passed harmlessly through his ghastly shape. Once the attack had passed, he returned his body to normal, and then leapt at Sailor Venus, claws brandished and shining in the sunlight.

Venus tried to catch the approaching danger with her Venus Love-me Chain, but once again it passed harmlessly through her enemy. The blonde yelped and jumped out of the way as Density landed where she had stood a moment before, swiping with his wicked claws. Sailor Venus tried to fight back, but every time her attacks passed through her opponents ghastly form. Only his indestructible claws remained solid all the time.

Sailor Mars saw the trouble her fellow soldier was in, and she created an arrow made of flame, ready to aid Venus. She took aim and prepared to fire. "Mars Flame Sni-!" She was interrupted when she was struck in the back by the heavy branch of the tree behind her. As she scrambled to her feet, she saw the second male standing there, his staff glowing. Plant control was his power, Mars realized. The male waved his staff again, and vines sprang up from the ground around Sailor Mars, grabbing her ankles. She easily burned through them with her fire powers, but the time it took her to do so was enough for the Saurian of Plant Control to run up to her and slam the tip of his staff in her stomach, sending her flying backwards. As soon as she landed on the ground, the roots of the trees around her snuck up to her and wrapped themselves around the Soldier of Mars, trapping her.

While this happened, Mercury tried to help her friends, while analyzing the data of the battle, but doing both at once proved very difficult, and the bad thing was that she desperately had to do both. They needed the information, but her friends needed help too. She summoned the power of Mercury and fired at Venus' opponent, who had already managed to graze the Soldier of Love with his claws.

"Shine Aqua Illusion!"

As expected, the attack passed through density harmlessly, but that was what the sharp minded Mercury had intended to do with her attack. The freezing cold of Mercury still struck the Saurian, regardless of his ghastly state. The absolute cold slowed the movement of Density's atoms down so much he was forced to become solid, leaving an opening for Venus to attack.

"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!"

Density was blown away, shock and pain evident on his face. But Sailor Venus had no time to be relieved at the momentary defeat of her opponent, as she was immediately engaged by the Saurian female wielding the two short swords. She tried to hit the reptile with her Venus Love and Beauty shock too, but the woman neatly and effortlessly dodged. The next moment, Venus had to duck to avoid being beheaded by the short swords. But even as she did that, she attempted to kick her opponent's legs out from under her, and again the Saurian woman dodged perfectly. Infuriated, Sailor Venus attacked with her chain, but it gave her the same result as before: her opponent dodged. And as the Saurian kept dodging all attacks thrown at her, even from impossible angles, Minako began to wonder if it wasn't possible if dodge was one of the powers Saurians possessed. She cursed herself and the others from ignoring Ignika's warning: he had been right, after all.

While Venus struggled with her dodging opponent, Mercury tried to help Mars. She had succeeded in freezing the tree roots, allowing the Senshi of Flame to shatter them. But before Mercury could join the fight against the Plant Control Saurian, she was engaged by the second female, armed with her glaive. She summoned her harp and launched a Mercury Aqua Rhapsody at the Saurian, who barely managed to jump out of the way. Sailor Mercury tried to launch a second attack, but her opponent was quicker. The Saurian female waved her glaive, then fired a blast of red energy at Ami. It struck her square in the chest, but to her surprise, it didn't bring pain. No, its effects were far more disastrous.

Suddenly, Mercury wobbled on her legs. How did you remain upright again? She didn't know. Placing one leg before another to move yourself, how did you do that again? She didn't know. She was supposed to fight, or did they expect her to flee? She didn't know. Had Ami known more about the Saurian race, or had she asked Ignika, she would have realized that black scales and red hair and skin indicated that that particular Saurian possessed the power of Confusion. But she didn't know, and thus she could only stumble around, totally confused and incapable to fight, leaving herself vulnerable for further attack.

Sailor Mars saw it all happen. As she witnessed Venus attacking her opponent fruitlessly, Mercury stumble around like a chicken without a head, and Density having recovered enough to join the fight once more, she knew what she had to do. Firing a Mars Flame Sniper at her staff-wielding foe to keep him busy, she activated her communicator. Time to call for help. Lots of help.

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Usagi was in the middle of her history class, not paying attention in the least. She yawned and looked out of the window.

"Why do Ami and Minako get to skip college, jeez! Now they get all the fun, and I'm here bored to death by people who died long ago..." Just as she thought that, however, her communicator beeped. She immediately raised her hand. "Sensei, may I go use the bathroom?"

"Huh? The class is over in fifteen minutes, surely you can wait until then!" The teacher said, angry.

"Pleeease? I really need to." She looked at him with pleading eyes.

"Fine, fine, but make it quick." The teacher turned back to the blackboard and continued writing down dates.

As soon as she was out of the class, Usagi turned the communicator on. "Hello? Hello? Usagi?" The voice came.

"Rei?"

"Usagi, it's an emergency, come to the park quickly, we can't handle them on our own. Alert Setsuna and Mako on the way."

"Understood." Usagi turned the communicator off.

During the next fifteen seconds, the whole class was confused by the tornado that was otherwise known as Usagi Tsukino as she swept through the class, took her things while shouting: "Sorry family emergency have to go bye!" ...and the door closed.

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Setsuna stood in the door-frame of the living room where Hotaru and Ignika were. "I'm going."

"Huh? Where?" Hotaru asked.

"The other Senshi need help. Rei, Ami and Minako can't handle the Saurians on their own."

Ignika almost scoffed. He gave Setsuna a look that said 'I told you so!'. But the Saurian child knew that now was not the time to gloat over his triumph. He jumped out of the couch and with a flick of his right hand, summoned his Death Scythe to said hand.

"I'm going too," he announced, determinedly.

"Out of the question," Setsuna immediately replied. "Here, you will be safe while we Senshi deal with the Saurians at the park."

Ignika wasn't about to give up so easily. "Those are enemies from my world invading yours. It was partly my fault they are even here in the first place. So I will go and help, because I still know this enemy the best. And I can deal in a non-violent way with the Saurians once they are defeated, you know that from last time."

Setsuna opened her mouth to reply, but changed her mind. Arguing would take time, and time was something they didn't have. Even though that was ironic to her. "Fine. You can come, but keep in mind – you can't control your human body well enough. So _stay out of battle_, understood?" She made special emphasis on the last words. "Hotaru, you're going too. To the car, now."

Ignika didn't look forward to riding in the car again, but he had to deal with it. And so, Death Scythe in hand, he ran after Setsuna and Hotaru as they hurried to the car.

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Sailor Jupiter, alias Makoto Kino, ran as fast as her long legs could carry her through the park to the scene of battle. She had gotten an emergency call from Mars in the middle of a cooking session, and fled from it with a hasty, lame excuse. Now, in her transformed state, she ran through the park, hoping to arrive on time. Rei had sounded desperate and urgent. Was the situation that bad? Could these Saurians prove to be so much trouble? Had Ignika been right after all, when he said they should ask for his knowledge and be prepared?

Well, no sense having regrets now, it wouldn't help. She just had to hurry now, and deal with it. Soon the pond came in sight, and Sailor Jupiter could see with her own eyes the situation was grim indeed. Venus looked beyond exhausted, having cuts everywhere, while her opponent, armed with two short blades, had no injuries at all. Mercury looked bruised and beaten too, but made no move to stop her attacker, choosing to look in the totally wrong direction with a confused look in her eyes. Finally, Mars was having a hard time burning living vegetation that attacked her to ashes and keeping a Saurian at bay who let all her attacks pass right through him. They needed help alright, and she had surprise on her side.

Jupiter summoned her wraith of oak leaves to her hand and summoned the forces of thunder and lightning to her being. Her first target was Venus' opponent, for she was the closest. Nobody had seen her yet, which was perfect.

"Jupiter Oak Evolution!"

Caught by surprise, the thundering forces of Jupiter's attack hit the Dodge Saurian head on, knocking her to the ground painfully. The battle stopped for a moment as all, except Mercury, looked in Jupiter's direction.

"I shall not allow you to harm my friends. In the name of Jupiter, I'll punish you!"

The Saurian of Plant Control cursed at the sudden interruption, which left his side open for a Flame Sniper from Sailor Mars. He hissed in pain and cursed, giving both Jupiter and Mars death glares.

"Not another silly speech female!"

Jupiter clenched her firsts and summoned more lightning to them. It was time to fight.

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**Next chapter: Senshi versus Saurian!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Heh, I guess it's just not good enough for most Sailor Moon fans, or not Sailor Moon-ish enough. Can't be helped, I guess. And I guess your suspicion of the Senshi finding out what a sentient enemy is like was confirmed by this chapter? As for chapter titles, don't worry, I try not to make them spoil too much, but sometimes it's hard coming up with a title at all, and then you just go with the most obvious. XD


	10. Senshi versus Saurian

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**10. Senshi versus Saurian**

Sailor Jupiter immediately unleashed a barrage of lightning bolts at the three Saurians still standing. Two of them were hit, the female with the glaive managed to dodge. As her enemies struggled to recover, Jupiter hurried to Venus' side and helped her up. After making sure she was alright, she continued to Mars.

"Are you alright? And what's wrong with Mercury?"

"I'm fine. And Mercury was hit by a beam from that glaive-wielding one, and has been like that ever since. It disrupted her mind, I think." She took out an ofuda paper. "Distract them, I'll try to cure her."

"Understood." With those words, Jupiter charged at the glaive-wielding female.

Meanwhile, Rei closed her eyes and chanted: "_Rin__, pyou, tou, sha, kai, jin, retsu, zai, zen... _Funkyuu Taisan!" She threw the paper at Mercury. She used a slightly different spell than usual, meaning 'Confusion, begone!' instead of an 'evil spirit', and hoped it would work.

The paper struck Mercury, and the effects were immediate. The clouded look in the Senshi's eyes disappeared, and she looked around frantically, trying to figure out what was going on. The last thing she remembered was getting hit by that red blast of energy. When she noticed Jupiter had joined the fray, Mercury wondered just how long she had been out. Not sure how it had been done, she nonetheless decided to not let it happen again. Summoning her harp, she fired Mercury Aqua Rhapsody once more at the glaive-wielding Saurian.

Deeming that particular Saurian the most dangerous, Jupiter joined forces with Mercury, firing her own Jupiter Oak Evolution at the reptile. The combined attacks slammed into the unfortunate Saurian, who was knocked back hard against a tree. When she slumped to the ground, she didn't move anymore, having been rendered unconscious. The two triumphant Senshi shared a smile, but their happiness didn't last long.

The defeat of one of their own enraged the other Saurians, and they struck back with double force and ferocity. The Saurian of Plant Control unleashed his full power, waving his staff which caused all plantlife around them to go wild. All grew at rapid speed, thorns, vines, branches and roots all reaching out to the Senshi, attempting to grab them and squeeze the life out of them. Venus, wounded and tired from her battle with the Dodge Saurian, wasn't quick enough to avoid the mad vegetation and was ensnared. Snake-like vines encircled her neck and squeezed, cutting off her air.

The others moved in to help their friend, but found their path barred by Density and Dodge. Seeing as Venus didn't have much longer, there was no time for an ingenious plan. At least, not according to Mars. She summoned her flames and attacked. "Burning Mandala!"

As she expected, both Saurians dodged the attack, allowing her flames to hit their true intended target: the vines choking Venus. Her rings of fire made quick work of them, and the Soldier of Love fell to her knees, coughing as she rubbed her throat. She glared at the staff-wielding Saurian, who moved in to repeat his choking move. This time, though, she was faster than him. Her wounds didn't allow her to get to her feet, but she still had power. She threw her Venus Love Me Chain and ensnared his legs. Pulling hard, she toppled him over and he fell, hard, on his back. Dodge moved in to help her fellow fighter up while Density kept them busy, but she was unexpectedly interrupted.

"Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss!"

An attack of light sped her way, but Dodge managed to react just in time, triggering her power and escaping harm. Yet as she did that, another attack was fired at her, and as she was still dodging the first, she couldn't dodge the second.

"Supreme Thunder Dragon!"

Jupiter had reacted the quickest of all Senshi, attacking the dodging reptile even as Sailor Moon's attack was still in effect. Dodge physically wasn't very strong, and Jupiter's Lightning hurt like hell. She dodged attacks, she didn't take them, and as of such even medium powered attacks could be devastating for her. Dodge fell to the ground, hindered and out of the fight for now. Her blades slipped from her grasp.

"How dare you break the walls of this dimension...!" Sailor Moon started, but was interrupted by Mars:

"Baka! We said that already!"

"Oh." She blinked. "Then... How dare you to threaten Life itself!"

The other Senshi just sweatdropped.

"What? Oh." A few seconds of silence. "How dare you to disturb the peace of this universe!" Seeing that now she didn't repeat the other Senshi, Sailor Moon continued in the usual manner. "I stand for love! I stand for justice! I am Sailor Moon! And in the name of Moon, I'll punish you!"

Density had heard enough. He was getting tired of fighting these female, ugly creatures with annoying speeches. They hindered their search, and had already taken out two of their number. Well, he'd end it. Quickly he leaped at the one nearest to him, which happened to be Mercury. She tried desperately to launch another attack at him, but it passed through his ghastly form. Density's claws gleamed as they were raised. Then they coloured red with blood as they ripped through Mercury's chest. The wound was deep, but not fatal.

Even as Mercury fell to her knees, clutching her chest in pain, her white gloves being stained with her own blood, the other Senshi attacked all at once. Four different powers soared at once to the unlucky Saurian, and though they passed through his ghastly body, they collided with each other and exploded. The explosion sent heavy ripples through his atoms, forcing him to become solid again or die by having his atoms blown so far away from each other that he became non-existent. As Density fought to make his body solid again through the explosion of power, the pain was, to say the least, excruciating. It came as no surprise then, that the reptile fell down, defeated, as soon as he had succeeded in saving himself.

The Senshi hesitatingly dared to relax. All enemies were seemingly defeated. Jupiter and Venus immediately hurried to Mercury's side, trying to help their friend with her terrible wounds. As they did so, however, the Saurian of Plant Control painfully crawled to his knees and reached for his staff. The Senshi were so worried about Mercury they didn't notice. Just as the reptile was about to close his hand around his staff, his body abruptly began to change. The Saurian screamed as he was pushed back down the road of evolution by the power of Life. Before the eyes of the startled Senshi, the Saurian devolved back, becoming smaller and smaller until all he was, was a harmless normal lizard. Behind the devolved creature, Ignika stood, Death Scythe still pointed at the lizard. Following him were Sailor Pluto and Saturn.

"I see we're just in time…" Setsuna noted, worry for Mercury evident on her face.

Hotaru immediately rushed towards Ami, kneeled down to her and put her hands on the wound. She concentrated hard, her hands glowing with healing purple light. The wound was slowly healing. Too slowly...

"This is bad..." she said. "Don't have enough power..."

The words had barely escaped her mouth when she felt energy flowing into her. She looked at Ignika, whose hand was reached out towards her. Hotaru smiled, and let the Life energy fill her, then redirected it to her hands, ordering it to heal her friend. The purple light changed into golden, and the wound closed in a matter of seconds. Leaving Mercury in the hands of Mars and Jupiter, Saturn went over to Minako to treat her wounds.

Minako coughed and opened her eyes. "Y... You were right, Ignika... A thousand times right..." She said weakly, coughing again.

"Well, at least you realize it now," the boy replied. Seeing how badly Ami – he didn't know what she was called in her transformed state yet – was wounded, however, he wasn't able to rub that in their faces. Besides, he wasn't like that. He was angry, though, that they had to have such a heavy battle first before they believed him, and that was evident in his tone. "I won't hide it. You were foolish to decline my offer to share my knowledge. Now look what happened. Had we been here a little bit later, Ami-chan might have died."

He left them to think over that for a moment, turning his attention on the three remaining Saurians. Just like before, he raised his Death Scythe and called upon the power of Life. Once more he reached out with his will and might, using the power he possessed to devolve the three other Saurians just like the other one. Before long, three more lizards had joined the first one. All Senshi, except Pluto and Saturn, stared in awe at the child who had just effortlessly changed the four creatures they had had such a hard time with.

"Wait..." Mercury said, sitting up a bit. "How did you know it was me?"

"What do you mean, how?" Ignika looked at her, confused. "Isn't that obvious?"

Jupiter said: "Actually, no... The transformation is always accompanied by an identity-concealing spell, and one wouldn't know who is who unless they saw the transformation..."

"None of the villains who knew us both in civilian and Senshi form were able to figure out. Haruka and Michiru spent more than six months right under their nose, and no one guessed."

"Well, maybe you can hide your identity and all, but you can't hide your scent. And that's pretty obvious," the Saurian boy replied. All Senshi, even Pluto and Saturn, looked at him as if he had slapped them in the face with a wet fish. He backed away a bit. "What did I do?"

* * *

Elsewhere, not far from Tokyo, there stood a mansion, not quite unlike that of the Outer Senshi. Only this one was long and low, and had a more western style to it, and it was made out of such pure stone it almost seemed like crystal. The front door opened, however nothing seemed to have opened it, nor did anything or anybody seem to enter or leave. A few moments later, the front door closed again, and a dark figure switched of his invisibility, becoming visible in the dimly lit hall.

He was repulsive and horrifying beyond belief, so horrid was his appearance that even the bravest would go mad should they look more than a second at him. Black and white like bones he was, scuttling around on his four bladed limbs. His hideous head, with flaming, blood-red and glowing eyes, looked around for a moment. Then he spoke, with a voice that sounded like bones cracking.

"Master, are you here?"

Another voice, this one beautiful, ethereal and almost unearthly, replied, coming from further down the hall, from behind the door that led to the living room. "Yes, I am here, Crast."

The monstrous entity known as Crast shrugged his repulsive shoulders, and scuttled over to the door that led to the living room. He didn't bother opening it this time, he just passed right through it. As soon as he was through, he noticed the room was darker than usual: the curtains were closed. That was quite unlike his master. Said master was sitting down on the couch, staring at his glass of wine before him on the salon table.

"Is something the matter? You look worried."

"I am," Crast's master replied, after which he let out a deep sigh. "The past few days, I've been sensing disturbances coming from the city. I do not like it."

"What kind of disturbances?" the hideous monster asked, slightly curious. "If it's more youma, or dangerous evil entities planning to suck the souls, pure hearts or whatever from the humans, then the Sailor Senshi will deal with it."

"It's not that," came the answer. "I felt the dimensional walls being broken. Three times already, in but a few days. This is not normal, and it worries me. Last time it happened, the being known as Pharaoh 90 came to this world."

"Another enemy for the Senshi, then," Crast shrugged, sounding bored. "They'll get rid of it. Why let it bother you?"

"Because of the way the dimensional walls are being broken, Crast. It's familiar. In fact, it is precisely the same way you and I used to come to this dimension. And that can only mean one thing."

Crast nodded slowly. "Invaders from our home world, then," the repulsive, vile creature spat. A disgusting ripple ran through his hideous form. "Our duty to deal with it, then, if I am not mistaken?"

"Perhaps," the master responded slowly, hesitantly. "But there's more. I've felt a power being used here, a power that no creature in this dimension could possibly have. If it had existed, I would have known. So this powerful force must have come from our dimension, and it worries me. I have had visions in the past, predicting that this could happen."

"Do you think it is him?" Crast inquired, still sounding bored.

"No, if it was him, I wouldn't be sitting here. No, there is still time. Crast, I…"

The monstrous creature interrupted his master. "I know what it is you ask of me. Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on things. Should I interfere?"

"Only if there is no other way."

* * *

Haruka had just finished packing her things and closed the suitcase. Sighing, she sat on the bed. Tomorrow, they would finally be home. A tour through Europe with her dear Michiru was a dream come true, but she missed home, Setsuna, and most of all Hotaru – her little firefly...

She looked at her beloved, who was standing on the balcony of their hotel room, looking at the sunset over the sea. She looked so beautiful in that white sundress, flowing in the soft breeze... Haruka smiled and went over to her.

Michiru didn't notice her. She looked so lost in her thoughts...

"What are you thinking of?" Haruka asked.

Michiru was startled for a moment, but then smiled sadly at her lover. "I'm worried about home..."

"Why?" Haruka put her arm around Michiru's shoulders, holding her close.

"The sea tells me of great changes... Tides and storms are coming our way... Listen... What does the wind tell you?"

Haruka closed her eyes. She felt the wind... "The wind whispers, telling of new dangers... Yet carries the warmth of hope... And caring softness of friendship..." She opened her eyes.

Michiru nodded. "Who knows what we'll find once we come home..."

"Well, we will find it out tomorrow." The racer remarked cheerfully. "And for now, let's go inside. We have a lot to do tomorrow."

Michiru nodded, and followed her love inside the room.

* * *

**Next chapter: Of computers and parents!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Thanks for reviewing, again. I too wish that I got some more reviews (even two or three per chapter would be nice), but it can't be helped. As for Anger Power, it might show up just yet! And you are absolutely right that the Senshi would be floored should they fight an enemy like Teridax. Sorry for the long wait for this chapter, BTW, I had to study last week and I forgot to update on my regular updating day (sunday). My apologies!


	11. Of computers and parents

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**11. Of computers and parents**

The door to Hotaru's room opened quietly, two figures walked in and then the door closed again. Ignika looked around observantly, still so easily amazed and awed by all new things he discovered here. Also, while he had had his own living quarters in the Fortress of the Great Beings, he was not used to the concept of individual rooms per person. Apparently, in this world, rooms were also decorated and filled with things that reflected the person using the room, or at least reflect him or her somewhat.

In case of Hotaru's room, there was soft purple, dark blue and black everywhere, and a lot of pretty lights that gave light without fire. Those lights came in all shapes and sized, but they all had one thing in common: they were very pretty.

"Your room is very beautiful, Hotaru!" the Saurian boy said with a smile. "I really like those fireless lights. How do they give colours like that?"

Hotaru smiled, more than happy that Ignika liked her hobby. "Well, it all depends on the material the lamp is made of. The light goes through the material and takes its color. Also, material affects other aspects of light. Fabric makes light softer, glass shines beautifully..." She could talk on and on, but decided not to. After all, she didn't want to sound perhaps boring. "But the light itself and its source is the same. Look." Hotaru came to one of the lamps and took the lampshade off.

Ignika looked, and saw that the light changed color. He marveled at this wonder for a while, then told Hotaru: "I liked the other color better, though."

Giggling, Hotaru returned the lampshade to its place, then walked over to her computer. She put an extra chair at the desk for Ignika, then motioned for him to come over. "Let's make that list of Saurian powers now, shall we?"

Ignika nodded, though he was confused. He could write, the Great Beings had given him excellent education according to Saurian standards, but he didn't see Hotaru take parchment, feather and ink. So how would she make that list? The black-haired girl had vaguely said something about 'typing' the list down, but 'to type' was a verb Ignika was not familiar with. Bewildered, he sat down on the chair next to Hotaru. He observed as she pushed a button of a white box, and suddenly a flat… object lit up. On the white box lots of strange lights lit up, and the boy could hear the sound of machinery.

"What is that?" he asked, eyes wide and curious.

"Oh, it's one of the most marvelous and important human inventions. Computer." Hotaru smiled and pointed at the screen. "Currently, it's preparing itself to work."

"Oh…" The white-haired child observed the weird machine as all kinds of letters, symbols and images – none of which he recognized or knew – appeared on the flat object. He wondered what was so marvelous about this computer. Did it magically create parchment with a list on it? He looked expectantly at Hotaru. "What will it do once it's done preparing?"

"Well, it will be ready to execute our commands." Hotaru paused. "Computers are used for many things, but mainly for storing, modifying and sharing information. All kinds of information – be it words, sounds, images... We could even record what is happening in this room right now, and be able to see it again and again any time we want. We need a special device for that, though."

Ignika blinked and gaped at the white box. So this machine had some sort of memory? He wondered how that worked. The Great Beings had never told him much about machinery of any kind, as such things did not belong on Voya, and thus he wasn't educated in it. Or perhaps it was just magic? He looked at the screen as it changed again, and a picture of a pretty landscape could be seen. The boy frowned. What did that have to do with information? And how did the machine create such a perfect painting? And if it was a real scenery it showed, then had the machine visited that place in order to be able to remember it later? He didn't get it, and asked Hotaru for an explanation.

Hotaru rubbed the back of her head. "Well, it's kinda very hard to explain... Especially since you have never come across it before. But I'll try." She pointed to the monitor again. "This part of the computer is called a 'monitor'. It converts the information stored inside the system block..." She pointed at it. "Into something we can see. The monitor works... Hmm... Sort of like the lampshades on a lamp – changes the light's color when and where needed. Don't ask how, I'm not sure myself. As for how the machine stores information..." She thought for some time, remembering everything she knew. "It converts all the information into a special code, and stores that. The code is universal to all the machines, so if a man, for example, wants to store a picture on computer, like this landscape, he takes a device that records the view of the landscape and converts it into code. Then he connects it with the computer, and the machines exchange codes. So here it is." She waited for some time for Ignika to process all this information.

"It's… hard… to follow," the child finally said, looking absolutely lost. "But I guess it doesn't matter as long as you can work with it… So how will this help us make a list of Saurian powers for the other Sailor Senshi?"

"Well, that's easier to explain." She took the mouse in her hand. "All the functions and commands a computer can do are separated into several programs. And by using this device," She held the mouse up. "We can select which of them should be working now. The device is called a mouse, because this cable sort of looks like a tail." She put the mouse back on its mat. "See the little white arrow moving on the screen? That's how we select what we need." She opened the Start menu, selected Programs sub-menu, then Microsoft Office folder and finally, Microsoft Excel. With a click, the program started.

Ignika tried to follow, but it just went too quick for him to grasp it. The screen changed again, the landscape disappeared and in its place came a mostly white screen with lots of black lines forming rectangles on it. He saw a small vertical black line appear and disappear rhythmically and constantly. Hotaru didn't say anything, though, so he guessed that was normal. But now what?

"What do we do now?"

"And now we make the list. This keyboard allows us to enter words into the computer." She made the 'A' column smaller and entered "№" into it. "This sign means 'number'. Now... 'Power'..." She typed the word into the 'B1' table cell. "What are they defined by, and how many of them are there?"

Ignika thought about it for a moment. "At least fifty," he finally replied. "And each power gives the Saurian different skin, scale and hair color. The look of the Saurian can tell you a lot about his powers. Well, except for those who have the power of shapeshifting."

"I see... Well, makes it easy to make a list, then." She typed 'Skin color', 'Scale color' and 'Hair color' into C1, D1 and E1 accordingly. After that, she entered '1' in A2 filled the 'A' column all the way down to A51 with numbers automatically. She then clicked on B2 and got ready to type. "Dictate. First the power, then skin color, then scale and hair color. I'll type them all down."

Ignika had observed her push strange buttons with symbols on them, then saw those symbols appear on the screen. He began to see the white on the screen as a sort of parchment, the buttons the feather and the black the ink. With that in mind, he began to tell her all powers the Great Beings had granted the Saurian race and what look came with them. He remembered them all by heart. Occasionally, Hotaru's eyes widened at some powers, such as weather control, but kept quiet and dutifully typed his words down.

Just as she was typing down the last power, the two children could hear a car pulling up the domain. Hotaru recognized those roaring engines and screeching tires everywhere, and she smiled widely. The girl got up from her chair, excitedly.

"Haruka-papa and Michiru-mama are home!" She gave Ignika an apologizing look. "Gomen, Ignika, we can finish this later, okay? I…"

"It's okay, I understand," the golden-eyed boy assured her.

The words had barely left his mouth or Hotaru stormed out of her room, nearly jumped all the way down the stairs and ran straight into the startled arms of her Haruka-papa, who had just entered together with Michiru. The aqua-haired woman smiled at her daughter's excited antics.

"Good day to you, too, hime," Haruka said with a grin, ruffling through Hotaru's dark locks.

"Hello Haruka-papa, Michiru-mama, I missed you," the purple-eyed girl said, burying her face in her papa's embrace. As she did that, Setsuna emerged from the living room to greet her two friends after a long time of being separated.

As the family reunited, Ignika stood on the top of the stairs, observing shyly all that was happening. His mind and powers reached out to the two newcomers, studying their spirit and powers as he had done with all other Senshi. The woman with blue hair was a lot like Ami-chan, power-wise, only her might and power were greater than the younger girl's. Her spirit was a lot more complex than Ami's as well. At first glance, she seemed like a kind woman, but when he dug deeper, the boy noticed something else. A fierce determination that was at the same time so cold it made him shiver. He quickly stopped looking in her spirit.

He observed the man Hotaru called her Haruka-papa. His power was great, similar to Makoto's: based on something from the sky. Not lightning, however, but wind. A powerful force in its own right, and just like with Michiru he knew it was greater than that of the other guardian who shared a similar power. Spirit-wise, this man was identical to Michiru, with the same frightening determination within.

Just as he was about to stop probing their powers and minds, Ignika noticed something strange. Something unsettling… He triggered his powers again, this time not focusing on the man's spirit or powers, but his body. Ignika's eyes almost flew out of their sockets and he forced down a cry of surprise. This man wasn't a man at all, but a woman! How could Hotaru call him, or rather, her, her papa?

"How did the tour go?" Setsuna asked, smiling.

"Great, as expected. Every concert gathered full house, and the flowers given to Michiru could fill a whole sea." Haruka looked at her lovingly.

Michiru giggled. "Dear, you're exaggerating."

"No, I'm not." Haruka smiled, then looked at Setsuna and Hotaru. "And how have you been?"

Hotaru smiled, shy and a bit nervous. "Well, heh, so much has happened..."

"Quite suddenly, I might add." Setsuna said. "And with serious consequences..." Haruka and Michiru exchanged worried glances. Setsuna motioned them to follow her. "Let me explain everything in the kitchen with a nice cup of coffee."

"And I'll go back upstairs, if you don't mind." Hotaru smiled. When the adults left, she went up the stairs and led Ignika back into her room. "Well, how do you like my parents?"

Ignika didn't immediately answer. On one hand, he could see Hotaru loved her 'parents' dearly, but on the other hand, he was completely shocked. Hotaru's papa was a woman. Her mama had called her 'papa' 'dear'. Two women. Calling each other 'dear' and other sweet words. Two women. In love, clearly. His stomach almost turned upside down at the unsettling thought. It was unnatural. It was illogical. It… it was… He didn't know what it was, and he couldn't say anything for a long time.

"Your papa is a woman…" he finally managed to stammer, with great difficulty, and with a voice so weak she could barely hear him.

Hotaru looked at him, confused. "Yes, I know. So?"

"H-how is that... At all... Why?"

"Uhh... Because it is so... Wait." Realization hit her. "You mean you don't have that kind of love between two females?" To Hotaru, it was the most natural thing in the world. After all, they were her parents.

Ignika looked at her as if she had grown a second head. Disbelief was evident on his face. "You mean this sort of behavior is normal here? Fruitless mating is okay?" He shook his head slowly, taking a step back. This went against everything he had ever seen and been told, against all he knew of Life. "Of course we don't have this sort of thing on Voya! It's unthinkable! What good is mating when you can't produce offspring?"

"For love?" Hotaru muttered, as shocked as Ignika was. Again, she got a look of disbelief.

"Love is a luxury, Hotaru, not something that is necessary." Ignika sank down on the chair at the desk, still feeling a bit ill about the idea of two women mating. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't understand that. "Life is hard, Hotaru. Before the Great Beings came, it was fight to survive, or die. Do you really think we have time for something like love? To let the future of our race depend on something so unpredictable? No, we would have died out millennia before the Great Beings ever came. You mate to produce offspring, and that is all. If you happen to love your mate, then that just makes it better. But mating just for love? That's just…" He couldn't finish that sentence, he was too worked up by this news. His entire view of Life, love and mating had been turned upside down.

Hotaru looked at him, still not quite free from shock effects herself. She hesitantly said: "Well... We have that luxury for so long it became a norm... Besides, even with that, there are still too many humans on the planet... And... Due to the way of our life, people look for a lifetime mate, that's why they try hard to find the one they will truly love all their life, every day of their life, otherwise it'll become torture... And if that is a member of your gender, well... It's not encouraged, but isn't looked down upon, either. At least, in our country."

"But there's no offspring possible…" he muttered, more to himself than to Hotaru. He didn't like this new discovery. That people mated for love, well, he could understand that, he supposed. But between the same gender? No, out of the question. It was unnatural. It went straight against Life itself. Life had created two genders for a reason: to interact with each other and bring new life. If the same genders could now mate, it was an offense to Life, denying its wonderful creation of diversity. That one did it for love didn't justify it in his eyes either. Love was still but a luxury, and nothing more.

Just then, they heard Setsuna calling to them to come downstairs. Hotaru immediately stood up and went out of the room, and Ignika had no choice but to follow. Despite everything, he had to at least greet the new Senshi. After all, he was living in their house.

They came to the living room to find Hotaru's parents sitting on the couch, with Haruka's right hand gently put around Michiru's shoulders. Michiru's left hand was lying casually on her lover's knee.

"Haruka-papa, Michiru-mama, I'd like to introduce you to my new friend, Ignika."

Hesitatingly, and totally unwilling, Ignika shuffled forward a bit, so that the two new Senshi could see him. With great difficulty he managed to make a polite bow. "G… greetings…" He had to force the words out. The poor child glanced at Haruka and Michiru and, upon seeing how openly affectionate they were to each other, quickly ceased looking at them. He just couldn't bear it. He was willing to accept a lot, be it machinery, strange weapons to eat with or such things, but not something that went against Life itself, against his element. That was his limit.

"Greetings to you as well." Haruka smiled, observing the boy. He didn't seem dangerous at all, but she kept in mind everything Setsuna had told her and didn't rush to conclusions. So far she sensed no danger from him, and was fine with that.

Michiru leaned a bit forward, trying to look at the child's face. The boy quickly turned it into another direction. The woman asked: "Is something wrong?"

Ignika was having a real dilemma at his hands now. He didn't know what to say. Did he have to be honest, and quite probably offend the owners of the house he was currently staying in? Or did he have to lie, and condemn himself to living with his disgust and unease at the unnatural relationship right in front of his nose? In the end, he decided to go with the former, preferring to stay honest with himself. That's what his family would have told him to do, anyway.

"Your… your relationship is wrong…" he whispered, swallowing hard.

"Is it now?" Haruka raised her eyebrow. It seemed so that the child was aware that she and Michiru were lesbians, and didn't like it.

Michiru was able to understand more than her lover did. It was clear that the child took it very personal, so personal he couldn't even look at them. She decided to ask: "Why?"

"It's unnatural," Ignika whispered. "It's against Life. Life created two genders for a reason: for them to interact and create offspring. Mating between same genders is putting yourself above Life, offending it. And offending Life is offending me. It's not natural! It's not what Life dictates!"

Haruka and Michiru looked at each other. Then Haruka scoffed, let go of Michiru, leaned back on the couch and crossed her arms. "The nerve..." She muttered. Her lover, however, decided to be more friendly:

"Well... I do understand that it sounds offending for someone like you, but believe me, it's not our fault for being the way we are. Loving girls and finding them attractive is something we were born with, and we're lucky that we have found each other."

"Besides, we already filled our duty to mother nature. We raised a child – Hotaru, and love her as much as if she really was our flesh and blood." Haruka added.

"Yes." Michiru nodded. "Besides, we aren't useless to society and humanity. Many lesbian couples adopt children, or have one from some random male and raise it as their own... We just love each other, and want to be happy. Is it that wrong?" Michiru smiled.

"You're using the act of mating with no results. You can't produce offspring, which is Life's way of telling you it's wrong!" Ignika wasn't so easily persuaded. His whole life – a millennium long – he had lived with the concept of genders mating with the other gender, and nothing else. He clutched his head in his hands. He was getting a headache, he feared. "How does it even work in mating season? What's the point of even taking mates when there's no offspring? It's illogical. Goes against anything the Great Beings taught me and gave me the element of Life for."

"Boy, you're asking for trouble..." Haruka clenched her fists, offended, and her tone was low and even. Michiru put her hand on her lover's shoulder, telling her to calm down. Then, she turned to Ignika, patiently explaining:

"First of all, we don't have mating seasons. Nature did so that we are able to mate whenever we want. I don't think that mating has to be solely for producing offspring. It was like that for as long as our species exist, and you know what that brought us? Overpopulation. The planet's population is six thousand and seven hundred million people. Can you even grasp such a number?" She crossed her arms. "Besides, humans have long ago invented a thing called contraception, to prevent unwanted pregnancy during the act."

Ignika looked possibly even more disgusted. "How immoral!" he cried out, no longer able to contain his frustration at this incomprehensible knowledge. "So it's regular pairings that deny the purpose of mating too? As for overpopulation, your race must have done something to upset the natural balance then, as in normal circumstances, if there's overpopulation, the weakest starve and die, bringing the population back to the number that nature can sustain. It's one of the fundamental laws of Life, Master Angonce repeated it enough to me for me to know that!" He shook his head wildly. "What is it with this illogical world? Everything I've learned for thousand years, things that seemed perfect and beautiful in their harmonious simplicity all get tossed away here. How can Life have survived here for so long? It doesn't make any sense!" He felt the tears well up in his eyes, and he hated showing weakness in front of strangers. "I can't deal with this anymore!"

He whirled around and fled the room, running straight to the room he was allowed to use, where he dove under the nice, calming and warm covers of his 'bed'. He didn't intend to ever come out from under them again, not unless something changed here and- He stopped himself right there. Why wait for something to change? After all, he was the Child of Life. The Great Beings had tasked him with making sure Life functioned properly. Here was a clear case of it not doing so, and thus, he'd make things right. Despite all his worries, Ignika grinned. Oh, he'd make things right, alright.

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**Next chapter: Vengeance of the Child!**

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SoulLoss: I'll keep going, don't worry. And review whenever you want or can. Real life is more important, after all.


	12. Vengeance of the Child

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**12. Vengeance of the Child**

The Outers watched the child flee upstairs. Haruka and Michiru were amused by that, and still a bit angry at him for offending them. Hotaru seemed sad, and Setsuna was indifferent as usual.

"Is he always this high-strung?" Haruka asked.

"N-no... Actually, he's a very nice boy, curious and willing to learn..." Hotaru said. "Just, it's hard for him to adapt. He has been living for more than a thousand years on Voya, surrounded by nature and their primitive people and technology..."

"And three days ago he suddenly got hurled into the 21st century in a different world." Setsuna said. "Despite the fact he looks like a child, the change is hard for him to bear. And your relationship was a bit too much, apparently."

"Well, it's his problem. He lives in our house, so he'll have to adapt." Haruka said sternly.

"I still think we overdid it..." Michiru frowned.

"Don't worry, he'll get used to it. Whether he likes it or not." Haruka stood up and went to the car to get their things. Michiru shook her head and followed her.

Hotaru wasn't sure of how things would go now... Somehow, she had a feeling that Ignika wouldn't simply accept the relationship between her parents. And, as it turned out, for a good reason.

* * *

As he had vowed to himself when he had fled, Ignika didn't leave the room for the rest of the day, and he barely came from under the covers of his bed. Even when Hotaru or Setsuna tried to come and talk to him, or call him for dinner, their plea fell on deaf ears. It had been too much, the relationship of Hotaru's 'parents'. Machinery, technology, that all made sense to him, didn't scare him so much. It was man-made, but didn't go against nature, as a product of nature had build it. But Michiru and Haruka, they went against nature, against Life. That was hard for him to accept. It proved, to him, that they were unsatisfied with what Life had given them, and thus they had placed themselves above the most powerful force in all dimensions. An unforgivable crime, in his eyes.

But it wasn't too late for them, he had quickly realized. They had made a mistake, for sure, but he was here now. The Child of Life, tasked by the Great Beings themselves to make sure Life functioned properly. It was his duty to right the wrongs. And there was a wrong here that needed righting. And that's what he would do. Oh yes, he would. And if they would hate him for it, well, he was used to hate. Let them deal with changes, for a change! Share and share alike, as far as he was concerned.

And so, with those thoughts in his millennium-old, but still childish mind, he remained in his warm nest, waiting for the night to come.

* * *

Past midnight, everything was quiet and dark in the house of the Outer Senshi. Hotaru had left for bed early, after another futile attempt to get Ignika to talk to her. Setsuna had followed a few hours later. She had not tried to talk to the Saurian boy again. The guardian of time figured it was best to let Ignika be on his own for a while, so he could think in the peace and quiet he required for the moment. Haruka and Michiru had stayed up late, watching a romantic movie together, and after that they finally went to bed too.

A small figure sneaked on his clawed toes out of his room, Death Scythe clenched in clawed hands. Tail kept stiffly behind him for balance, he made no sound as he snuck through the dark hallway. Ignika had returned to Saurian form for this mission, as he was not comfortable enough in his human body yet to be able to sneak as quietly as a Saurian. He had granted himself night vision as well, so he'd be able to carry out his duty without anybody noticing.

Like a shadow he reached the room of Haruka and Michiru and hurried inside, after using his powers to check if they were asleep. He almost gagged as he saw the couple sleeping peacefully in each others' arms, as if they weren't offending his element at all. Well, soon they wouldn't be doing that anymore, indeed. The Child of Life, son of Angonce, greatest creation of the Great Beings, gathered his power and channeled it through his wicked weapon, straight at Haruka. The will behind the power was great, and soon the deed was done. Satisfied, Ignika disappeared as quietly as he had come.

Once in his room, he changed back to his human shape and put on his human clothes again. He dismissed his Death Scythe and crawled in bed, ready to catch a few more hours of sleep before a new day dawned. He wanted to get up early, for he had a feeling that he'd have to do so in order to survive the next morning. Well, if he did die, at least he had done a good deed doing so.

* * *

The next morning Haruka woke up with a strange feeling... She opened her eyes to see Michiru sleeping peacefully in her arms. Haruka smiled and started to carefully get out of the embrace, not to wake her love up. As she did, her lower part brushed against her partner's thigh, and Haruka froze as the sudden feeling spread through her body. "This isn't right..." She thought. She sat up on the bed and looked down on herself. Almost immediately she gasped and put her hands on her chest. Her breasts were gone! She felt her torso through the thin fabric of her pajamas. Broad shoulders, muscular abs, strong arms... Preparing for the worst, she looked inside her pants...

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHH!" She screamed, her voice not sounding like her own in the least.

Michiru yawned. "Haruka, what's the problem so early..." She sat up, still sleepy. But when she rubbed her eyes and looked at her lover...

Michiru gasped and backed away, so suddenly and far that she fell off the bed. For instead of her sweet, dear, lovely Haruka there sat a blond muscular GUY! Who liked her quite a lot, judging by the look of his pants... She shivered from that thought.

"Michiru..." He whispered. "It's me, Michiru."

"H... Haruka?" Michiru said, unsure. His face was alike to Haruka's, the voice also sounded similar, although a lower tone, and the pajamas were Haruka's...

The man nodded.

"H... How?"

"I don't know... But..." The man's eyes suddenly lit up with rage as she guessed who did that to her. He got out of the bed and stormed out of the room.

"IGNIKA!"

* * *

Ignika seriously thought the world was coming to an end. He swore that for a moment he could see the roof lift of the house for a moment. Luckily he was outside, in the garden, Death Scythe firmly held in his human hands. Judging from the fury Haruka had shouted his name with, he guessed she, er, he wasn't happy with what the Child of Life had done. Not that it mattered to him, as far as he was concerned, he had done a good deed. Besides, he could have made Haruka look totally different if he had wanted to, but all he had done was change her gender and leave the rest alone.

To be honest, the Child didn't really understand what Haruka was so angry about. It was only a gender change. If Haruka loved Michiru, did it matter what gender she, er, he was to him? Ignika didn't think so, and saw Haruka's anger as proof she, er, he didn't really love Michiru. If the blond did love Michiru, the gender wouldn't have mattered to her. Ignika almost laughed. He didn't think that it would matter a lot to them if he said that he didn't mind them being a couple now. It probably would only make matters worse.

He felt Haruka's life force come to him at an unbelievably high speed, and soon enough the incarnation of fury and anger normally known as Haruka Tenoh stormed out of the house straight towards the white-haired boy. Ignika gulped, turned around and ran, climbing in the first tree he came across, as high as possible. He looked down with amusement at Haruka, who was screaming for a chainsaw – whatever that was – or axe as he ran in circles around the tree.

Haruka was so angry that he felt something appear in his hand. He stopped abruptly. Her Space Sword? He smiled wickedly. It was much better than any chainsaw. It was... "Perfect..." He said evilly and cut through the air, sending an energy blast straight at the tree.

The tree fell down from the blast, but Ignika simply jumped to another one. He was slightly surprised that Haruka could use his powers without being in the 'Sailor' form, but he wasn't really worried. If Haruka really became a danger to Ignika's wellbeing, the Child of Life would simply show the man the true power of Life. For now, though, Ignika was content just watching Haruka rage. It felt good to not be the only one having a hard time dealing with change.

"ARG! STOP RUNNING AWAY, YOU COWARD! COME DOWN HERE AT ONCE!" He yelled, firing another blast at the tree.

Ignika jumped to another one. "And be blasted by that sword of yours? No, thanks."

Haruka lowered his blade. "If you come down, I won't use it. Promise." He said, with a tone as even as he could manage. "But I can't stand it when you're high and mighty on a tree!" He cut off half of the tree's branches to Ignika's right. Of course he didn't aim at him, and it was obvious.

"I might consider it," Ignika said with a smirk, obviously enjoying this. Well, Haruka had Chameleon and Nightmare to thank for this side of the child. Those two's debatable sense of humor had slightly rubbed off on the Child of Life. "But only because I can't stand seeing those poor trees cut down, when they didn't do anything wrong. Nor did I, for that matter."

Was it him, or did there come steam out of Haruka's ears?

"You didn't? YOU didn't? YOU FUCKING DIDN'T!" Haruka sent an energy blast to the bushes on the side. "DO YOU EVEN REALIZE WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!"

Ignika raised an eyebrow. Was that a serious question? "Of course I do. Life made a mistake, so I corrected it. Women can't mate with women, just like males can't mate with males. And it is my duty, as the Child of Life, to correct mistakes like that. And so, I did. Now everything's fine and you can be with Michiru as much as you want. It will be right now."

Haruka growled. "Oh no, it won't..." He said in a low and even tone. "You know what Michiru did when she saw me like this? She _shivered__. _She felt _disgusted__. __I_felt disgusted of myself. And you know why?"

Ignika shook his head. It didn't make a single ounce of sense to him. "No, but I have a feeling you're going to tell me."

He didn't like the child's tone one bit. "You haven't listened to her yesterday, it seems. Finding other females sexually attractive is something we were born with! BORN!" This time Haruka didn't fire any blasts, but went to the nearest bush and cut it himself. "The first like as a child at 5 years was a girl." Cut. "The first love as a child at 8 years was a girl." Cut. "The first real love at 14 was a girl." Cut. "And more and more loves, and dreams, and longings, and crushes, and breakdowns, GIRLS, GIRLS, GIRLS!" More and more cuts. Half of the bush was already gone. "And never did I find comfort! Not even once did someone return my feelings!" He stopped cutting. "And then... I met Michiru." He looked at Ignika. "Do you even realize how much she meant to me! She loved me! She was the same as me, desperate to find love, too disgusted with the other gender to search there! That we shared a common fate, a common destiny as Sailor Senshi, was a burden, but at the same time such a blessing! And you..." His sword disappeared. "Now she will never look at me as before..." He whispered and hid his face in his hands. A few moments later, the strong woman in a man's body sat down on the ground, broken and crying.

Ignika thought about what the man had said. He seemed so serious and so sincere in his declaration of love for Michiru, as a woman, but Ignika didn't find himself convinced. That was not his fault. More than a millennium he had been raised and living with the belief that man and woman were the only possible combination. And love, well, love was a nice extra if you were mated, but when did it ever become an important factor in life? It didn't make sense to the millennium old being trapped for eternity in a child's body and mind. Still, he did realize he had hurt Haruka by carrying out his duty, and Ignika was not coldhearted. He bit his lip in thought.

"Prove it!" he finally said. "Prove to me that two women being mates is not against nature and Life, and I'll change you back. But I need proof. You can't blame me for not being able to accept this just like that after being told and after living for a millennium believing that man and woman is the only possible form of mates."

Haruka wiped his tears. It meant he had a chance to become normal again. To be loved by Michiru again. He had hope... "I will find it. I will find proof." He stood up and glared at the child, then went inside the house.

Ignika sighed and shook his head, remaining in the tree. He didn't feel like getting out. Here, surrounded by life, he could think. The Child waved his Scythe as he leaned against the trunk and closed his eyes. Around him, the trees Haruka cut down grew back their damage at unnatural speed, and the fallen trunks rotted away just as quickly. That was better. Now he could think. But try as he might, he couldn't get the image of Haruka's sad face out of his mind. Had he made a mistake, perhaps? But… It wasn't natural…

Love. That strange emotion he knew so little of. It sometimes happened between two mates, but not often. It wasn't the norm. Hotaru said, that here it was. Haruka said she had loved Michiru as a woman. Why couldn't she simply do the same as a man? Did it really matter that much? And if yes, then why? He wanted to know now. Haruka had said it was because of something in her head. But what? And why was it no longer there now that she had the correct gender?

The boy leapt out of the tree, Scythe still in his hand. He had made up his mind. Ignika rushed to the house. He wanted to talk to Haruka again, or maybe Michiru or Setsuna. They were adults, they could feel love, so they could tell him why it was so important. What made love so much more important than just mating? What made love a requirement to mate in the first place? Was an unpredictable feeling really more important than the future of a race? How illogical was that?

He marched into the living room to find Haruka in the couch, head held between his hands. Of the others, there was no sign. The man looked as if he had been crying, or still was. It was heart wrenching, but Ignika tried to remain stoic and calm. If he gave in, Haruka would probably push him around in the future, or punish him or something, thinking he was weak for undoing his deed so soon.

"Tell me about love," Ignika demanded, his voice softer than he had expected. "What makes it so important? Why is it a requirement for mating here, instead of the other way around? And why is it tied to gender for you and Michiru? I don't understand it."

Haruka looked at the child for a moment, then continued to look at the floor. "It is hard to understand what love is when you have never felt it..." He said. "It is so much more than your love towards your mother and your friends... It fills your soul with warmth every time you see your lover, it sends pleasure through your soul and body when your hands touch, when you embrace her and kiss her lips... And sex... Mating, as you say... Is the highest form of pleasure."

Haruka shook his head. "Sex isn't the most important thing in love, but... Without sexual attraction, love will never come to be. And if you don't confirm your love by sex on time, it will cease to be... And if your sexual interest lies with girls, means you will love girls."

He sighed and sat straight. "As for why it's a requirement for mating... There is such thing as religion. A religion that, to prevent people from random sexual relationships, which cause dangerous diseases to spread, proclaimed sex dirty and sinful unless it was during marriage and for the purpose of having children. Love, however..." He sighed again. "Love was positioned as something beautiful and sacred, a gift from God himself... Sex was a sin, love wasn't... The religion that teaches it is more than two thousand years old, and it had the greatest impact of the culture of our race."

He paused. "And for centuries to come, sexual desire was considered wrong and sinful, while love right and beautiful. And if people fall in love, they marry. Marriage is something like officially proclaiming that you two are lifetime mates. So that's how people came to think that in order to have sex, you have to marry, and in order to marry, you have to love. So all our culture, all our songs and poems and ballads, all those are based on love... Well, most of them, at least."

He paused yet again. "Now the religion's influence is weak, and we have regained the right to mate whenever and with whomever we want... But people still look for the love of their life. Always. And I have found her..."

Ignika had listened intently to the man's words, and some things made more sense to him now. There was one thing he wanted to know, though. "This 'God' you spoke of, is he like the Great Beings that created me?"

Haruka looked at the child for a moment, then shrugged. "I suppose you could say that."

Ignika closed his eyes and bowed his head, as if ashamed. "I didn't know that. Setsuna nor Hotaru ever told me you had Great Beings here too. And… and if they say love is the most important thing in a life, regardless of gender…" The Child of Life took a deep breath, preparing himself for his next course of action. "Then who am I to interfere with the will of those above me?"

The white-haired boy raised his Death Scythe, and he glowed with a golden light as he called upon the power of Life. Haruka was startled, and then soon found himself surrounded by that same light. A warm feeling filled the man, and then he felt Ignika's incredibly powerful will reach out to him and command the power and warmth that filled him. Haruka felt his body change, and when the light faded, Haruka was herself again. The woman stared in amazement at herself, while Ignika averted his gaze, tears running down his cheeks.

"Why does it all have to be so different?" he stammered. "Why do I always make mistakes and make a fool of myself?"

He was startled when Haruka pulled him over to her and hugged him. "It's okay." She said. "The most important thing is that you admit your mistakes, unlike quite some people. You learn from your mistakes, and are willing to correct them. Thank you." She hugged him tightly again, then let go. "Remember, the one who had never fallen will never know the happiness of rising again. Thank you." She stood up. "I'll go make Michiru happy now." With that, she left the living room and went upstairs.

Michiru's eyes widened once again when Haruka came in. "Haruka!" She cried in joy and embraced her lover. "You're yourself again!"

"Yeah... It was pure luck that I convinced him..." The woman smiled.

Michiru smiled as well, and put her head on her lover's soft, comfortable chest. After several minutes, she said: "You know..."

"What, my dear?"

"Maybe we should have used the situation and..." She didn't finish, as her love put a hand over her mouth.

"Shh, are you crazy? What if he hears?" Haruka looked at the door suspiciously. "I don't know about you, but to me being a male was the worst experience ever."

"Maybe, but if you think about it, we could have children of our own…" the aqua-haired woman said with a small grin. Haruka snorted and raised an eyebrow.

"Fine, but then you'll be the male."

"Thank you, but I think I'll pass."

Ignika, who was standing just outside the room – he had followed Haruka to find out if Michiru wanted to kill him or not – scratched his head. First, the couple is shocked and disgusted beyond belief, Haruka pleads with him to change her back, which he did, and now they're talking about the advantages of him changing the gender of either of them? The boy gave up trying to understand.

"Humans are weird," he muttered decidedly, as he trudged back to his room to rest a bit more. Changing genders wasn't as easy as it must have looked to Haruka. It took a reasonable amount of strength. As the child crawled under his covers, he had only one thought in his mind: "Brother, sisters, get here soon, before I go mad."

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**Next chapter: Family Reunion!**

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Chaser Warring on Everything: Glad you still like it. I like stories that have conflicting morals, as those are the most interesting to write. Thanks for the review!


	13. Family reunion

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**13. ****Family Reunion**

The next day after Haruka had her gender changed by the Saurian child, she felt that she needed to stay away from home for a while. So when she heard the usual report Ami gave to Setsuna about the situation in the park yesterday, Haruka decided to join the Inner Senshi in protecting the park from possible invaders.

To say that Ignika's deed had an impact on Haruka would be the greatest understatement of the year. It was really world shaking for her psychic, view of life and sense of herself, and she caught herself being rather afraid of the child sometimes. That definitely won't do any good for her, and there's nothing better for regaining inner calm and self-esteem than kicking a few enemies' butts.

Accompanying her at the park today would be Ami, Makoto and Minako. The girls were already there when Haruka parked her car and came to the entrance.

"Yo," Haruka greeted.

"Oh, hello Haruka." Ami smiled. "Shall we go?"

The blonde girl nodded, and they went inside the park. They had walked far enough, to a spot where no other people would see them, and Ami stopped them. She opened her purse and took out something. It was several small clips with two rows of tiny buttons of different colors. The buttons looked easy enough to push, though, even with the usual Senshi manicure.

"What's that?" Minako asked.

"A power analyzer." Ami smiled. "You attach it to your communicator like this." She showed her own with the clip already attached. "It works quite simple – first push the button of the Saurian's scales' color, then skin color, and finally hair color, and the communicator will automatically synthesize the power's name. Like this." She pushed blue, pale green and black, and the communicator said 'Density'. "It only has the most common powers in it, though."

Mako and Minako commented on how handy it is, and took the clips to attach them to the communicators. Haruka just shrugged, but followed suit.

"Now, let's start searching." Ami opened her mini-computer. "I've recorded the data about time-space continuum disruption that occurs several minutes before the portal opens, so we'll know when it is about to open, and where."

As luck would have it, the screen of her computer started displaying information right at that moment. With a frown, Ami checked her screen. "We have another invasion at our hands," she finally said. She tapped a few buttons, then added, while pointing in a direction: "The disruption is coming from there."

The Senshi nodded at each other, then sped of in the direction Ami's computer had pointed at.

* * *

Elsewhere in the park, in exactly the same spot as Ignika had appeared at, the dimensional walls were being broken as a dimensional gate appeared and widened in a matter of seconds. Following the appearance of the gate, four figures stumbled out of the portal. As soon as they were through, it began to shrink and disappear behind them. They didn't care, they were here now and that was all that mattered to them. They had a mission: find their little brother.

The oldest of the four, a black-haired Saurian, 20 years old in human terms, climbed to her feet first. In her hand she held a dual headed trident. Her scales were, just like her skin and eyes, blue while her tunic shared the color of her hair. On her shoulders and shins she wore black armor made from bone. The Saurian female looked around for a moment, taking in the alien flora around her. She had a look of distaste on her face as she smelled the foul air. Grumbling, she gave the nearest body a kick.

"Chameleon, get up," she commanded. "This is no time to nap."

The male she had just kicked, the only boy of the four, groaned as he climbed to his clawed feet. In human terms, Chameleon was 15 years old, and his hair was shoulder-length and brown, which his eyes were too. His scales and skin were sand-colored, while his tunic was brown as well. Golden bracelets with emeralds embedded in them decorated his wrists, and at each hip he carried a wicked dagger.

"Sheez, Traveller, can it? Travelling through dimensions isn't something I do everyday, so it was a rough experience. A bit of compassion, please?"

As he said that, the other two female Saurians got up as well. The youngest of them, who had fiery red eyes, scales and skin, rolled her eyes. Her hair was short and black, her tunic the color of blood. Her Terror Katana was held in a sheath at her hip, her upper arms had golden bracelets, and a tiara with a single sapphire decorated her forehead.

"Don't be such a wimp," she insulted with delight.

"Back off, Nightmare," Chameleon warned, not at all fazed by his sister's insult. He hardly ever cared about what the Saurian of Fear said. Insults were her way of speaking. Friendliness a thing that burned her tongue.

The final member of the group said nothing. Her face was cold and expressionless, just like her green eyes. Her hair was silver in color, just like her tunic while her scales and skin shared the color of her eyes. Her ankles were decorated with golden bracelets, rubies embedded in them. This Saurian's weapon was an oddly shaped shield with razor sharp edges. It was almost as big as she was, but she carried it as if it weighed nothing at all.

"Ignika was here," she finally said in a flat, almost bored voice. "His scent lingers here."

Traveller sniffed for a moment, then nodded in agreement. "You're right, Gravitas. But it's been at least four days. He's no longer here."

Chameleon had dropped down on all fours and sniffed the ground, his snake-like eyes observing the ground very carefully, hoping to find a clue to Ignika's whereabouts. Finally, his keen eyes did spot something. "There are Saurian footprints here," he announced. "They carry Ignika's scent." He followed the trail of footprints, though here and there they had been erased by weather, or overrun by other strange footprints.

"There are signs of battle here," Chameleon added as he went further along the trail. "Ignika fought five Saurians here, then went on…" Suddenly, the Saurian teenager paused and got back on his two feet, scratching his head. "This is strange."

"What is?" Nightmare demanded as she marched up to him. She pushed him out of her way to look at the tracks herself. Soon, she had the same frown on her face as Chameleon. The rest of the family caught up with the two and asked what was wrong.

"Ignika's footprints change here into a totally unfamiliar shape," Chameleon explained, still confused. "I've never seen anything with such weird feet before."

"Ignika is clever," Gravitas noted, the barest hint of a proud smile on her face. "He obviously changed his body to match that of a creature from this world, to confuse his pursuers and protect himself."

"Which will make it harder for us to find him," Traveller noted as she sighed. The odds of finding her little brother today had become slim indeed. Now he had changed shape as well, which would make it difficult for his family to recognize him. "We don't even know what he looks like now."

"But his scent didn't change, Traveller," Nightmare said, trying to put her oldest sister at ease a bit. "We'll find him that way and-" She stopped midsentence and unsheathed her Terror Katana in one swift movement. "We've got company!" she growled, indicating with her head to some nearby bushes from which she smelled an unfamiliar scent coming their way.

* * *

The four Sailor Senshi had taken cover behind some bushes, the exact same bushes where Ignika was hiding when he first encountered humans, only facing the other side.

"Can you see them?" Uranus asked Venus, who was closer to the Saurians, in a whisper.

"Not quite. I see where they are, but it's not enough to figure out their powers."

Mercury activated her visor. "There are four Saurians... And they don't seem to be acting hostile..."

"Duh, they're alone..." Venus said.

"I'll try to sneak closer and analyze their powers." Jupiter said. "Leave your communicators on, so you can hear them, too." With that said, she crept along the bushes to a nearby tree, and jumped straight on one of the branches, thanks to the way Sailor form enhanced physical strength. And so, quietly moving from tree to tree, she found a spot from which she could see the Saurians, still at a reasonable distance.

She activated her communicator, covered the dynamic with her hand so that no sound would be heard by any other than herself and the other Senshi. "Transmitting..." She whispered into it.

* * *

Nightmare was restless. She could smell a creature being close, within the range of her powers. She could sense they were being watched and, judging from the looks the others had, knew that she wasn't alone in that. She glanced at Traveller, the oldest and their leader.

"What do we do?" she demanded, as softly as she could. Her older sister thought for a moment, uncertain.

"We don't know what sort of creatures there are here, Nightmare," Traveller finally replied. "For all we know, it's just a curious treeturtle looking in wonder at our arrival here." The response she got from Nightmare was not exactly what the Saurian of teleportation had had in mind.

"Then let's find out!" Nightmare declared, her Terror Katana becoming ablaze with the red energies of her Fear powers. "If it's just a normal animal, I'll let it flee. If we're being spied upon, I'll demand why."

Before any of the others could move in to stop her, Nightmare pointed her katana at the tree she smelt the spy in. Her powers of fear were unleashed and struck the tree and all around or in it. Jupiter, caught slightly of guard, suddenly found herself being overwhelmed by panic. Suddenly she was terrified by being this high of the ground, and when she looked down to the ground below, she lost her balance and fell.

"I don't know what that ugly thing is, but that's no treeturtle, for sure," Chameleon noted dryly as Nightmare approached the fallen Senshi, katana clenched firmly in her right hand.

Luckily, the portion of fear Nightmare sent her way was a small one, and Jupiter regained her senses. She stood up, raised her hands to show she was unarmed, and said: "Wait. I am no foe to you."

Nightmare snorted in the same way Ignika had done when Ami had said the same words against him. She ignored the words, figuring them to be lies. "Well, what do you know, it talks. Spying on us to trade out information for some food or weapons with our enemies?"

"There are no enemies of yours in this dimension. We have taken care of them. _If _you are the Saurians I think you are," Makoto replied, carefully thinking over her words. Then she looked straight in Nightmare's eyes. "Did I hear it right? Is your name really Nightmare?"

"Your ears still work well, it seems. Yes, I'm called Nightmare," the Saurian girl said, smirking.

Mako looked at the other Saurians, nervous about her next question. "And you are Traveller, Chameleon and Gravitas?"

The three gave each other a surprised glance, then nodded slowly. It was Traveller who spoke: "We are. Do you know us, creature? Or did the Great Beings grant you too the power to read minds, as they did to some of our race?"

"I do know you. Reading minds is a power unreachable to human race, not even to us, the guardians of this world." She looked in Traveller's eyes. "Ignika arrived here four days ago."

Traveller's eyes widened immediately and Gravitas and Chameleon had to hold on to the oldest Saurian amongst them to prevent her from rushing up to this female creature and shake Ignika's whereabouts out of her. "You know our little brother? Where is he? I demand you tell me where he is right now!"

"He is safe at home where four of the Guardians live." Jupiter quickly said. "If you allow me, I shall inform them, and they'll bring your brother here."

Chameleon started to ask if she could be trusted, but Gravitas interrupted him suddenly, surprising all of them by speaking. "Do it." Chameleon let out a deep sigh. Of course the most aloof and antisocial one of them all just had to agree immediately with a creature of a race they didn't know, who claimed to be a guardian of this world. What if she decided them a threat and would attack? But then again, her fellow guardians wouldn't have protected Ignika, would they? Unless they kept him prisoner and were lying to them here and now… The boy shook his head. He was becoming too much like Traveller, he decided, becoming overprotective by going over every possible doom scenario. He really had to stop doing that and just remain his usual, reckless self.

Makoto took out her communicator again. Upon seeing the Saurians eying it suspiciously, she said: "It's a communicator. Allows you to transfer your voice to a similar device." She was about to activate it when she noticed it already was. Shrugging, she said: "Haruka, you heard everything. You, Minako and Ami can come out." She then pushed a different button. "Setsuna? Ignika's family arrived. Bring him here."

* * *

For the second time that week, the roof of the house of the Outer Senshi flew off for a second. The cause this time, however, was not a Senshi who had her gender changed. Rather, it was the child who had changed her gender. Ignika had just heard the news from Setsuna that his family had arrived. He was running around, jumping and shouting with excitement and joy. He was constantly nagging at Setsuna to hurry up with tying her shoes so they could get in the car and be of to the park. For once Ignika didn't even care that he even had to get in the car in the first place. He practically dragged Setsuna in the vehicle.

"Common, let's go Setsuna, please! It's already been a minute since you got the message, they'll grow impatient!"

"They're not the only ones it seems," Setsuna thought as she sighed, clutching her forehead. Children could be such a handful at times, she knew, but this was a step further even. Setsuna already knew it was going to be the longest ride she'd ever experience.

* * *

Jupiter realized that if she didn't stop following Traveller with her eyes soon, she'd wind up hypnotized. The Saurian woman had been pacing back and forth ever since Jupiter had send the message. She hadn't even reacted when the other Senshi appeared, still pacing and muttering darkly under her breath, now and then casting an impatient look in the Senshi's direction.

"What's taking you so long?" the Saurian finally snapped harshly. "It's already been ten minutes! Where's my little brother?"

"Be patient," Uranus snapped back, getting annoyed by the constant nervous pacing of this creature. "It's quite a trip from my house where your brother is to here."

Chameleon chuckled from where he was sitting against a tree. Good old Traveller, was what he was thinking. Unlike his oldest sister, he had taken his time to study these female creatures. They were… interesting to say the least. A bit ugly, but less than they had initially appeared. He liked the one calling herself 'Jupiter', because she had a good taste when it came to hair color. He did think their way of dressing was a bit odd, if not ridiculous, and he found their lack of natural defenses such as scales puzzling.

"Get used to it," the only male of the group grinned. "Traveller's like that. If Ignika's out of her sight for one minute, she gets nervous. After five minutes, she begins to worry. Ten minutes, she panics. A day, she goes mad. Go figure what happens after five days."

"If she keeps pacing at the same length like that, she'll end up having walked a trench deeper than she's tall," Nightmare added with a grin.

"Quiet," Gravitas commanded suddenly. No matter what, when Gravitas decided to speak it always caught the others by surprise, and made them listen to her. Maybe that was her intention in the first place. "She's worried. Be it, too."

"I don't see you joining her in pacing, sister," Nightmare snorted. "It's Ignika, Child of Life. He might be our little brother, he still dwarfs us in sheer power. A bit of dimensional travel and weird ugly creatures protecting him isn't going to do him in."

That earned her glares from all Senshi, much to her delight.

After a few more minutes of waiting, Traveller was already a foot-deep in the ground, and Chameleon was getting restless himself. Not because he was worried, no, he just didn't like sitting still. He was a man, er, reptile of action. So, he climbed to his feet and stretched his back a bit, then unsheathed his Camouflage Daggers, making some cutting moves through the air.

"Stop doing that, you're making me nervous," Nightmare growled. She rubbed her stomach and frowned. "If you're so full of energy, make yourself useful for a change and catch some food. I'm hungry. We didn't eat when we left."

"Oh, don't know if you noticed Nightmare, but that was because we were being pursued and a friend of us was killed," Chameleon retorted dryly. His shoulders slumped slightly, and all Saurians got a sad expression on their face. Even Nightmare, and Traveller stopped pacing for a moment.

"Yeah… Poor Olmak, he didn't deserve that…" the oldest of the Saurians said, sadness in her voice. She sighed again. "At least he still could get us through the dimensional walls to search for Ignika."

"True," Gravitas agreed, once again surprising everybody by speaking. Even the cold and aloof Saurian had a look of sadness in her otherwise emotionless eyes.

"Anyway," Chameleon interrupted, breaking the sad mood that hung in the air. He addressed Nightmare again: "I don't smell anything to catch here, anyway. Could be because the air is so foul it turns my stomach upside down, but still, I don't hear anything either. But that could be because of all those idiotic noises in the background." He raised an eyebrow and looked at the Senshi again. "Your world is weird."

"I hate to say it, but I agree with useless here," Nightmare spat. Once again she got glares, and once more she enjoyed it. However, her brother turned on her, angry.

"What do you mean useless?" he demanded fiercely.

"Exactly what I said," his sister shrugged carelessly. "I mean, at least the rest of us have useful powers. What can you do? Camouflage your enemies to death?"

Suddenly, before the startled eyes of the Sailor Senshi, Chameleon disappeared. He had activated his chameleon powers, camouflaging himself so well he was practically invisible. Nightmare, however, was unimpressed. She climbed to her feet and unsheathed her Terror Katana, almost looking bored.

"We've been through this before, Chameleon," she grinned. "Get ready to wet your tunic!"

She got no reply. The Senshi already started to climb to their feet to step in, but that proved unnecessary as Nightmare was suddenly slammed on the ground, together with Chameleon, who became visible again upon impact. Both Saurians glared at a certain silver-haired sister of them.

"Gravitas!" they whined in unison. A glare silenced them. This time, Nightmare didn't enjoy the glare. Her sister hardly ever used her power against her, only when she was mad. So, apparently, Gravitas was mad, although you couldn't see it. Her face was expressionless.

"Stop acting like children," the Saurian of Gravity scolded harshly. "You're both behaving like idiots. What must these creatures who took care of our brother think of us when they see your immature behavior?"

"At least we have a sense of humor," Chameleon retorted, only to be pressed even deeper in the dirt as the pull of gravity on him increased. "I take it back. I'm laughing my ass of here, Gravitas, now stop that, please?"

The Senshi were looking at the scene wide-eyed. All of them thought almost at the same time: "What have we gotten ourselves into!"

Haruka felt the worst. Compared to these, Ignika was an angel! And he changed her gender! Close to panic, she thought: "Gods, just what am I going to do when all of them will come to my house? They'll raze it to the ground!" Then she remembered that Setsuna said the Senshi planned to house the Saurians at different houses, and immediately felt better.

Ami was thinking the following: "Gravitas seems the calmest of them... Unless you annoy or provoke her. Luckily, I'm good at it. And these two should be kept as far from each other as possible..."

Makoto was eying Chameleon with a bit of sympathy. "Definitely not fun to be called useless... But I can see he isn't. Camouflage is a handy power." She smiled. "And he stood up to defend himself from insults. I respect that."

"Nightmare's weird." Minako thought. "And badly needs her mouth washed with soap. Other than that, she seems quite fun. With her Fear powers, she could be an awesome shoujo manga demon!"

Then, everybody froze as a cry shattered the air: "EVERYONE!"

The four Saurians turned in the direction of the cry, recognizing the voice. Their faces lit up with happiness and excitement, and all hostilities of just a moment before were forgotten. Chameleon and Nightmare crawled out of their body-shaped pits in the dirt and rushed together with Traveller and Gravitas towards the white-haired child that was running towards them, changing into a Saurian as he did so.

Ignika flew into Traveller's arms and she caught him, hugging him tightly to her chest as they were finally reunited after five long days. The other three embraced them all as well, their little, eccentric family finally being complete again. The Senshi watched, and felt touched, despite the display of madness from a mere moment before.

"Ignika…" Traveller muttered over and over again as she held on to her little brother.

"Traveller, everyone, Great Beings, I missed you all so much…" the youngest Saurian replied, tears now running freely over his face. The happiness he felt could only be expressed in tears, and he didn't give a damn. He enjoyed the feeling of being embraced by his brother and sisters, enjoyed having Traveller run her clawed hands through his hair over and over again. They were together again, and that was all that mattered.

"It's okay, Ignika, it's okay…" Traveller whispered in his ear. "We're here now, and we won't leave you alone… ever again."

* * *

**Next chapter: Déjà vu!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: I've said all I wanted to say to your review in my private message to you, so I'm not going to repeat it here. But I'll say this to every reader I might have: this is just a story. Haruka's speech of last chapter does not reflect my views on the matter, nor does anything in this story really contain my vission on delicate matters such as religion or the identity of God. Everything in every chapter is written solely for the sake of the story, and that won't change. I'm not looking to offend anybody here, I'm telling a story and nothing more.

Let's keep it at that, shall we?


	14. Déjà Vu

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**14. Déjà vu**

"Ahem," Setsuna coughed to get the Saurians' attention. "I hate to interrupt the family scene, but there are a lot of people in the park, and we don't want them to see your family, right, Ignika?"

The Saurian boy pulled himself free from the embrace of his family, looked at Setsuna and finally nodded. "You're right, Setsuna…" The child clenched his fists and activated his powers, changing his own body back in his human disguise, along with his clothes. Soon, Eiju Genkai stood before the startled Saurians that were his family. It was the first time they saw their little brother in a human body.

Ignika noticed their surprise, and quickly explained: "This is my disguise in this dimension. There are no Saurians here, so we would only draw attention to ourselves if we remained members of our race. Also, it confuses our enemies."

Chameleon frowned in distaste, while Nightmare gagged in undisguised disgust. "Look like a skinned, pink and tailless Saurian? No thanks," Ignika's older brother said, crossing his arms in refusal. Ignika sighed, he had known there'd be complaints against the disguising idea. After all, his family were proud to be members of the race blessed by the Great Beings. They just didn't like most of their fellow members, but did not hate the Saurian race itself.

"I'm sorry, Chameleon," Ignika apologized, bowing his head. "But we have no choice. This world is crazy, to put it mildly, and dominated by this human race. And from what I've seen, they don't like non-humans. If they saw us as Saurians, we'd have another enemy on our hands. It can be avoided by simply blending in, which is hard, but possible."

Chameleon opened his mouth again to protest, but Gravitas slapped it shut. As the Saurian of Chameleon rubbed his sore jaw, Gravitas turned to Ignika and nodded in agreement. "You're right, brother, as usual. Go ahead and change us then."

"I'm with Gravitas," Traveller agreed. She made a careless gesture at Nightmare and Chameleon, who still looked angry at the thought of becoming humans. "And as for those two, never mind them, they'll have to deal with it or step out of the family."

Hearing this, Nightmare and Chameleon gave in. They remembered well their promise to stay with Ignika no matter what it would take. And now, what it would take was allowing their little brother to change them into members of this ugly race that was dominant on this world.

"Fine," Nightmare grumbled. "But I'll have you know I don't like this one bit."

Ignika giggled. "I think that goes without saying, Nightmare. I'd be worried if you _did_ like it." That made Nightmare smile, too.

That being said, Ignika went to work immediately. He gathered his power of Life and unleashed it upon his own family. His mighty will guided the Life energy and forced it to change the bodies of those he loved. All four began to glow with a golden light, just like Ignika, as the energies of Life flowed through them. Then they started to change, their tails scales and claws disappearing, the shape of their skull and feet changing. And when the light faded, four more humans were born.

Ignika's brother and sisters looked at themselves in wonder, then as they tried to move, three of them lost their balance and fell flat on the ground. Only Gravitas remained upright, looking smug. She crossed her arms tauntingly as she looked down at her fallen family. Chameleon lifted his head up out of the dirt and glared at her. He knew perfectly well how it was that Gravitas hadn't lost her balance. She used her powers.

"Cheater!" he accused, before laying his head back down in defeat.

Makoto chuckled quietly and went over to the boy. "Come on, let me help you up. For all I know, you'd have trouble staying up without a tail." She said and helped the boy get to his feet, supporting on her. The boy muttered his thanks and wiped the dirt from his face.

Meanwhile, Haruka helped Traveller up, and Minako went over to Nightmare. "Hey, girl, lemme help you." She said, beaming with smile.

Nightmare looked up at Minako's smiling face and quickly let herself fall into the dirt again. "No thanks, for all I know, it's contagious."

Minako simply kept smiling. "No objections!" She simply said and forced the flaming Saurian teenager to her feet, then acted as support.

Nightmare opened her mouth to give a snide retort, but Ignika looked at her pleadingly, and she sighed, giving in. "Joy…"

Minako laughed and said: "Yep!"

Setsuna looked at her fellow Senshi and the newly-transformed Saurians. "Now... We need to get you to the cars, attracting as little attention as possible."

"Car?" Gravitas asked.

Setsuna nodded. "It's a vehicle. So..." She looked at Ignika. "Your sister Traveller has the power of Teleportion, right? Can she teleport straight into my car if you show her how it looks?"

Traveller replied in his stead, shaking her head. "I never tried that before, and in this new body, I'd rather not do so now. I might end up leaving our legs here and the rest elsewhere. To use my power effectively, I need to see physically where to go, or have been there once before."

"I meant you only teleport yourself." Setsuna explained. "Ignika is a telepath, so he can project all the images into your mind. As you can see, two stumbling tunic-wearing and barefooted humans will attract less attention than three."

Chameleon coughed: "Ahem. There are four of us here."

Setsuna glanced at him. "I know. But you can turn yourself invisible, and thus the humans will only see two or three."

Traveller looked in the woman's eyes, then nodded. "Alright. But only myself."

She then proceeded to nod at Ignika, who understood the silent message perfectly. A quick use of his powers followed, and the next moment Traveller found her mind being filled with some of her little brother's memories. She frowned at the strange images she had received, but didn't say anything about them. She knew where to go now, and closed her eyes as she began to focus. Teleporting to a place she couldn't really seen or hadn't been to before always took a lot of her strength, and in this new body, she felt uncertain. Regardless, she did it anyway, and soon she vanished soundlessly before the eyes of the others.

"I'll go ahead and wait at the car with her," Ignika said. Before anybody could say anything, he had ran of already. He knew this was the best course of action. Traveller would not like being alone in an alien thing like a car for long. He'd best be there to comfort her.

Setsuna looked in the direction Ignika ran off. "I'll go after him. He doesn't know the car is locked." She glanced back at the Senshi and the remaining Saurians. "My car is parked right next to Haruka's, so bring them there. Minako, you'll put Nightmare in my car and sit on the front seat yourself. Ignika will sit between the girls. The rest of you ride in Haruka's car. Any questions?" The Senshi shook their heads. Saurians were confused. "Good. Oh, and don't forget to undo your transformations." She did so herself and went after Ignika.

* * *

Ignika, Traveller and Setsuna were already sitting in the car, waiting for Minako and Nightmare to arrive. It was a bit of a distance from the park to the car, and with their family still unused to their new bodies, it would take a while. Even his oldest sister was still studying and staring at her new form, moving her arms and hands hesitatingly, as if to make sure everything responded as it should. It made Ignika smile. He guessed he had looked exactly the same when he first transformed into a human. But at least he now wouldn't be the only one to adapt and make silly mistakes anymore, and that would make things considerably easier.

As far as Traveller was concerned, all that mattered was that she and Ignika were reunited again. If she had to look like some ugly mammal in order to remain with him, so be it. If she had to sit in this unnatural metal box to remain with him, so be it. Though she couldn't deny she felt nervous and slightly afraid, but she refused to let Ignika know that. She figured her little brother needed assurance, and she had to give him that. But looking at him, she noticed he was more comfortable in this box than she was. That put her at ease. If Ignika wasn't afraid, there was no need for her to be so, either, she figured. Still, everything around her was so different, noisy, smelly… The new things visibly overwhelmed her. Ignika placed his hand on hers.

"I know how you feel, sister, I was exactly the same when I first arrived. But don't worry, I'll help you all to adapt," he promised her. Traveller had to smile at that, and thanked him.

Just then, the door to the passenger seat was opened again and Nightmare was unceremoniously and enthusiastically pushed inside by an excited Minako. The Saurian of Fear looked visibly ill, as if touching Minako had burned her skin. She looked helplessly at Ignika, who had to do his best not to laugh. Judging from the look on her face, Traveller was the same as he. As Minako got in the front seat, Ignika helped his youngest sister with her seatbelt, and then they were ready to go.

"All is good here, Setsuna," he told the green-haired woman. "We're ready to go… wherever you are taking us now."

Haruka peeked into the car, addressing Setsuna. "Indeed, where to?"

"Hikawa Shrine. I contacted Rei on my way here, she says it's currently empty there." Setsuna replied. "Did you all fit in the car?"

Haruka shook her head. "Ami decided not to risk breaking the rules by sitting in the middle without a seatbelt, and took a bus."

Setsuna nodded. "Indeed. An open car is a disadvantage at times, no?" She buckled her own seat belt. "Well, let's get going. You drive first, I'll follow you."

Haruka nodded and left. Setsuna watched as she got into the car, started it and drove out of the parking lot towards the street, then followed suit.

* * *

By now, Ignika was used to riding in a car, but he could see how difficult it was for his sisters. Traveller had ceased to move, maybe even breath, as soon as the car had started, and Nightmare, despite hating to be subject to her own power, had curled up slightly in fear at the unfamiliar sound and the feeling of moving so quickly while sitting still. Ignika remembered well how he had been the first time in the car: curled up and eyes closed, refusing to look at anything or to listen to anything. He reached out and grabbed Nightmare and Traveller's hands, trying to comfort them. He felt them squeeze his, and smiled. He could feel their gratitude, and it made him happy to be here for them for a change, instead of the other way around. Now they were the ones with uncertainties, and not him. It was a strange thing, but a welcome change nonetheless.

He wondered how Chameleon and Gravitas were coping in Haruka's car with the woman he had changed into a man the day before, as well as Makoto. He doubted Gravitas would display any emotion, but knew in his heart that she would be as frightened and disturbed as he had been. Chameleon wouldn't bother hiding. He wasn't like Nightmare, he didn't mind showing when he was afraid, rare as that was. The white-haired boy sighed and hoped they would reach Rei's house soon.

As it turned out, it didn't take as long as he had feared. It was not even half as long a drive as to the house of the Outer Senshi. Soon enough – or finally, from all Saurians' point of view – the two cars pulled to a stop before a huge set of stone stairs, leading up a hill towards Hikawa Shrine.

As soon as the doors opened, Nightmare and Traveller did the same thing Ignika had done after his first trip: scramble out of the car as fast as possible, not caring that they still couldn't keep their balance in their new human bodies.

"Not for all the power of the Great Beings are you getting me so far as to crawl inside that thing of torture again!" Nightmare spat, looking ill and green. Her head was spinning and she collapsed on her knees and hands. Traveller wasn't much better off. Feeling sorry, Ignika kneeled down next to his two sisters and took their hands again.

"I'm sorry sisters… But I'll have you know I said the same thing the first time I had to ride in a car," he told them honestly. "But we're out of it for now, so calm yourself a bit, please? It will all be okay, I promise. Trust me, I beg of you."

Traveller gave her little brother an assuring smile. "I never stopped trusting you, Ignika. So don't worry about it, it's not your fault. It's all just a bit much."

"I know," Ignika replied with a sigh. "But at least we have each other now. I was all alone when I first had to deal with it. Now, if you excuse me, I'll go see if Chameleon and Gravitas survived…"

The white-haired child walked over to Haruka's yellow sport car, where the blonde woman and Makoto were busy helping a visibly ill and dizzy Gravitas and Chameleon out of the vehicle. Chameleon was leaning heavily on Makoto for support, not bothering to hide the fact that he felt sick. Gravitas tried to be slightly more subtle about it, but didn't succeed as well as she usually did, leaning on Haruka with a wavering emotionless expression on her face. The aloof Saurian looked close to showing her emotions! Then it had to have been a bad experience.

Chameleon noticed Ignika and looked at him pleadingly. "Kill me now, please," he begged. "The Great Beings hate me for some reason, I'm sure of it. Otherwise they wouldn't have made me go through hell like that."

Ignika chuckled a bit, then waved his hand, using his powers of Life to restore the strength of his brother and sister. He did the same with Traveller and Gravitas, and all looked visibly more healthier when he was done. That being done, the group began to move up the stairs towards the shrine.

The climb was hard for Ignika's family. Still far from comfortable in their new bodies, climbing so much stairs was not doing them any good. It was good they had the Sailor Senshi to support them, or else they never would have made it to the top unless Gravitas used her powers.

All five of the disguised Saurians looked around in wonder as they neared the top of the hill. Even Ignika, for he noticed how different this place looked compared to the 'city' surrounding it. There was nature here: trees and bushes and other life forms. That made him happy. When they reached the Shrine itself, the Saurians found themselves surprised again. The simple but beautiful building of wood and stone had a very serene appearance, and there was an aura of calmness and rest hanging over the Shrine grounds. Ignika, with his enhanced senses to feel powers, noticed there was some sort of spiritual energy here, too. The same kind he had felt with Rei, or Sailor Mars, before. That was logical, he realized, as Rei lived here.

All in all, Ignika found himself liking this place. It was a construction that had struck the perfect balance between building and nature, and from the looks on the faces of his family, he knew they agreed with him. The only thing that bothered him a bit was that so far, there was nobody to be seen here except two weird black birds on the archway at the top of the stairs.

The doors of the shrine opened, and out came Rei clad in her Miko clothes. She bowed respectfully to the Saurians. "Welcome to Hikawa Shrine. I am Rei Hino, the priestess. Come inside."

The family, except Gravitas and Nightmare, muttered a thanks. None of them really knew what to think of this human, just like none of them knew what a 'priestess' was.

After the Saurians came inside, Rei closed the door, then led them to a back room where she an the girls usually had their meetings. Motioning them to sit down, she said, addressing her fellow Senshi: "Yuichiro took half a day off, grandpa went to hot springs for three days yesterday. For the time being, the shrine is ours."

As everybody settled down on the floor, Ignika placed himself between Traveller and Chameleon, who had Gravitas and Nightmare to his right. Gravitas had placed herself between her brother and sister in order to keep them from bickering again. A wise decision, Ignika thought.

The golden-eyed child looked at his family and smiled. He was happy they were here. Finally, he really felt safe again. At the same time, however, he realized how much he had to tell them, how much he had to explain and how much they all – including him – still had to learn. But there would be time for that now, for they were together. And as Traveller had thought before in the car, that was all that mattered.

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**Next chapter: Changes and decisions!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: I got your PM, and I do agree everything's settled with that. Also, you're right, Bionicle powers allow for some very fun family bickering. Writing how this little family interacts is my favourite part of this story so far. As for Traveller, you're correct that it is with one l, and thus a mistake on my part, but I thought "heck, it's a name, so it can have a different spelling", and decided to leave it with double l for the rest of the story. Call me lazy for it, but I don't think it's a big deal. Thanks for reviewing!


	15. Changes and decisions

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**15. Changes and decisions**

Setsuna looked at the humans and Saurians meeting at the Hikawa Shrine today. It was clear that Ignika was eager to spend some time alone with his family and share the knowledge of this unknown and strange world. She smiled and told her fellow Sailor Senshi:

"Well, now that the shrine is empty, let's go to a different place and let the Saurians have some private time. We have things to discuss, too."

The other Senshi nodded, getting to their feet. As they left, Makoto smiled assuring at Chameleon and Ignika. There was something about the older boy that she liked – his openness and sincerity. Besides, Ignika gave him quite a nice appearance and face... As she was thinking that, everybody else had left, except for Minako, who winked at Nightmare, who in turn shivered in disgust. Satisfied, the blonde followed Makoto and left.

The Child of Life watched the Senshi depart, grateful of the time they were giving him. He returned his attention to his family and smiled. As soon as the door closed behind the Sailor Senshi, Nightmare made a sound as if she was going to puke.

"Ugh, that love dove is making me ill. How do you bear with it, Ignika?" the transformed Saurian of Fear demanded angrily.

Ignika chuckled a bit and rubbed the back of his head. "I don't live with her, I'm staying with Haruka and Setsuna, as well as Hotaru and Michiru who aren't here now. That's a challenge in itself, I tell you."

Traveller raised an eyebrow. It sounded like her brother had, or was having some difficulties wherever he was staying. She didn't like the sound of that. Nothing was allowed to make her brother feel uncomfortable, in her opinion. "What do you mean?" she asked then, demanding he explained.

Ignika got a frown of distaste on his face. Blessed by the Great Beings of this world or not, he still didn't really like the concept of lesbians. "Haruka and Michiru, both women, apparently are mates. And the fact that they can have no offspring is perfectly accepted in this dimension. Because they 'love' each other. And as it turns out, the Great Beings of this world taught the human race that love was the most important thing of all. Which allows mates to be of the same gender." The boy shivered as he told them that.

The reaction he got was the same as his when he first learned of same-gender love: disgust. Even Gravitas had allowed herself to frown. Before any of them could start to protest, though, Ignika calmed them all.

"I know what you're going to say, and believe me, I said the same. But the Great Beings of this dimension said it was alright to mate with someone of the same gender if you love her. It is not our place to go against the Great Beings, no matter what dimension they're from."

"I suppose that is true," Traveller gave in with a sigh. "We cannot hope to understand the wisdom of the Great Beings. We can only accept. But that will take some time and effort."

The others nodded mutely, grudgingly agreeing. First a weird forest of stone, a vehicle of torture, new bodies, and now this? What else would follow? None of Ignika's family really had any desire to find out, but they did realize it was inevitable and necessary that they did. They needed information about this world if they wanted to hide in it for now.

"Any other preposterous facts we need to be informed of?" Gravitas asked emotionlessly, voicing the question everybody was having. Again, Ignika sighed.

"Yes, better prepare yourself. You see, they eat with weapons and…"

What followed next was Ignika giving his brother and sisters a lengthy recap of all he had experienced and learned the past four days, ranging from table manners to bathrooms and computers. His family was soon having a headache with all these new terms and things they would see here, and their courage sank to their toes. Yet they did not feel regret at coming here, no, their family bond was too strong for that. They only realized that there was one hell of a road of adaption ahead of them, one they had to walk if they liked it or not. For there was no turning back, as Traveller told Ignika once he asked what they had been doing the past four days since they were separated.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Sailor Senshi sat in the main room of the shrine, waiting for Usagi and Chibiusa to come. Rei was meditating, looking at the Holy Fire, Ami was reading a school textbook, Minako and Haruka were discussing the concert trip Michiru was on, and Makoto was lost in thoughts. Setsuna had left a while ago to buy clothes for the newly-arrived Saurians.

Suddenly, Minako interrupted the talk with Haruka, winked at her and glanced in Mako's direction. Haruka smiled and nodded. Then the two went over to the brown-haired girl.

Startling the Soldier of Thunder, Haruka put her hands on Mako's shoulders and said sweetly: "Just what is our tomboy thinking about?"

"W-what? No, nothing really..." Mako blushed slightly. Then, to hide it, she said: "Wait, tomboy? How can you even call me that when you dress in men's clothes yourself?"

Minako gave her a triumphant smile. "Still, it's clear that you were high up in the clouds just a moment ago. Come on, who's the guy you were thinking of?"

Makoto sighed. "I was thinking of my old sempai."

Haruka raised her eyebrow. "Oh? Why?"

"I don't know. Just felt like remembering some happy moments." She leaned back and looked at Haruka. "I wonder if I'll ever get my dream come true."

The question remained unanswered, however, as Usagi and Chibiusa arrived at the scene.

"Oh, finally." Rei said, snapping out of her meditation. "What took you so long?"

"Sorry, that klutz couldn't figure out where she put her favorite shoes and turned the entire house over looking for them." Chibiusa shrugged. Everybody else sweatdropped.

"Hey! It's not my fault that you hid them on top of a bookcase as a revenge for not taking you to the battle the day before yesterday!" Usagi glared at her future daughter.

"WHAT?" All the Inner Senshi looked at Chibiusa, shocked.

The Small Lady backed away. "What did I say?"

"You shouldn't blame Usagi for not taking you, you should thank her!" Makoto scolded. "You have no idea of how dangerous it was. It wasn't some mindless youma, those were four powerful intelligent Saurians who nearly killed us!"

Ami closed her book. "Mako, don't be so harsh on her. Her youthful enthusiasm and carelessness are perfectly understandable at her age." She stood up and went closer to the girl. "But you must never forget about danger." She undid a few buttons on her blouse and showed the scar on her chest – a reminder of the battle. Chibiusa gasped. "I wouldn't have been talking to you now if it weren't for Hotaru and Ignika."

Minako had enough of this sad moment. "Well, luckily, it's in the past now, so let's forget it for a while and get to the point."

Rei nodded. "You're right. Gather round." The girls sat on the floor in a circle. "There is one main question we need to solve today. What to do with the Saurians. First of all, where should we house them."

Chibiusa said: "Well, our house is out of question. Too many people already living in it."

"Yeah, Ikuko-mama won't understand if our family was joined by yet another mysterious cousin." Usagi glared at her 'sister'.

Rei nodded. "What about the other people? Mako?"

"I suppose I could take one. My apartment is empty, and it would be nice to eat my dinner not alone for a change." The brown-haired girl smiled.

"Just don't forget that you'll have to teach him everything. _Absolutely_ everything," Haruka added. "As for me, I'm fine with Ignika. Even though I would prefer he was gone from my life forever..." The last phrase was said quietly and under her nose, but the Senshi heard it nonetheless.

"Oh? Why is that?" Minako raised her eyebrow. To her, Ignika was a cute little boy who could hardly do any harm.

Haruka sighed. "Well, apparently, he didn't like my relationship with Michiru. And, well..." Haruka bowed her head. The next thing was embarrassing and very hard to say. "He turned me into a guy. Literally and completely."

The girls' jaws dropped to the floor. "That's... Hard... To even imagine," Ami finally said.

"It sure is." Haruka's face twisted in disgust. "Imagine – you wake up one morning, and see that your breasts are gone, your arms are all bulky and in your pants there's..." She glanced at the girls. "Ah, forget it..."

The girls slowly nodded. Minako said: "Well, anyway, my parents are gone to America for the rest of the year on some business affairs, so my house is also available."

"I could take one, too, preferably Gravitas," Ami said quietly. "But I don't know for how long, as my mother is gone for three months only as a part of an exchange program with Germany."

Rei nodded. "Good. So Gravitas will live at your apartment. Who will take Nightmare?"

Everybody pointed or looked at Minako. "Wha? Why me?" She said, startled.

"Well, you seem to be the most tolerant to her Fear powers, knowing that your power is Love... And besides," Rei smirked sadistically. "It's fun to see her tortured by your loving kindness."

Everybody laughed at that phrase. Smiling, Minako agreed to house the living terror in her bright sunny house.

"Now, Traveller and Chameleon," Makoto said. "You know, judging from their behavior in the park, I think Traveller will demand to stay with Ignika. So sorry, Haruka, she's also staying at your house."

The blonde woman could only sigh in defeat. "Fine. And you're with Chameleon, I take it?"

"Yep." Makoto smiled.

At that moment, Setsuna entered the room, her hands full of clothes bags. Putting them on the floor, she sat next to the girls and asked: "So, what did I miss?"

"Well, we have figured out who shall live where, now all is left is to re-organize the park watch schedule," Ami said.

"Good. Let's do it." The older woman nodded.

* * *

"Olmak is dead, Ignika," Ignika's oldest sister announced with a sigh. The white-haired child's jaw dropped in shock and he stared at the faces of his brother and sisters, hoping they would deny what Traveller just said. But they didn't, and Ignika bowed his head in sadness.

Olmak had been a friend of the family for a long time. He was one of the most powerful Saurians as well, being one of the only two to be granted the power of Dimensional Gates by the Great Beings. 'Olmak' was an old Saurian term for 'gate'. Ignika had known that Olmak had been injured on the day he helped the Child of Life escaped, but not that he had died.

"How did he die?" Ignika asked quietly, his voice wavering with pain and grief.

"He must have gotten injured when he helped you escape," Chameleon replied. "When we found him today, it was too late. Only if you had been there, or if any of us had had Quick Healing as a power, he might have lived… But we couldn't help him, he was too weakened and had lost too much blood already. He told us in short sentences what had happened and where he had sent you, opened a gate for us and died… We couldn't even burry him, as the gate wouldn't last long…"

Ignika bit back the tears. Olmak had been their friend till his end, using his last strength to reunite them… He prayed the Great Beings would look after his soul.

"At least we won't be followed," Nightmare chimed in, as sad as the others were. Ignika shook his head.

"Don't count on it. Other Saurians have already appeared here. Olmak's powers have been adapted by a Saurian of Adaption. They won't let us go that easily…"

Nightmare's face brightened at the prospect of using her powers to make her enemies die of fear in the future. She looked like a child with a new toy. Then she remembered she had a new body now, in which she couldn't even walk on her own yet. Her good mood disappeared like snow under the sun.

"We have to learn to control these new bodies, then," Gravitas noted. "Our enemies will come, we cannot fight them in our current state."

"True," Traveller agreed. She looked at Ignika. "You'll have to teach us, little brother."

Ignika was startled by these words. "I only learned to walk properly in this new body yesterday!" he protested hesitatingly. "I'm still not fully comfortable in it. No, I'll ask the others to help you all. We can trust them, I assure you."

"Which makes me wonder where they went," Chameleon interrupted, crossing his arms and frowning. "Do they intend to leave us here?"

"No." The door opened and Setsuna came in, followed by Haruka. Both held the bags with clothes. "We were merely allowing you to discuss your problems, while we were discussing ours." Putting the bags on a table, she said: "Haruka, make them stand by the wall, while I dress Gravitas up. Ignika, leave the room for a while. Chameleon, no peeking."

The clothes Gravitas received were light-blue thin jean shorts, a dark-blue t-shirt and black sandals. The sandals consisted of the sole and several thin straps of leather, and had no heel. The t-shirt was tight-fitting and had a white wolf painted on it, sitting on the snow under the light of silver moon.

The Saurian of Gravity raised an eyebrow as she looked at herself. She was using her powers to keep herself upright. If she didn't, moving to look at herself like that would no doubt make her loose her balance and fall. Nightmare and Traveller were having trouble themselves remaining upright.

Gravitas found herself liking the footwear, for to her great displeasure she had discovered her human feet were not made for walking barefooted. She didn't think much of the shorts – blue was a color for Traveller, not her – but she did approve of the t-shirt. She didn't know what the hairy mammal depicted on it was, but it looked beautiful.

"Acceptable," was all Gravitas said when asked for her opinion. That was as good as Setsuna and Haruka were going to get.

Setsuna nodded. "Good. Now, Nightmare..."

Nightmare's new outfit consisted of crimson tight-fitting sport pants and a flaming red t-shirt with a ferocious-looking black dragon, which was neither baggy nor too tight-fitting. The footwear was hard to choose for Setsuna, but in the end she decided on black plimsolles that had fasteners instead of laces. Of course, she bought socks for them, too.

Nightmare didn't make a snide remark for a change. She was having too much trouble remaining on her feet. Regardless, she loved the strange tunic she had been given, with its nice red color. And that big deadly, fear-inspiring reptile on it? Perfect. Not that she would ever admit that, of course.

"At least it's not pink," she grumbled. That meant 'thank you, I like it', in common language.

"Minako would have said 'Glad you like it'," Haruka remarked.

Traveller was given a knee-length loose-fitting light-blue skirt, a white tight-fitting lacy t-shirt and white sandals, which were about the same as Gravitas had. Also, she was the only one to receive a bra, which was pale-blue and was slightly visible through the t-shirt.

Of the three women, Traveller was perhaps the most normal, as long as she knew Ignika was nearby. She did find herself rather liking these strange new clothes. They were of excellent quality, and the Saurian woman wondered what animal had such great hides. What would take the most getting used to, however, was what Setsuna had called a 'bra'. It seemed unnecessary, a waste of good hides, but regardless it was comfortable enough for her to not complain.

"I like it," she finally said on a normal tone.

"I'm glad." Setsuna smiled. "Well, girls, let's leave now, and let Haruka dress Chameleon."

"Wha? Why me?" Haruka's eyes went wide.

"You were a man for a whole day, so you can dress up your fellow," Setsuna said. The Saurian girls looked at her, confused. She looked at them. "Oh, Ignika didn't tell you? He tried to make things right by turning Haruka into a male."

Traveller and Nightmare snickered, and even Gravitas smiled. "That's my brother," Traveller said proudly.

"Fine, fine, get out of here already," said a very annoyed Haruka.

Chameleon's clothes didn't differ much from Ignika's, only the shorts were made of thin light-brown jean, and the t-shirt was pale-grey with a colorful chameleon on it. The sandals were exactly the same, only a bigger size.

Chameleon studied himself for a while, leaning heavily against the wall. He wasn't sure what to think of his new clothes, but as they resembled Ignika's, and Ignika wasn't complaining, he guessed they were fine. Once he learned what the reptile on his t-shirt was called, he went as far as love it. With that settled, Haruka, Setsuna and the Saurians went to the room with the other Senshi.

The girls looked at the dressed Saurians approvingly. As usual, Setsuna's fashion taste didn't fail her. Ignika found the clothes nice, too.

"Well, now that you are deftly dressed, we need to tell you what you would be doing next." Ami cleared her throat. "As you know, you all have much to learn, and in order to teach you as quickly and effectively as possible, we decided to house you with different Senshi. Traveller, you'll be staying with Ignika, Haruka, Setsuna, Michiru and Hotaru at their house."

Traveller smiled, despite the fact she had to share the house with lesbians. "As long as I'm with my brother," she said and put a hand on his shoulder. He smiled back at her.

Ami said: "Gravitas, you're with me." The Saurian just nodded. She didn't really care where to live, and Ami seemed calm and intelligent. Ami smiled at her and continued: "Chameleon, you're with Makoto."

Chameleon eyed the tall girl. Not that bad of a candidate. "Well, why not?"

"And where will I live?" Nightmare asked. All the normal people seemed to be already taken, unless those two new girls... However, she got the worst variant she could ever think of.

"You're with Minako," Ami said, smiling.

"WHAT! NO WAY! She'll love me to death!" The Saurian girl attempted to run away, but lost her balance and fell.

Rei came over to the girl and tried not to laugh out loud. "It's payback for the sins you've committed in your former life. And current, too."

Nightmare groaned. "Somebody, kill me..."

To everyone's surprise, Ignika didn't laugh. Instead, his face turned grim and serious, and when he spoke, it was with a tone the Senshi hadn't heard him use yet, and his family only had heard a few times.

"Nightmare, that's enough. I know she's your polar opposite, but try to bear it, please?" To everyone's even bigger surprise, Nightmare's expression softened and she listened attentively. "We're not in our own world, Nightmare," Ignika continued. "Everything is different here, and we need people to teach us. We can trust these females, and that's a rare thing for our family. You know that. I know you'd prefer somebody else. And if I could, I'd let you stay with me and Traveller, but Haruka dislikes me enough as it is… So please, go with Minako. Do it for me, please? You're strong, Nightmare, you'll survive."

Ignika's youngest sister, the Saurian of Fear, sighed deeply, but nodded. "I'm going to regret this, but okay. I'll try, little brother."

* * *

**Next chapter: Nightmare's nightmare!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Glad you liked the chapter. Hope the first part of this one did not offend you. I shall also tell you that the next chapters will focus on each individual Saurian and his/her host. As of such, the next fighting scene will be for chapter 20.


	16. Nightmare's nightmare

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**16****. Nightmare's nightmare**

"Well, I guess it's time to say goodbye," Chameleon said as the Saurians were standing by the arc outside of the shrine. He, Gravitas and Nightmare were ready to go to their new homes. Whatever those might be.

"Yes, but I hope it's not for long," Ignika said. "I'll miss you guys..."

"We will, too, little brother," Chameleon smiled. He then turned his attention to his sisters. "Gravitas, try not to annoy Ami too much." Gravitas only raised an eyebrow at that. "Traveller, take good care of our little brother."

"Will do," the transformed Saurian woman smiled. Chameleon smiled back, then bid farewell to the last sister:

"Nightmare, try not to kill Minako."

The teenage girl grumbled: "Who will kill whom really is a big question." She glanced at the forever cheerful sunny girl. How would she bear the days, or maybe even weeks, of living with that girl? Love is pathetic, Great Beings damn it!

"Well, I'll be on my way. Let's go, Makoto." He nodded at the girl he was supporting on, and they slowly went down the stairs.

"You sure you don't need a ride?" Haruka asked.

"What? No way, I'm not getting into that metal box again," Chameleon said, glancing back at her. Noticing Haruka's frown, he added: "No offense. Besides, I need to get used to this body."

"Well, fine, see for yourself..." She said as she watched the couple stumble away. "Anybody else needs a ride? Ami, Gravitas?"

Ami shook her head. "No, thanks. Since Gravitas can walk on her own, we'll be fine. Let's go." She looked at her aloof companion.

Gravitas nodded and said "Good luck" to her family. The two girls went down the stairs and walked in the opposite direction from Mako and Chameleon.

"They seem to get along well... That's a good sign," Traveller said.

Ignika agreed with his sister: "True, and it's quite a rarity."

Haruka asked the last couple: "Minako, Nightmare, do you need a ride?"

Minako smiled: "Oh yes we do! My house is not too far, but I don't feel like dragging her on my shoulder all the time. Besides, she seemed quite calm last time, right?"

Nightmare could only look up to the Heavens and say: "WHY ME!"

Minako said in the same manner: "WHY NOT?" Laughing at the poor Saurian girl's face and dragged her down the stairs to the car.

Ignika sighed deeply and shook his head. "I'm worried about them," he admitted to his oldest sister. "Nightmare may have promised… But she's still Nightmare. If Minako overdoes it, nothing will stop our beloved sister from using her powers."

"True," Traveller admitted with a shrug. "But I don't think Nightmare would break her word. She loves you too much for that."

"I suppose you're right," her younger brother agreed. He took her hand and smiled. "But I think it's time for us to go home now, too, so you can meet Hotaru. She helped me a lot with learning, Traveller. I'm sure you'll like her."

"We'll see," Traveller replied. She leaned on Setsuna for support. The three said goodbye to Usagi, Chibiusa and Rei, then walked down the stairs towards Setsuna's car.

"I'm not looking forward to doing this again," the oldest Saurian grumbled as Ignika helped her with her seatbelt.

"Regardless, this is the most common way of transport in this world," Setsuna said from the driver's seat. "You'll have to get used to it, like Ignika did."

"I don't have much choice, do I?" Traveller replied, as calm and polite as she could. She glanced at Ignika, and smiled while pulling him close to her. "Ah, well, at least I have my little brother with me again. That's all that matters."

* * *

Chameleon and Makoto walked down the street towards Makoto's apartment. The Saurian boy had to rely heavily on the Senshi of Lightning, unable to walk on his own. Not that he minded. In other situations, in his own body, he wouldn't have liked this at all. He hated being reliant on others for simple things like walking. But now, in this strange world, being able to receive support from this Makoto girl was a blessing. He didn't like to admit it, but he was overwhelmed, if not frightened. He hated feeling that way, it was against his personality. He was a reckless person, always had been and always would be. But in this situation, he didn't dare to be.

Everything around him was so noisy, so colorful and many more things. Hundreds, thousands of these horrid, foul-smelling 'cars' drove on a path of strange black rock, while millions of people walked in all directions on the paths of stone tiles next to the car paths. Many were looking through some of the purest glass he had ever seen, at things stalled out behind it, in the enormously tall fortresses that were all over this place. It was all so big, why did it have to be? These were only humans, after all, they weren't Great Beings, so why did they have to build such enormous things as if to prove their might and majesty?

He tried to breath as little as well, for the air was foul and full of disgusting smells, mostly thanks to the cars. He asked Makoto why everybody was looking at the things behind the glass, and why those things – ranging from weird clothes to even weirder foods and jewelry – were there in the first place. His human guide had told him those were 'shops', places where people could trade something called 'money' for the things in the 'store'. Strange, very strange. Of course, Saurians traded among each other at times, but money was an alien concept.

Chameleon noticed that some humans stared at the two of them, mostly at him though. He often got looks of either sympathy or distaste. He didn't like that, and he often glared back, but said nothing, not wanting to blow his disguise.

"Are we almost there, Makoto?" he asked, almost pleadingly. "It's all becoming a bit much, too be honest. And I'll have you know that I rarely admit I can't deal with something."

"Don't worry, just a little bit more, and we're home. We'll leave the main street and go through that side-street." She pointed ahead. "After that, just a bit more walking and we're there."

"Good." The Saurian said. He didn't get half of her words, but was happy nonetheless.

Despite having physical strength that was remarkable for her age and gender, Makoto was becoming tired of having to act as support for the Saurian. Nevertheless, she had to be strong, as she always wanted to be. She glanced at the boy leaning on her. They were about the same height, with Chameleon being just a bit shorter due to his age. She could see that he was tired, too, of using this new body and of what he had seen so far... She understood it must be hard.

While she was thinking all that, they walked down half of the side-street, and Makoto made another turn left, and the couple found themselves just a few steps from the entrance to Makoto's apartment building. "We're here. Now, let's go through that door."

Chameleon nodded, happy to reach the destination. But as they went inside, his happiness faded a bit. They walked up a small set of steps, and he found himself in a room. There were two silver-looking strange doors in front of him, two more doors leading to the sides, and a staircase. Mako left him to support on the stairs' rails and went to one of the strange metallic boxes that lined the walls. Opening it, she took a few papers out, most of which she just threw into a round black solid-looking basket standing on the floor. She kept some of them, though, and seemed particularly interested in a big thick one all lined with black symbols and black-and-white pictures.

"Urban myths: legends or reality? Sailor Senshi, aliens, evil spirits. Interview with the police officer Takeshi Asumu." She read. "Sounds interesting."

"Myths?" Chameleon looked confused. "You seem real enough to me."

"Heh, thanks. But ordinary humans don't know of our identities as Sailor Senshi. We don't want our powers abused and used to wage wars, so we protect the world in secret. Or try to, at least." The girl explained.

Chameleon nodded. The concept of not letting someone abuse your powers was more than familiar to him. He had spent more than a hundred years with Ignika. Nevertheless, they had something more urgent on their hands now. "So, um, is this where you live?"

Makoto chuckled. "Not exactly. My apartment, which is the collective name of the few rooms of this building I own, is on the third floor."

Chameleon looked up. The staircase seemed to go on forever, and Chameleon groaned. Mako just smiled, came over to him and took his arms, pulling him along to the strange silver-looking doors. Chameleon slowly made steps, and managed not to fall until they reached the doors. Makoto pressed a small glowing circle on the wall, and one of the door opened with a 'ding' sound. "Come inside."

Reluctantly, the Saurian did so. He didn't like being in enclosed spaces, and this thing looked like another metal box of torture, like that car had been. Chameleon didn't think much of metal and machinery, it all had a nasty smell. Inside the box was lit up by a fireless light in the ceiling, and there was a strange square with buttons on the wall. On those buttons were weird symbols which glowed. Makoto pressed one. Suddenly the doors closed, and Chameleon was startled a bit. Seeing as Makoto looked completely calm, though, he quickly calmed down himself, not wanting to be outdone.

He got a strange feeling in his stomach, the feeling he was rising. Above the door he could see the symbol made of red light changing shape two times, and then he felt the box come to a halt. The doors opened again and Makoto let him lean on her again. Together, they left the elevator, another experience Chameleon wasn't eager to repeat.

They came up to one more door, which was made of some sort of wood. Makoto took a ring with strange small metal objects hanging from it. Putting one of them in a hole on the door, she turned it right a few times, and something clicked while she was doing that. The girl opened the door, and Chameleon realized that the door was in fact made of metal. He didn't understand it. Why metallic doors? Nevertheless, they went inside, and Mako let him lean on the wall. "Whew. We're here. This is my home."

Chameleon looked around in wonder. Never before had he seen a home like this, or even been in one, for that mattered. It was true that some Saurians lived in small settlements with small shelters made of wood, or in caves, but he was a part of Ignika's family, and that meant being on the move constantly. He didn't mind that, he couldn't sit still for long, anyway. The boy did know that Ignika had lived inside a well-build house once, namely, the Fortress of the Great Beings. Often Ignika had told him about his own chamber there, and it differed greatly from Makoto's.

It was full of furniture, objects and trinkets that he couldn't even begin guess the use off. The room was illuminated by one of those bafflingly weird fireless lights, and on some of the furniture stood small paintings of unbelievably great detail and quality. The cave drawings of some of his race had nothing on it. It smelled clean in here, too, or at least cleaner than outside, for which he was grateful. There even was glass of the same fantastic purity as in the 'shops' on the 'street'. Glass, something that intrigued every Saurian at least once in his life. The Great Beings had shown the Saurians that if you heat sand, it becomes a hard, crystal-like substance they called glass. But never was it so pure you could look through it like here. So many wonders in such a – when compared to what he had already seen outside – small place, it was unbelievable.

"I'm… speechless, for once," he finally told his human guide.

"In a good sense, I hope?" Makoto smiled. "Well, let's go to the kitchen. You're probably hungry."

* * *

"Okay, we're here." Minako smiled. "Thanks for the ride, Haruka!"

"No problem." The older woman said as the Senshi of Love helped the Saurian of Fear get out of the car. "Have fun, you two." She winked as she drove off.

Nightmare groaned. First she was forced to ride an insanely fast vehicle of doom, now she was stuck with an all-sunny and cheerful crazy human female, without a family to bicker with and that man-like woman told her to HAVE FUN? "Great Beings, why me?" She thought.

"Well, let's go inside the house." Minako smiled. Nightmare looked at the building Minako called a house. It looked quite big to her, although nowhere near as big as the ones they drove past on their ride. It had two stores, its walls were pale yellow and looked quite neat... Which made Nightmare shiver. There was a small patch of grass between the house and the fence, as well as some bushes and flowers. The windows of the house all had flowers on them, too. Nightmare hated flowers.

The happy cheerful girl led the Saurian to the front door and let her in. "It's a little messy inside, but I hope you don't mind."

The Saurian's eyes widened when she entered the house. "A little messy, you say?" Even the small space between the door and the step to the wooden platform that the rest of the rooms were located on she turned out in was littered with various kinds of what she guessed to be footwear. Some of them obviously missed a pair. "What do you hograt call a big mess then?"

"Uh... You'd better not know..." She said, thinking of the living room. She then shouted into the house: "ARTEMIS? WHERE THE HECK ARE YOU?" Nightmare had to rub her ear in order to regain at least some of the hearing the girl's shout had destroyed.

"Jeez, Minako-chan, is it really a necessity to shout so loud?" A voice came from somewhere above. Then down came the owner of the voice.

Nightmare looked, blinked and let her jaw drop. Down the stairs came a mammal, feline hairball. With a crescent on its forehead. Oh, and it talked. Since when did animals talk? Nightmare forsook manners, dropped on all fours so she could move without falling flat on her face, crawled over to the ball of hair and sniffed it. Nope, nothing special about its scent, just an ordinary hairy mammal. Then why the heck did it talk?

Artemis was startled at first, but then he arched his back and hissed, his hair standing on end. "Minako, who the heck is that?"

"Uhh... Nightmare, this is my cat Artemis. Artemis, meet Nightmare. She's gonna live with us." Was all Minako could say.

"What? Why?" The blue-eyed cat looked at his owner wide-eyed.

"Well, remember I told you about Ignika and the Saurians? This is his sister turned human."

"And you brought her to live with us?" The cat asked.

"Uh... Yeah."

"Just like that...?"

"Uh-huh."

"Without asking me?"

"Yeah." Minako smiled sheepishly.

Artemis put his palm on his forehead and let his ears drop. "Oh for God's sake, Minako! When will you ever learn to at least _think_ before you act? How in the world are you gonna look after her if you can't even look after yourself!"

"Oh yes I can!" Minako frowned.

"The living room says otherwise. Go tidy up this instant!" The angry cat nodded at a closed door.

"Fine, fine, I get it. You show her around the house then." Minako grumbled and left.

Nightmare watched Minako leave and frowned. Then she looked down at herself, still on all fours. Realization hit her, and with an exasperated sigh, she let herself fall on the floor, not caring if it was dirty or not.

"Just great," the Saurian of Fear hissed. "First I have to live with annoying miss sunshine, then I get introduced to a talking hairball that will show me around, and now the one who is supposed to 'help' me adapt in this new body leaves me here in the dirt, oh so conveniently forgetting that I CAN'T WALK ON MY OWN YET!"

Artemis sighed. "Yeah, that's my owner. Nothing can be done about it." He motioned to the wall Nightmare was closest to. "Crawl over here and try to get up on your own using the wall for support."

Absolutely fuming, Nightmare nonetheless did as told. "Absolutely, bloody fantastic! Now a quadruped talking feline mammal is going to teach me, Nightmare, Saurian of Fear, how to walk on my two legs! Oh those Great Beings and their wacky sense of humor."

With some difficulty, the girl managed to get herself on her two legs again, leaning heavily against the wall for support. She absolutely loathed this, and she wondered why she had ever agreed with Ignika to try and make this work. She was still far too soft, it seemed.

"About being a quadruped feline mammal, you're only half right. Believe me, I know how to walk on two feet. Just, not in this body. But that's a story for another time." He came closer to the Saurian girl. "The trick is to keep your back straight. Now, prepare yourself..."

"Huh? For what?" The confused girl asked.

"This!" Suddenly, Artemis jumped high and pricked the softest part of her body with his claws. The Saurian yelped and arched her back. "Stop!" The Saurian froze. "That's how you stand straight. Except your shoulders should be lower." He said, jumped on the stairs' rail and then on the poor Saurian's shoulder.

"What the heck are you-!" The girl asked, almost losing her balance. However, she managed to remain upright.

"Hey, I'm a cat. How else am I supposed to teach you?" He said, making himself comfortable on the girl's shoulders, lowering them properly with his weight. "Besides, it's better than what Minako could come up with. Now, try to get used to this position and walk along the wall for a while."

"I swear somebody's going to pay for this…" the angered Saurian girl grumbled. She did do what Artemis commanded her, though, cause she had to learn how to walk anyway. But as she did that, her mind was working madly coming up with all sorts of ideas for her revenge. Images of a certain ball of hair running around in circles with his hairs straight as he panicked for nothing, or a certain blonde human screaming her head off as she ran around like a chicken without a head, filled her mind, and Nightmare smiled. Oh, the possibilities…

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**Next chapter: Chameleon's Good Taste!**

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**Review replies:**

Chaser Warring on Everything: The thing is, Ignika is the only one who can transform them, and it takes considerable effort on his part, not to mention that the transformation is not entirely painless because bone structures have to be altered. Ignika can also not bestow them that power, as the Saurians already have one power in their bodies, and another one would destroy them. And nobody feels like switching their own power with transforming from human to Saurian and back. Learning to control their human bodies is the best way in the end.

SoulLoss: If I'm not mistaken, Crast and his master will appear again in chapter 20. Hope you liked this chapter, and thanks for the review!


	17. Chameleon's good taste

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**17.**** Chameleon's good taste**

While the Saurian of Terror had been learning to walk and planning revenge, Chameleon and Makoto had finished eating the meal they've cooked.

"Mmm..." Chameleon said, licking his lips. "This is the most delicious thing I ever ate!"

Makoto laughed. "Oh please, it can't be that good."

"No, seriously! At first I didn't think it'd be tasty, but man, was I wrong!"

"Okay, okay." Makoto smiled, flattered at the emotion and sincerity the boy said it with. It was pleasing to hear such compliments, despite the fact she herself thought that she had a lot to learn about cooking yet.

The meal they have cooked was meat braised with potatoes. Why 'they'? Because Chameleon decided to repay Mako a bit for having to care for him like that, and offered to help her peel the potatoes. Mako was surprised, but welcomed help nonetheless. As for Chameleon, making a meal of several ingredients was alien to him. He especially didn't understand why Mako needed a round yellow plant called 'onion' in it. It burned the eyes, damn it! But in the end it was worth it, because the smell from the fried meat instantly became much tastier once she added it. There were also other ingredients he didn't understand – 'salt', 'pepper' and 'spices'... But the end result had pleasantly surprised him, despite the fact he had to eat it with a 'fork'. Which, to Mako's surprise in return, he used quite well.

Chameleon looked at Makoto with some sort of admiration. He didn't know the human saying that the path to a man's heart lies through his stomach, but it fully applied to him. Besides, watching Mako happily humming a tune as she stirred the meat, or almost dancing as she walked over to a shelf to get the spices... Interesting, to say the least.

"So, what now?" He asked.

"Well, I guess I should show you around. My apartment is not that big, anyway – two rooms and the bathroom..." The girl replied.

"Uh-huh, bathroom... Ignika told me about it. And I kinda... eh... need to use it now." The boy said, remembering the little he could from what Ignika told him, including the expression. He didn't really get what was so embarrassing about talking about the natural processes of a living being, but hey, he didn't want to offend Makoto with something so stupid.

"Oh, of course. Let's go." She helped him up, but didn't let him use her as support. Instead, she just walked behind him as he slowly made his way to the bathroom.

"Well, here it is." Mako opened the door. Unlike the Outers, she had the toilet separate from the bathroom, and Chameleon found himself looking at it, confused.

"Eh..."

"What?" Makoto asked. "You said Ignika told you about how to use the bathroom."

"Well, it differs from what he told me. From his words, the bathroom is bigger and has more things in it." Chameleon said, feeling uneasy.

"Oh, right. Well, at his house it is so, I just have the rest in the next room." She opened the next door to show him. "And the second problem?"

"Eh, well... He did tell us about it, but there was so much else he told, and, well..." He lowered his head. "I forgot."

Mako blushed. "W... Well, okay, I'll tell you... But listen closely, only once." She took a deep breath, then told as quickly as possible: "You open that cover, do what you need into there, wipe yourself with this paper, throw it there, then close the cover and push that silver button once or twice. Got it? Good. Do it." Not waiting for any sort of an answer, she pushed him inside gently and closed the door behind him, looking redder than Nightmare in her normal state.

* * *

While Makoto was struggling to overcome her embarrassment, Ami showed Gravitas her own apartment. They had eaten already, and while the food wasn't as good as Makoto's, Gravitas was quite satisfied with it. Now she looked in wonder at the things surrounding her.

There was one thing in the 'living room' that caught her eye more than anything else. One of the walls was entirely covered with a wooden construction made of many shelves, on top of which stood many rectangular objects of different colors. Gravitas went over to the wall and touched one. The side she was looking at was dark-red in color with golden symbols printed on it. Gravitas pulled it, and the object gave way. Turned out that only three sides were dark-red, and the back side didn't have a gold print. As Gravitas took it differently to take a better look, the thing opened, and revealed many thin sheets of material all covered in black symbols. Gravitas looked at Ami: "What is this?"

"Well, it's a book. People use those to store information about various subjects."

Gravitas studied it quietly in her hands for a moment, flipping through the pages, turning it in all angles as if to try and make sense of the symbols. She finally had to give up, not understanding how black symbols on strange sheets could store information. Only Ignika had been taught the secret of reading and writing, and he had never been capable of teaching them, nor had any of his family desired it. Because there were no such things as 'books' on Voya. Here, there were, though, and Gravitas interest was piqued. If Ami had so much books, while not being a Great Being, then to Gravitas that meant that being able to read and write was not a privilege in this world, but something very common.

"Can you teach me to read these?"

"Why... Of course." Ami smiled. "Let me take a look at this book..." She glanced at the cover. "Charles Perrault, Tales and Stories of the Past with Morals." Ami laughed a bit. "You have a good intuition, it seems, because these are the stories we tell little children. Most of them are just legends, not true at all, but as it is said, they have morals. Nevertheless, it's perfect to start reading." The girl smiled.

And so the two girls, an 18 years old teacher and a 540 years old student sat together on the couch reading Little Red Riding Hood.

* * *

Makoto heard the flushing of the toilet and a bit later the door opened and Chameleon came out, still moving rather awkwardly in his new body. His expression was as normal as it always was for him, but when he glanced at Makoto, who was still redder than a tomato, he frowned, confused.

"What's wrong? Is it too hot here or something, Makoto? You're all red," the Saurian of Chameleon said, a bit of worry in his voice.

"Umm, no... Or maybe yeah, it's kinda hot. Let's go to the living room, I'll open the balcony and let some fresh air in." Mako said. She didn't want to explain her embarrassment because it would cause her only more embarrassment. Besides, she didn't quite know herself why such a simple thing was considered embarrassing. Shaking her head, she opened the door to the living room and let the Saurian boy in.

Chameleon looked around. The room was bigger than the kitchen and brighter. The walls were pale green in color and had a subtle pale-yellow flower pattern painted on them. He wondered how much time it took Mako to draw all that. Saurians had drawings on their cave walls, but none were as neat and similar to each other. He then looked at the furniture the room had.

The biggest object in the room was the table standing in the middle of the room. It was bigger than in the kitchen, and covered with a white piece of cloth. Next to the table stood 8 chairs, and Chameleon wondered why Mako needed so many if she lived alone here. On the table itself stood a prettily decorated object with flowers put in it. They were pink and white in color, and looked simple, yet pretty.

The room also had several wooden constructions in the room. Chameleon guessed that two of them that stood by the wall to his right were called 'cupboards', at least, the description Ignika gave matched these. Through the glass doors, he could see that inside the cupboards stood pretty plates, cups, some weird little statues made of the same material and other small stuff. Did Makoto collect them? Possible. That was all he could see, however, as the lower doors of the cupboards were made of solid wood. Between the cupboards stood another wooden object, about one third the height of the cupboards, which had similar wooden doors. On top of it stood some pictures in wooden frames. Above it was a shelf with many shiny metallic weirdly-shaped cups and circular pendants. In the far corner of the room next to the cupboard stood another table, which was considerably smaller, on top of which stood a strangely-shaped big box. The front side of the box consisted of a wide silvery-colored frame with some small holes at the sides and buttons at the bottom, and inside the frame was a black, yet reflecting surface. Chameleon couldn't even guess what it was.

The wall in front of Chameleon had a big window and a... door? Why would somebody need a door outside at this height? At least, Chameleon assumed they were quite high, as he had just seen a bird fly by, and judging by the way it flew, it wasn't close to the ground. Nevertheless, he decided not to mind it, and continued to look at the room. The wall to the left of him had a 'couch' next to it, which was pale-brown and made of leather. Next to it, close to him, was a construction made of shelves, as wide as the cupboards, with many colorful rectangular objects. But unlike his sister Gravitas, Chameleon took no interest in them at all. To the other side of the couch was a door to the next room. From the ceiling hung a beautiful object made of small crystals with those fireless lights inside. And that was about all that he had seen in this room.

"You know, for living alone, you sure have a lot of stuff in here," the Saurian remarked. "What is it all for, anyway?"

"Well, this room is mostly meant for guests." Makoto smiled. "I like it when my friends come over to my home to spend some time, have a good meal, to do things together and, well, have fun." Makoto sat on the couch and motioned Chameleon to do the same. "The couch, for example, is very comfortable to sit on, and to sleep on if someone decides to stay for the night."

Chameleon raised an eyebrow as he eyed the couch. "Lemme guess, that's where I'll sleep?"

Makoto smiled. "Yep. But don't worry, I'll make it more comfortable when the evening comes. You see, one can unfold this couch to make a more proper bed. Besides, I'll also give you a bedsheet, a pillow and a blanket, so you sleep like all humans do."

"That's a lot of things just for sleeping," the Saurian remarked. "And I wasn't complaining or anything, just the couch would have been fine. Can't be any worse than that mountainside we once had to sleep on, anyway."

"Well, it would be inhospitable of me to make you sleep just on the couch." Mako smiled. "And what was on the mountainside?"

"Rock, duh," Chameleon shrugged.

Mako laughed. "Yeah, that's kinda obvious, heh..." She looked at the Saurian. "You know, why don't you tell me a bit about your planet? Setsuna has filled us on what she knew, but that was mostly basic knowledge of your history and nothing else."

"Well, there's not a lot to say about it," Makoto's guest replied sheepishly. "I mean, before the Great Beings came, and before the disaster, it was just one big jungle, with some oceans and mountains between. After the Great Beings came and left, it was still a big jungle, with some oceans and mountains here and there."

Mako laughed again. "Quite a clear and simple way to describe a whole planet." Mako shook her head. "Humans are too used to complex things, I think."

"Can't deny that," Chameleon agreed, waving his hand carelessly in the direction of the window. "I mean, just look outside. It's noisy, smelly, grayish and crowded. I know we Saurians might be a bit primitive, but even the Great Beings didn't build so much as you humans do. There's not a single tree or animal in sight. Where do you get all those things for your food, then?"

"Oh, that... Through trade, mostly. You see, cities like this one are where most people live, work and trade things for money. The food is grown outside the city and then transported to the places where people can buy them. As for why there are so many buildings..." Makoto thought for some time. "Well, it kind of comes from the amount of people living here. Our nation owns only several small islands, while there are 127 million people living on them. So in order to house them all, we have to build cities like that, with giant houses divided into apartments like this one. The population of this city is 12 million and 950 thousand people."

Chameleon's eyes widened for a moment. That many humans, on just a few islands? There were more people here already than there were Saurians on all of Voya! Still, it didn't make sense for there to be so many.

"You know, I'm no Ignika when it comes to how Life and populations function, but the fundamental laws of Life dictate that so many life forms can't survive naturally on such a small amount of space. Your fauna and flora must be quite messed up…"

Makoto frowned. "Yeah, it is... You probably have noticed that most of the things in this world aren't natural. Humans modify nature to suit their needs, even those that nature had no idea about..." She sighed and leaned back on the couch. "But there's nothing I can do about it. It has come to this over the course of our history, and it's the world we were born in, and have to live in. All I know for sure, is that in ten, no, nine centuries from now, the world will change for the better, and I will live to see it together with my friends, if not as Makoto Kino, then as Sailor Jupiter. It's a secret though, don't tell anyone other than your family. Other Senshi already know it."

"Heh, so you're immortal like us, are you?"

"Not exactly." Makoto said. "If you die, you die fully. If I die, only my physical body dies, the soul, memories and powers remain, and I can be reborn. We draw our powers from the planets of the Solar System, and as long as this planet needs protecting, Sailor Senshi will be born again and again." She paused. "Memories tend to fade over time, however. My first memory as Sailor Jupiter is only three or four years old, because of the long time that passed between the incarnations. During the years I remember, though, I have died and been reborn five times."

"I see," Chameleon replied, crossing his arms in thought. "It's different with us. When Nightmare, Gravitas, Traveller and me became Ignika's family, we decided to share his fate. So he erased our aging process, rendering us immortal in the sense that time has no grip on us anymore. We can still be killed, however… Not that killing Ignika is a wise thing to do, but ah, who ever said villains were smart? As for me, I'm four hundred and ninety years old, and I stopped aging at the age of one hundred and fifty."

"Really? Oh, right, Setsuna told that members of your race usually live for about a thousand years." Makoto nodded. "However, as for that kind of immortality, in the 30th century it will be quite common, judging from what Usagi's and Mamoru's future selves told us. People grow up to the age of about 25, which is just a little bit older than Setsuna is now, then stop aging. However, I'm not sure if it's for all people or just the royal family and their friends... Even if not, much of the planet's population will have died out by then, so it won't be a problem."

"Well, that's for the better then. I wonder if me and my family will still be in this world by then, or if we go back to Voya. Somehow I don't think the battle with our brethren will end soon… Ah, it's Ignika's choice. I'll go where he goes, I'll be around for eternity anyway, so I'm not in a hurry to leave here, either. I'd miss your cooking, Makoto." The last part was said with a honest smile.

Mako giggled. "You haven't yet seen, or, rather, tasted, nothing of what I can cook. The meal we cooked today was merely an easy offhand snack. Wait until I get to baking... Has Ignika told you about cake?"

Chameleon nodded. "Yeah, said he got some of that, whatever it is. He seemed to like it."

"Well, what I can make is ten times as tasty." Mako smiled. "Not that I like to boast about it, but that's what girls say when they taste my cakes. I'm not even speaking about non-sweet food like pies, baked fish, chicken, various kinds of meat with more than 30 types of sauces, and so much more..."

Her Saurian guest scratched his head sheepishly. "Am I supposed to say something here? I only understood half of that…"

"No problem, I'll be sure to make you taste and learn all that." She winked.

Chameleon gave her a grin in return. "Looking forward to it."

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**Next chapter: Sisters, phones and books!**

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Thanks still go to Tioko for co-writing and beta'ing all these chapters.

**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Heh, you saw through me. Yes, Krika was one of my favourite characters. He was my second favourite character of 2008, with Toa Ignika taking first place (and still doing so to this day). His appearance, and some of his characteristics were based on Makuta Krika. As for "Kill the Soul or the World", I think it wouldn't hurt if I already explained this: originally that was meant to be a direct prequel to this story, but "Mistakes of the Great Beings" went through some very radical plot changes since then, so that some elements of "Kill the Soul or the World" no longer fully fit anymore. So, when in future chapters I make reference to that one-shot prequel, and some things seem off, don't worry, I'm aware of it. Thanks for reading!


	18. Sisters, phones and books

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**18. Sisters, phones and books**

Setsuna's car drove up the path to the Outer's house and came to a halt before the front door. Ignika helped Traveller with her seatbelt, then got out of the vehicle. Setsuna let Ignika's oldest sister lean on her for support and helped her out of the car as well. The Saurian woman looked around in wonder at the beauty of the house and garden. She had expected something similar to the forest of stone as a place to stay, or maybe something like that 'shrine', but this was something else entirely.

"It's pretty, isn't it, sister?" Ignika grinned as he made a motion with his hand to the garden all around them. "Much better than the city."

Traveller nodded and smiled at her little brother. "Yes, the air smells better here, too. But what is a city, though, Ignika?"

"That's what Hotaru says the forest of stone is called," the boy replied, happy to explain. "I don't think much of that place either. It's crowded, stinks and looks way too gray and has way too little plant life. I hope Chameleon and Gravitas will be alright living there…"

"Don't worry too much. Makoto and Ami will take good care of them. I'm sure the city won't bother them too much. Nightmare, however..." Setsuna paused. "Nevertheless, let's go inside."

They entered the house, and Traveller found herself marveling at the interior, just like Ignika did. As soon as Setsuna said "We're home!", Michiru came downstairs to greet them. She was wearing a knee-length black dress with a white polka-dot pattern and a matching ribbon in her hair.

She smiled at them. "Welcome home." She looked at Traveller. "You must be Traveller? Haruka told me about you, and that you will live with us. Let's go to the kitchen and have some tea."

Traveller looked from Michiru to Ignika, and frowned. "Is this the mate of the male-like female that brought Nightmare away?" When her little brother nodded in confirmation, Traveller looked sharply at Michiru. "Ignika told me about you both. I don't like people offending my little brother's element."

Before anybody could get offended, though, Traveller returned Michiru's smile. "But Ignika also told me that the Great Beings blessed you and your mate, so I will say nothing of it. Rather, I thank you for taking care of my little brother until now, I really am grateful." The Saurian woman suddenly frowned. "What is tea, though?"

Michiru smiled. "I fully understand your position. And as for tea, it's our traditional drink, made from leaves of a special plant. Usually drinking it is accompanied by eating different sweet food." Michiru smiled down at Ignika. "You do want your sister to have some cake, don't you, Ignika?"

"Yes!" the boy eagerly replied. "But I want me having some even more!"

"Well, what are we waiting for then? Go ahead! I'll call Hotaru in the meantime." The company left in the direction of the kitchen, and Michiru said to herself quietly: "I think I made a good impression on her. Hope that this time nobody will get turned into a male."

* * *

Meanwhile, at Minako's house, Nightmare was making progress with learning to walk. It involved a lot of pricking the girl's back from Artemis so that she won't hunch, and a lot of grumbling and swearing from the victim. Despite that, it was quite effective, and by now Nightmare could walk across the room from wall to wall twice without falling. What was Minako doing during all this is unknown, because Artemis didn't fully trust his master when it came to tiding up anything. It was quite likely that she wasn't doing any.

With those thoughts, the cat jumped from the Saurian's shoulders. "You're making really good progress, Nightmare. I'll go find out what Minako is doing." He left his guest and went to the living room.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. Nightmare looked around to see where the sound came from. The sound repeated, and Nightmare guessed that it was from a small white box just above the door. The doorbell rang again and again, and Nightmare, annoyed, went to the door and opened it. "WHAT!?" She glared at the person behind the door. It was a young man, who was carrying a strange white wooden box in his hand.

The man smiled and said: "Good day to you. Are you Minako Aino?"

"What? No I'm not! How can you mistake me for that lovey-dovey!?" She frowned and glared at him again.

The response was a smile. "Relax, I don't know her at all. And you neither, for that matter. So could you please call her? I brought her order."

The disguised Saurian frowned. Order? How could somebody bring an order, in a weird white box? Orders were carried over verbally, as far as she knew. Deciding this world was weird, Nightmare growled slightly and walked away from the door, calling Minako.

"Hey, you ill-making piece of love dove, where in the Great Beings' name are you?! Get your sorry carcass over here, sunshine, there's some mad member of your species here spitting out nonsense and he's asking for you!"

The delivery boy was shocked. He quickly regained his self-control, though, he was used to such situations. After all, this was better than that nudist sect he had to deliver ramen to last week... Why were they eating ramen in the first place was beyond him. He thought: "I still might tell it to my step-uncle Takeshi Asumu..."

Minako arrived in a hurry, almost tripping as she ran to the door. "Heheh. Sorry for my cousin. She's a little... Eh... You know..."

"No problem." The delivery boy smiled. "You wouldn't guess what my step-uncle sometimes tells me... Anyway, are you Minako Aino?"

"Yes, I am. Where should I sign?" Minako took a pen from her pocket.

The young man handled her the paper. "Right here."

Minako signed and handled him the money. "Come to the kitchen with me. You too, you Nightmare." And before the Saurian could protest, she was left alone.

"Just freaking great..." She grumbled and slowly went to the kitchen. She saw the man removing a side wall from his box, taking two big bowls out of it and putting them on the table. Nightmare wondered: "What has an order to do with all of this?" The boy bowed to Minako and walked past Nightmare out of the door.

Minako's guest turned to the Senshi of Love, annoyed and confused. "What in Angonce's name was that all about, love dove?" Nightmare snapped angrily. She glared at the bowls of ramen on the kitchen table. "And what does that have to do with an order? What is it even, anyway? It looks like food and…"

The Saurian stopped mid-sentence and sniffed, catching the smell coming from the two bowls. She leaned a bit closer and smelled again, a smile of delight on her face. "… it smells good!"

"You like it?" She smiled, pleased. "It's called 'ramen'. It's a traditional meal of this part of the world and one of my favorite foods. I don't know how to cook it, so I ordered it from a restaurant."

"Uh, what? Rest-aur-rant?" Nightmare said, raising her eyebrow.

"Yeah, something like that. It's a place where people can come and have some food when they want something unusual or are simply too lazy to cook. Both of which apply to me." The blonde girl giggled sheepishly. She took two pairs of chopsticks from a drawer and said: "Now, let's teach you to eat."

"But WHAT has it to do with an ORDER?!" Nightmare asked, frustrated.

"Because I have _ordered_ to bring this particular ramen here." Minako said casually.

Nightmare still didn't get it. "What do you mean you ordered it? You never left the house, you never talked to anybody about food, so how could give orders to bring food here in the first place? Can you for once give an explanation that makes sense, please?!"

Minako looked confused: "It doesn't?"

Nightmare nearly fell over and sweatdropped. "Of course it doesn't, you idiotic love dove!"

"Heheh." Minako rubbed the back of her head sheepishly. "Well, I guess you wouldn't know." She came over to the phone hanging on the wall and said: "Humans have invented telephones which allow you to talk to another person in a completely different part of the city or even the world while staying at home." She took the receiver and said: "I can phone Haruka and Michiru, for example, and let you talk to Ignika. Want me to do it?"

"Yes, please," Nightmare said with a deep sigh. "I need to hear a voice of intelligence for a change." How she had ever agreed to live with this featherbrain, the Saurian girl didn't understand, and probably never would.

* * *

At the house of the Outer Senshi, everybody was seated at the kitchen table with a cup of tea and a piece of cake. Hotaru and Traveller had been introduced to each other, and the young Senshi had received a very big thanks from the oldest Saurian for helping her little brother so much. Haruka had come home after driving Nightmare and Minako away as well, and had joined at the table.

"How was Nightmare?" Traveller inquired, looking curiously at Michiru's mate while taking another bite of her cake. Ignika hadn't been kidding when he said that it was the sweetest and most delicious thing he had ever tasted. Sure, it was no meat, but Traveller wasn't exactly picky when it came to food. And if her food tasted great, that was all the better.

"Like she was trudging to her execution," Haruka chuckled. "She clearly wasn't looking forward to her stay there."

"That doesn't surprise me, to be honest," Ignika said. "Minako is, like I said before, the polar opposite of Nightmare. It would surprise me if they _didn't_ clash. Still, I feel a bit guilty, it's like we left her on her own."

"She'll manage," Traveller assured him. "Nightmare's strong. This Minako might not know either what she's gotten herself into by taking our sister of Fear in her house."

Her little brother giggled and nodded enthusiastically. "True that. Besides, I've got the feeling in the back of my head that it was right to pair them up, somehow. I'm sure they can learn some things from each other."

Just then, the phone rang, startling Traveller. She summoned her trident to her hand and glanced around. Ignika immediately placed a calming hand on his sister's arm. "Don't worry sister, it's just the phone, a machine humans use to talk to each other with over long distances. It's not dangerous."

Hotaru smiled upon seeing Ignika comfort his older sister, while Michiru rose from her seat and went over to the phone to pick it up.

"Moshi moshi?"

"Hi, Michiru!"

"Ah, Minako-chan, we were just talking about you." The woman smiled, looking at the company at the table. "How's Nightmare doing?"

"She's fine! Already learned to walk on her own." Then Michiru heard some grumbling in the background. "Aaaanyway, she decided to try out the phone and talk to Ignika. Can you please give him the phone?"

"Of course." Michiru motioned the Saurian of Life to come over. "Ignika, your sister wants to talk to you."

The Child of Life wiped his mouth with a napkin and then went over to Michiru. The aqua-haired woman showed him how to properly hold the horn and gave him an encouraging smile. "Go ahead, say something. Just talk normally, she'll hear you."

"O… Okay," the boy replied. Then he said in the horn: "Hello, Nightmare?"

The next moment, he had to hold the horn far away from him to prevent his eardrums from shattering, rendering him permanently deaf.

"GET ME OUT OF HERE!"

Ignika's sister said that so loud that even those in the kitchen could hear her. Haruka was having problems trying not to burst out in laughter, while Hotaru and Setsuna only smiled. Traveller just sighed deeply and shook her head, while Ignika grinned weakly. Michiru next to him had an amused expression on her face.

"Common, Nightmare," Ignika said finally through the phone. "It can't be that bad…"

"But it is! She's driving me crazy, brother! She can't have anything but air in her head, and if it weren't for that talking hairy mammal here providing _some_ reason, I'd already be beyond hopelessly insane!" Nightmare replied, sounding desperate.

"Why don't you just tell her that, then? I'm sure Minako can listen to reason," the white-haired boy tried, hoping against hope to calm his sister down.

"Ignika, everything you say through her goes in one ear and out the other. She doesn't have a brain to process the meaning of the words she hears with!" the Saurian of Fear whined.

"Fine, give me Minako for a moment then, okay? Maybe I'll have more luck telling her to go easy on you."

"Moshi moshi?"

"What?" Ignika looked confused for a moment. Then remembered that Michiru said the same. "Uh, I mean, hello, Minako."

"Hi, Ignika." She said, as cheerfully as ever. "What did you want to talk to me about?"

"Eh, it's about my sister…" the child began.

"Yes, what about her?"

"Eh, well, you see… It has been a difficult day for her already, a lot of new things she has had to deal with today," Ignika continued, a bit unsure. Regardless of everything, he still didn't know Minako too well, and he hoped he wouldn't offend her. "And, well, you're a cheerful and energetic person, Minako-san, and that's why I, eh… Well, could you maybe be a bit calmer around her for now? It would make it easier for her to deal with everything…"

"Well, no problem, but I think that Artemis isn't much better company... Besides, I am calm. Am I not, Artemis?" Pause. "What do you mean, no!?"

Ignika laughed quietly. "Just try not to overwhelm my sister, please? I know her after living with her for hundreds of year: she can't deal with a lot of new things at once. There's a chance she'll blow up them, or worse, go on a rampage. Or, in the worst case, use her powers. I don't want her to hurt you Minako, but I don't want my sister to have a hard time either. So, eh, please… Can you keep this in mind a bit?".

"Really now?" Minako slowly said. "Well, eh, okay, I'll try. Anything else you want to say to us?"

"Yes, don't let her drive you mad, either," Ignika giggled.

"Well, that's not a problem at all." Minako laughed. "Ja ne!" She hung up.

* * *

Gravitas and Ami had finished the fairy tale book. It wasn't a fast process, but Ami was patient enough to read it sentence-by-sentence, explain each word in each sentence for Gravitas and have her to read and memorize it. By the end of the last fairy tale Gravitas was able to read the sentences right after Ami did right away.

"I'm impressed, Gravitas." Ami said. "I didn't expect you to progress this fast."

"Thank you." The aloof Saurian simply replied.

Ami glanced at the clock hanging on the wall and frowned. "Um... You see, Gravitas, I need to leave the house for a small while... Will you be fine on your own?"

"Yes." Was her reply. "I won't touch anything I don't understand."

Still nervous, Ami nodded nevertheless and left the room. Gravitas stood up from the couch and went to the bookshelves. She promised not to touch things she did _not_ understand, but that didn't mean books. She took a random one from the shelf and read: "Isaac Asimov's Guide to Earth and Space." She nodded, satisfied. "Sounds interesting."

She sat back on the couch and started reading the book, effortlessly and quietly, eager to learn everything this treasury of knowledge that was stored on the bookshelves could offer her.

* * *

**Next chapter: First aid and music!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Well, that wouldn't really work, as this is AU where Mata Nui was never made and thus no Makuta species or battle in Karda Nui. Granted, it's not as if dimension travelling is hard in Bionicle. But I have my reasons for Crast not being Krika, which will be explained later on in the story when he enters the picture again, together with his master. Thanks for the review!


	19. First aid and music

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**19.**** First aid and music**

Ami's 'short time' away turned out to be several hours, and when she was finally on her way home, the day was slowly turning into an evening. She cursed her stupidity.

When she took home assignments from college two days ago, one of the teachers was sick, and they have agreed to meet today. Normally, Ami would have canceled the meeting if she knew she was busy, but when Ignika's family arrived, she completely forgot about that. And after she had left college with a bunch of books on the project she was assigned to make, she stumbled across her mom's colleague, Kotoko Murasaki, who started questioning the poor girl about her life, then dragged her to a cafe, then had her meet with her brother, and after that... "Oh goodness, what people can do for a raise..." Ami thought sadly. Kotoko had asked Ami to speak with her mother about what a good doctor she is.

During all the way back, she was constantly worried about Gravitas. The Saurian could break something, or get frightened, or... Ami shook her head and came out of the bus. Her house was only a few minutes walk from here.

She came to the apartment building she lived in. Looking up, she thought: "The windows are intact, already good." Not wasting any more time, she ran up the stairs to the elevator and rose to the 10th floor.

"Gravitas, I'm home!" Ami called out. Taking off her shoes, she went to the living room. "I'm sorry it took so long. I hope you weren't..." She opened the door and was shocked. "...bored."

At least one third of the bookshelves in the room were empty. Ami had expected anything but this. The books were piled neatly on the couch, next to the couch and behind the couch. And on the couch sat Gravitas with her knees up to her chest, reading a mathematical encyclopedia with a gleam in her eyes and a smile on her face. Ami didn't know what to find more shocking – the pile of books or Gravitas' smile.

"Eh... Gravitas?" Ami called hesitatingly. The Saurian jumped to her feet immediately, dropping the book and looking ready for battle. Seeing it was just Ami, she relaxed.

"Welcome home," she said in her usual emotionless manner, her face without a single trace of smile. Only her eyes betrayed some of the daze that was caused by reading the books.

"W... What is all this?" Ami asked, shaken.

"Books." Was the simple reply.

"Yes, but... Why are they lying around like that?"

"Why not?" Gravitas had to admit she didn't understand. She had been reading happily, forgetting the time, not paying attention to anything but the many pages with their intriguing symbols and even more intriguing information. The Saurian of Gravity didn't mind Ami was home now, but she did wonder if she had done anything wrong to cause the look of shock on her human guide's face.

"I... I don't know..." Ami said and came into the room. The book pile seemed even bigger now. "What have you been doing with them?"

"Reading, of course." Gravitas was getting annoyed with this questioning. Just what was so wrong about it?

Ami's eyes widened even more. "And you have read them ALL?" She asked in a whisper.

"Yes." Gravitas simply said. The reaction she got was unexpected, though.

Ami fainted.

Gravitas became worried. This was not a normal reaction, she knew that, even if she knew little of humans. She hoped Ami wasn't hurt, because she didn't want that on her conscience. The Saurian girl realized she had to help, but was unsure how. If anybody lost conscious before, she had let Ignika deal with it, he was well versed in healing thanks to his powers. She wasn't. She was a tactician and a defender, not a healer. Gravitas dropped to her knees at Ami's side, unsure of what to do. She didn't even know how to call for help.

Then she remembered. Among the books she just read was a small medical brochure entitled 'First Aid and Emergency Treatment Guide'. She just skimmed through it, not quite understanding what was written there. Now words filled her mind:

"Fainting occurs due to decreased blood supply to brain. A fainting spell is usually very brief. It may or may not have medical significance." She mumbled. "Common causes: stress, anxiety, emotional upset... The rest of the list doesn't apply here... But how to treat it...?" She bit her lower lip and closed her eyes, trying to remember more. She gasped as the page suddenly appeared before her eyes. She set to work, saying the instructions aloud:

"When a person faints, position him on his back." She turned Ami over.

"Check to see if airways are clear." She looked at her. "Yep, clear."

"Restore blood flow by loosening clothing/belts/collars." She undid the girl's blouse. Under it was a bra. Gravitas frowned. It seemed quite tight... Not thinking any further, she lifted it up a bit, took its cups into her two hands and ripped the bra in two.

"Elevate feet above head level." She brought over a pile of books and put Ami's feet on them.

"Patient should become normal within a minute. If not, seek medical help." She sighed and sat down, waiting.

Soon enough, Ami opened her eyes. "W... What happened?"

"You fainted." Gravitas said, looking at the human girl with sympathy. "Don't scare me like that anymore." Her voice sounded softer than usual.

Ami blinked and tried to sit up. Gravitas helped her to do so. The girl's vision still wasn't quite clear, but it quickly became normal. When it did, however, she gasped and put her hands on her chest, covering her breasts.

"What did you do?" The blue-haired girl asked.

"One of the books I read held information about what to do when somebody faints," Gravitas replied quietly. "I simply carried out the instructions: place you on your back, make sure your airways were clear and remove anything tight." The Saurian paused for a moment. "I didn't do anything wrong, did I? Was it me who made you faint? If so, I apologize, I hope you aren't mad at me."

"No, of course not." Ami assured the silver-haired Saurian. "How can I be mad at you? It's just... Well... The speed of your learning had shocked me. You learned to read only several hours ago, and have already read all that..." She eyed all the books scattered around the room. "I wouldn't be able to read so much books in days."

"Oh," Ami's guest muttered. "I thought it was normal. My apologies for startling you then."

"Heh..." She looked at the girl. "It's okay, you couldn't have known. Now... Let's tidy up a bit and put those books back on the shelves, okay?"

The Saurian nodded and got up. Ami followed suit and said: "I'll just go change into different clothes, and then join you."

"Alright." The Saurian got to work.

"Oh, um..." Ami said, getting a questioning look. "You should put them vertically and so that the spine with the book name is visible."

Gravitas glanced at the book in her hand, which she was just about to put the other way round. "Oh. Okay."

Ami looked at her, thinking: "What an amazing person. Good thing I have all those books..." She looked at her ripped bra. "Who knows what she would have done if she got bored..." With those thoughts, she left the room.

* * *

At the same time Gravitas was putting away books, Traveller and Ignika were spending some time together in the garden of the Outer Senshi. Most of the afternoon had been spent with teaching Traveller how to move around in her new body, something she got the hang of after hours of practice.

"It's quite peaceful out here," Ignika's oldest sister said as she leaned against a tree. "I can see why you love to spend time here, little brother."

Ignika nodded happily. "I'm glad you like it, sister. And I'm happy you like Hotaru, too."

"She is a good child, from what you've told me, and I understand why you get along so well with her, seeing as she is in a similar situation as you are, Ignika." Traveller stretched her arms and begs and took a deep breath, after which she climbed to her feet. "Anyway, do you mind if I go inside and ask for some water, little brother? I'm kind of thirsty, and it won't take long."

Ignika chuckled at his sister unneeded worry. She was always like that, asking for his unneeded permission to leave him alone for even a minute. "Go ahead, sister, and don't worry so much. We're safe here, at least for now."

"Very well," Traveller nodded. "Be right back."

The oldest Saurian then left her brother under the tree and went inside. She had been taught where some things, such as water to drink, were and how one was supposed to drink it as a human. She took a glass from the cupboard and a bottle of plastic – a weird substance even Ignika didn't know – that contained water, from the fridge. Just as she had poured herself a glass and made to go outside, however, she heard something beautiful.

Music.

Traveller froze in her tracks. Music... She debated whether to keep her promise to her brother and go to the garden, or... After several minutes of debate, she turned around and went towards the living room where the sound was coming from.

In the middle of the room stood Michiru. Her left hand held a strange wooden tool with four strings to her shoulder and chin, and with her right hand she moved a strange stick over the strings, making beautiful sounds. Her eyes were closed, and she didn't notice the silent spectator.

Traveller found herself captured by the melody. It was alien, strange, unknown, but... So beautiful. The melody was sad... The music seemed to cry... Traveller put a hand on her chest and closed her eyes. The sounds were touching the depths of her soul.

The melody changed several times, its mood going from sad to calm, happy, then sad again... Traveller lost all sense of time, enchanted by the small wooden tool and the woman who played it. Finally, the music slowed down, ending in a long low note.

Michiru opened her eyes. So did Traveller. The aqua-haired woman smiled: "Did you like it?"

Traveller could only nod and say: "I'm speechless."

"Thank you." She walked over to the table to put the violin back in its case. "It is hard to find such acute listeners."

"Thank you, too." Traveller said. "Your music was... heavenly. I have never heard such music before."

"I take it as a compliment. Though it seems to me that you are no stranger to music yourself." She closed the violin case and turned back to her guest. "What is the music of your people like?"

Traveller shook her head. "Nothing. Saurians don't have music, we're too busy surviving. A shame." She sighed.

"Is that so?" Michiru frowned, confused. "Then I find it strange you have such a passion for listening to music. No, don't argue, I saw it in your eyes."

Traveller shrugged. "I won't. I don't deny I heard music before, but..."

"But...?" The violinist listened carefully.

"It was a long time ago," the Saurian replied. "I was just a hatchling, barely a few days old, and completely on my own. I wandered, I had to, in order to survive. My feet brought me to the edge of the jungle, where the Fortress of the Great Beings stood. I was there for the first time during the night, and I came back every night since." A wishful, nostalgic smile appeared on Traveller's face and her eyes saddened. "For every night, one could hear music coming from the Fortress. I didn't know what it was at first, my people only know music from birds, but nonetheless I listened. It moved me, as your music just now did. I came back to listen every night, until the Great Beings departed and took the music with them. I haven't heard anything as beautiful until just now, a moment ago."

"I see... Sad." Michiru paused for a while. "But don't worry, I play the violin almost every day, so you won't miss music anymore." She smiled. "And, if you want to, I could teach you music, too, or ask Haruka to do it."

"Haruka also plays music?" Traveller raised her eyebrow.

Michiru nodded. "Yes, but on a different instrument." She came over to the piano standing at the far wall of the living room, opened the cover, then played a simple melody. It was nowhere near as beautiful as her own music, and rather short, but Traveller guessed it was because Michiru preferred her 'violin'.

Michiru noticed Traveller's disapproval, and said: "Indeed, you should listen to Haruka playing." He turned to face the Saurian and looked in her eyes. "So what do you think? Do you want to learn music?"

"I don't know," the Saurian replied with a shrug. "I'm not gifted with tools, aside from my trident. Besides, I need to watch over Ignika."

Michiru smiled. "You'll never know until you try. And also, why not do both? I'm sure Ignika wouldn't mind sitting a couple of hours in this room next to you while you learn to play."

"Perhaps, I'll have to ask him though," Traveller answered, more and more taking a liking to the idea. Ignika might have lived with the Great Beings and heard music all the time, he still liked it, too.

"Please do," Michiru smiled.

"Please do what?" a young voice suddenly interrupted. The two women turned around to see Ignika standing in the doorway, looking confused. He glanced at Traveller. "Not that I was worried or anything, but you were away longer than usual, so I came to see what made you go against your usual behavior." He turned his attention to Michiru. "So what does she have to ask me, Michiru-san?"

"To allow me and Haruka to teach her music. And allow her to learn it," The woman smiled.

Ignika giggled and shook his head in amusement. "I don't see why you need my permission for that, sister. You really can be silly sometimes."

"I don't want to leave you alone, Ignika," Traveller replied curtly. "So if I were to learn, you'd have to sit here where I can see you. Otherwise I'd be unable to focus on learning in the first place, because I'd worry too much."

The white-haired boy shrugged. "I don't mind. I like music, you know that, and I'll like watching you learn, sister. I know being able to make music is one of your greatest dreams. So now that you have the chance, I won't get in your way. You shouldn't have doubted that."

Traveller smiled at her little brother, touched. She gently ruffled through his hair. "Thank you, Ignika."

* * *

**Next chapter: The eve of battle!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Thanks for the review. I had a lot of fun writing these scenes. As for the latest Reign of Shadows chapter, I found it okay. I dislike how Vezon's constantly used as a quick and cheap way to fix a problem, I mean, it was fun the first few times, but he's getting old. Overall, the entire chapter gave me a sense of "rush rush I need to finish". Like the plotline with the Barraki and the Shadowed One. One paragraph. That's it? And the whole situation with the Toa Mahri is just weird. I liked the latest "Journey's End" chapter better. Now that one was awesome.


	20. The eve of battle

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**20. The eve of battle**

High above the masses below on the ground, on top of one of Tokyo's many skyscraper, the repulsive creature known as Crast stood. His appearance was as sickening as always, his form casting a horrid shadow over the building. Nobody saw him, for that was how he wished it to be. Quietly, standing on his four bladed limbs, he observed what went on below. His eyes were sharp and his vision keen, as well as greater than that of any mere mortal. Even here, so high and so far away, he could see a disguised Saurian giving first aid to a fainted human girl, and another one chasing a blonde human with a white, talking cat.

A slight smirk crept on his disgusting face. If the Saurian family thought there was nobody outside of the Senshi who knew of their presence, they were sadly mistaken. For his master, Crast saw all. His blood red eyes glanced at the setting sun, which just disappeared behind the horizon. Night was falling, and now it was time for him to go home as well. He had to report to his merciful and glorious master.

In the blink of an eye, Crast had vanished from the top of the skyscraper, only to reappear before the front door of his master's mansion. Not wasting a moment, the monstrous, vile creature went inside, heading immediately for the living room where he knew his master was waiting. Again the curtains were closed and the room was darkened, reflecting Crast's master's sombre mood.

"Everything is fine for now, master," Crast said as soon as he passed through the door of the room. "The family has arrived, and they have split up, each staying with a different Sailor Senshi. The child has disguised them as humans."

"I expected nothing less from Ignika, he is smart and perceptive, after all," the master replied with his heavenly, ethereal and beautiful voice. A small but oh so beautiful smile appeared on his face. "I am glad to hear that. You've lifted my mood, somewhat, Crast."

"I'm afraid I'll have to down it again, though," the monster shrugged, not really sounding as if he fully cared. "I sensed ripples in space and time, bigger ones than usual. Another invasion will come soon, probably late this night or in the morning."

"I am certain they will deal with it. I see no need yet to interfere."

"Perhaps, and perhaps not," Crast said quietly. "The ripples were bigger because of who is coming this time. It's not him, I assure you, but I have no doubt the Saurians and Senshi will soon have to deal with one of the Immoral Ones." He paused for a moment, reluctantly adding: "They have no idea what those are, not even the Child of Life. It could get messy."

"Then I'll trust you make work of it, Crast. I have faith in you and your abilities," the monster's master replied pleasantly. That stroked Crast's ego, which the monster liked.

"You flatter me, master," the monster chuckled. Coming from him, it was a sound to give one nightmares for years. "Rest assured, I'll prove to be worth of that faith. I won't fail you, you who gave me life."

* * *

Gravitas woke up in the middle of the night. She couldn't sleep. And it wasn't the unfamiliar surroundings or the fact she was unused to sleeping on the soft couch under a blanket. No, something else.

A feeling of coming danger.

She sometimes got those feelings back on Voya, and knew that those feelings shouldn't be ignored. Many times their family had been saved because they listened to Gravitas' seemingly absurd suggestions. Once, in the mountains, they had to miss a really nice cave to spend the night in because Gravitas said so. They came back the next morning only to find it had been destroyed by a landslide. And now she decided it wasn't the time to ignore her instincts, either. She got up from the couch and went to Ami's room.

The girl had been sleeping peacefully in her bed. The Saurian came over to the girl and started shaking her awake.

"Ami! Ami! Wake up!"

"Huh? Wha? Gravitas?" The sleepy girl sat up and turned on the lamp on the bed-table.

The Saurian closed her eyes from the sudden light. When her eyes adjusted, she said: "Get up, we gotta go." The feeling was strong, and she didn't want to waste any time.

"Where?" Ami looked at the alarm clock on the bed-table. 2:15 AM. "In the middle of the night..."

"I know, but this is serious. We need to leave. I know that something bad is going to happen soon, and we'd best be there to prevent the consequences." Gravitas spoke quickly and seriously, and it somehow convinced Ami.

"Alright, alright..." She got out of the bed. "Just let me get dressed..."

"Why?" Gravitas frowned. What's with humans and changing clothes? She had one tunic back on Voya, and didn't change it unless was severely ripped or the material got too old to wear.

"Because we still can meet humans on our way, and they wouldn't understand if I walk around wearing a nightgown..." Ami took it off, put on a t-shirt and a thin sweater. She then took jeans from the wardrobe and started putting them on. "Where are we going, by the way?"

That caught Gravitas a bit off-guard. "I... I'm not entirely sure. It is somewhere between the park and the shrine, but..."

Ami frowned. "Is that so?" She finished dressing up and took her purse. "Makes it harder to search..."

"If only I had the eyes of an eaglehawk, then I could use my powers to take me to the skies and search for the place where we need to go from above… Alas, I only have normal eyesight," the Saurian of Gravity muttered.

Ami froze. "Search from above? You mean you know the exact place?"

"Not exactly... I feel where the thing should happen, but not how it looks like. I know I can feel the approximate distance both from the park and the shrine."

"So that's how it is, huh..." Ami muttered. She looked at the aloof Saurian. Apart from her extreme passion towards books, Gravitas seemed to have an excellent intuition which allowed her to pick a fairy tale book from all of the ones standing in the living room. And if she says that she can feel the location...

Ami took her mini-computer and started it, opening a map of Tokyo. She motioned the Saurian to come over. "Look. This is how the city looks from above." She then zoomed the map in so that it would show both the shrine and the park. "The Hikawa Shrine is located here." She pointed on the screen. "And the park is here. Does this help?"

Gravitas looked at the small flat box with buttons in wonder for some time, then nodded and pointed on an open space in between several big houses. "Here."

"You sure?"

"Yes. I feel it. Now let's go."

* * *

For the fifth time in only a few days, the dimensional walls began to crack as a powerful force willed them to part. It certainly wouldn't be the last time this happened in the foreseeable future. Reality shattered like a window with a stone thrown through it, and a gate appeared and grew at rapid pace. Out came the now familiar shape of Saurians, at least ten of them. Something else followed them, though. Another being stepped calmly through the gate, and once he was through, it closed behind him.

He was tall, taller than any other Saurian the earth had seen so far, at least two metres in height. His scales were deep crimson in colour, his skin blacker than the darkest night. A pair of great wings like those of a dragon grew from between his shoulders, and his chest, shoulders, wrists and shins were well armoured. His armour was coloured like his scales, and forged to further make him look like a dragon instead of an average, ordinary Saurian. His claws gleamed in the pale moonlight, and his yellow eyes held something savage in them. With every step he took, the firm stone of the road withered and cracked under his feet. Wicked blades that looked like a pair of enormous claws were sheathed at his hips. His crimson hair reached to his knees and swayed behind him as he walked.

He was Jutlin, one of the Immoral Ones, and his presence brought corruption and decay. The fearsome beast glanced at his underlings, then let out a chilling hiss. "The child, find the child! Lay waste to all, so there will be nowhere to hide!"

* * *

Ami was clinging to Gravitas as they flew through the air, landing on lampposts from time to time. Gravitas decided not to waste time on walking and put her powers in use. Ami had to admit it was a lot faster, even though a little scary. She only hoped that they won't get noticed...

Just as Ami thought that, a woman came on the balcony of one of the houses further down the street. She wrapped her bathrobe tighter around herself and lit a cigarette. Just as she made the first puff, the girls flew right past her.

The woman choked on the smoke and coughed long and painful. She looked at the street again, and saw the girls in the far end of it. A second, and they were gone. She was so shocked that she took the burning end of the cigarette in her mouth, then spit it out, cursed, and went inside to wake her husband up.

"Darling! Darling!"

"What?" Came an annoyed sleepy voice.

"You won't believe this! Two girls just flew right past our balcony and down the street!" She said in a panicked voice.

"Oh for God's sake." Takeshi Asumu sat up on the bed and looked at his wife, annoyed. "Hitomi, you're my wife and you should perfectly know that such stupid things do not exist. Go take some medicine and get back to sleep!" He lay back on the bed and turned to his side, wrapping the blanket around himself. "Idiotic cases at work, non-existent things at home... Silly humans..."

* * *

Thanks to Gravitas' powers, she and her human guide arrived at the scene of the disturbance quickly. Yet one didn't need to have the sight of an eaglehawk to see from the air that they were vastly outnumbered. Ami looked around quickly, then spotted a narrow, dark alleyway. She pointed at it.

"Gravitas, land there."

The Saurian of Gravity nodded, and with some of her control over gravity lowered them gently to the ground, right in the dark alleyway. As soon as they touched the ground, Gravitas looked around and sniffed.

"Good," she whispered. "We're downwind, so they will not smell us. Let us study them and try to learn their powers."

Ami silently agreed and the two of them crawled to the corner of the street, carefully leaning around it to study the newly arrived group of Saurians. As soon as she laid eyes on them, however, Gravitas' eyes went wide and she barely managed to suppress a loud gasp. As quickly as her feet could carry her she ran back in the alleyway and sank down on the ground, her back against the wall. She was breathing heavily, fear showing slightly on her face.

"What's the matter?" Ami demanded as she kneeled down next to her Saurian friend. She didn't understand what made Gravitas act this way. Had she suddenly become afraid of battle?

"The winged one, did you see him?" Gravitas inquired, her emotionless voice slightly shaking. When Ami nodded, Gravitas continued and explained: "He is one of the Immoral Ones, it has to be. It is the only way to explain his wings and the power radiating from him."

"What is an Immoral One?" her blue-haired companion asked, still not understanding. For certain, that winged Saurian looked strong and formidable, but so did the others. With their enormous array of powers, Saurians were dangerous foes, with wings or without.

"I only known them from fragmented stories and fearfully whispered rumours. Never has our family yet ran into one of them… But now I see one with my own eyes…" Gravitas took a deep breath in order to calm herself. She didn't like showing this much emotion and getting so worked up, but seeing an Immoral One had shaken her. "Immoral Ones are Saurians who posses powers and physical attributes – such as wings – that were not granted to them by the Great Beings, because their powers are, as their name tells you, immoral. They offer nothing to Life or survival but death and decay. Normal Saurians already can posses formidable powers, such as I, but the Immoral Ones have powers that are far more dangerous, at least if the rumours are true."

"What kind of powers?" Ami demanded, already dreading the answer. It seemed that this Saurian enemy was becoming more and more dangerous with every bit of new information she learned from them. As if over fifty different powers weren't enough, now there were even more, and even more dangerous ones? She absentmindedly touched her chest, the place where the scars of her former battle were still visible.

"I do not know for certain. But the rumours I have heard are dreadful: powers like corruption, disruption, time duplication, anger, darkness…" Against her will, Gravitas shivered. "Powers that are the opposite of all Ignika's Life element stands for. Immoral powers…"

Ami shook her head. "It is really bad then. We'll have to wake up everybody..."

* * *

Rei was already up when she received the call. She, too, had a bad feeling, but hadn't learned to trust her intuition as much as Gravitas. Nevertheless, she felt the time and space disruption and was already on her way. Ami called her just in time to prevent her from running straight into the Saurians.

The Outers also didn't take long to arrive. Upon hearing the scale of disaster, Setsuna agreed to create a small time loop which would allow them to arrive at the scene within a minute. There was one question remaining: what to do with the two Saurians. They couldn't take them to the battle – Traveller wasn't used to her body enough yet, and something told Setsuna that it'd be better not to risk Ignika's life this time.

"Traveller." Setsuna said. "You are coming with us, but you must teleport back here as soon as we arrive to the place."

"Why?" The Saurian woman asked.

"I need you to be able to teleport Ignika in case we need him. I cannot risk taking him to the battle right away, the Immoral One might sense his power and he will be simply outnumbered." The Guardian of Time explained.

"That is not fair. The threat had come from our dimension, we want to fight, too!" Ignika said.

"Out of question." Haruka frowned. "Either you listen to us and do as you're told, or you're both staying here with no way to leave the house in the hour of need."

The siblings looked at each other and sighed. "Fine, we agree." Traveller said.

Meanwhile, Chibiusa and Usagi were on their way as well. The latter was usually hard to wake up, but luckily the communicator was answered by Luna, and she had a lot of experience as to how get her master out of the bed. And with Chibiusa's experience in running away, sneaking out of the house was no problem.

Makoto also was up quickly, always ready for a fight as she was. She quickly got dressed in something more suitable, then woke Chameleon to tell him what was going on and where she was going. When she told him he had to stay behind, though, he was outraged.

"Are you crazy?!" he yelled at her. "Going after an Immoral One without us being there to help? You'll stand no chance!"

Makoto knew she didn't have the time to argue, so she quickly snapped back: "Listen, you're still getting used to your new body, you and your family would just get in our way. I won't risk your neck when I'll already be having a hard time myself. So just stay here and pray for the best, got it?!"

And before the disguised Saurian could reply, the brown-haired girl had stormed out of her apartment and locked the door make sure her guest wouldn't follow her.

Minako was facing a similar problem. Nightmare had been the first to wake up when she heard the communicator, light sleeper as she was. She had stormed over to Minako's room, angered that something had interrupted her sleep, and had woken the Senshi of Love in a matter of seconds. With some snappy words spoken in typical Nightmare fashion, the Saurian of Fear had told her human guide that something was annoyingly beeping.

Once Minako had received the message and relayed it to her guest, however, Nightmare's anger faded like snow under the sun. She had made it clear that she wanted to go and kick some Saurian tail. Her blonde companion thus received the frightening task to tell a battle-eager Nightmare she was to stay here.

"You're not coming, Nightmare," Minako announced with some difficulty, swallowing hard.

The transformed Saurian girl's eyebrows shot up. "What?!"

Before she could say more, however, Minako had rushed past her, out of the room, shouting over her shoulder: "You're not ready in your new body yet! So just stay here with Artemis! Artemis, make sure she doesn't do anything stupid!"

The cat swallowed incredibly hard and loud, almost whimpering as he looking at Nightmare once Minako slammed the front door close behind her and locked it. The Saurian of Fear was steaming, Artemis knew that. He also knew that there was only one living creature currently here to suffer Nightmare's rage. Before the Saurian had even done anything, Artemis was already running for his life.

"COME HERE CAT SO I CAN KILL YOU!"

* * *

**Next chapter: Jutlin the Corrupt!**


	21. Jutlin the Corrupt

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**21. Jutlin the Corrupt**

As the Sailor Senshi arrived to the alley, Gravitas' face turned grim. No matter how silently they walked, they still were making noise with that heeled footwear. And she still didn't get the purpose of those stupid costumes that offered no protection.

"Where's the rest of my family?" she asked in a whisper. She didn't believe that they'd cower out of battle.

"They wanted to come, we didn't let them," Jupiter frowned.

Pluto nodded. "Unlike you, they don't have powers to help them control their bodies. In their current condition, it is more likely that they'll get killed themselves."

"Traveller is ready to bring Ignika here any time, though," Saturn added.

"You stay out of this too," Uranus said shortly. "Powers or not, you're not telling me you're comfortable in your new body already. So just stay here where it's safe."

Gravitas raised one eyebrow, but said nothing. Quietly, she held out her right hand and summoned her razor-edged shield. Once it was firmly in her grip, however, she sat down again and leaned against the wall.

"Very well. Let your overconfidence bite you in the tail then," she muttered icily. "Bodies or not, we still know best how to deal with these enemies. However, if you're so willing to put yourself in unneeded danger, who am I to stop you?"

She closed her eyes then and said nothing anymore. The Sailor Senshi shared uneasy glances, for Gravitas' words had brought up memories of the previous battle. Again Mercury found herself touching her chest where the scars of Density's claws were. They were determined to go on, however, for this was their duty. With a firm and final nod, they rushed out of the alleyway.

"Sailor Mercury," Gravitas suddenly called out, not moving at all and her tone still icy and uncaring.

Startled, the Senshi of Water turned around, confused. "H… hai?"

"Be careful."

* * *

Jutlin prided himself in being a patient and wise member of the Phantoka. He knew that rushing into things was not a good thing to do, and he had learned from experience that it was best to give things time, to observe and study, and then strike. Corruption sometimes seeped through the tiniest cracks, he knew. However, at this moment, his great amount of patience was running out. His underlings had barely spread out yet. He could still see each and every one of them. Jutlin didn't like that one bit. He knew this world was strange, and he knew that none of the Saurians who had already come here had returned. And sure, it smelled foul in this place and the structures seemed bent on dwarfing all the Great Beings and his master had ever built, but still…

"Will you all hurry it up?" he hissed angrily, stomping his clawed foot and making the cracks of corruption under him widen considerably. "Do not fear this world. Lay waste to it with what you have been granted. That it looks different doesn't mean you can't destroy it. Observe, my followers!"

He unsheathed one of his large and wicked clawblades, then made a swiping motion in the direction of a part of the road. Immediately, vile cracks began to spread all over the stone, and the stone decayed slowly but surely to nothing but dust. Still the corruption spread, touching the trees and lantern poles placed alongside it, and the trees decayed and rotted immediately, until all that remained was a stinking pile of brown, gory mess. The lantern poles suffered the same fate, as their metal surface rusted, and eventually it became so bad that they simply collapsed. Sparks of electricity sprang from the broken lamps.

"See? It can be corrupted, despite being different. So your powers will work, my brethren. Now go, and fear no more, fear only my wrath should you still be hesitant to do what I commanded!" the Saurian of Corruption declared, with a sickening smile on his face.

Strengthened and encouraged by their leader's words, the Saurians immediately began more actively carrying out his orders. As soon as they got to it, though, a cry echoed through the neighborhood:

"Stop!"

The confused Saurians looked at the source of the shout. Under the light of the still-working lampposts stood ten Sailor Senshi, looking proud and ready for battle. Eternal Sailor Moon was the one to make the speech:

"How dare you to bring destruction to this world?! How dare you to corrupt it with your filthy powers!?"

"We stand for love!" The Inner Senshi cried in unison.

"We stand for Justice!" The Outer Senshi followed suit.

"We are the Sailor Senshi!" Sailor Moon took over again. "And in the name of the Universe..."

"We'll punish you!!!" The Senshi cried together and stood still in their usual after-introduction poses.

Most Saurians looked uncertain, even a bit afraid perhaps, at the – to them – strange female creatures in the most ridiculous outfits they had ever seen. Not sure of how to react, they looked at their leader, who stood tall and proud, and completely unimpressed. Jutlin's cold, yellow reptilian eyes took in each of the Senshi, one by one. Then he amusedly shook his head and laughed.

"I am Jutlin the Corrupt," the Saurian of Corruption announced as he drew his second blade and took on a battle stance. "And you are very foolish to come at me so carelessly."

Sailor Pluto replied, readying her Garnet Rod. "Foolish or not, it is our duty to protect this planet and destroy all the invaders."

"And we will!" Chibimoon said bravely.

Jutlin shook his head pityingly. "I pity you. I guess you slew those who came before me? It doesn't matter if you did. I am in a league far beyond any normal Saurian. Against one of the Phantoka, you stand no chance unprepared and overconfident!"

Before the Senshi could reply or even do anything, Jutlin had spread his mighty leathery wings and used them to lift himself a foot above the ground. Then he slammed one of his blades into the ground with such force it caused a small chasm to open in the road. Worse, he had activated his corruption powers, more forcefully than ever, and corruption was spreading everywhere through the meters long crack.

"Spread out!" Uranus yelled. "Don't let that stuff touch you!"

They didn't need to be told twice. The Sailor Senshi all went in a different direction to avoid touching the spreading corruption. As they did, Jutlin barked a command at his followers, telling them to carry out their mission and leave the battle to him. The Saurians obeyed, though some were taken down by attacks courtesy of the ever alert Outer Senshi. Many more got away, though, as Jutlin moved in for another attack.

With swift beats of his wings the Immoral One sped through the sky, his first target being Sailor Saturn, as she was the only one who carried a weapon that was lethal in close combat. His blades flashed and struck out at Saturn, who managed to block the killer weapons with her Silence Glaive. The force behind the strike still overpowered her, however, and she was knocked on the ground. He didn't give her one chance to get up, dropping himself feet-first on the unfortunate soldier's stomach. Hotaru gagged and screamed in pain, then had her chest ripped open by two strikes of Jutlin's blades. To everyone's horror, the wound immediately began to fester and be infected, thanks to Jutlin's horrid corruption taking effect.

"A piece of advice, creature," the Saurian sneered. "Never wield a weapon if you can't use it effectively!"

He didn't have time to say more, though, as nine different types of attacks soared at him, fired by horrified and angry Senshi. The Saurian merely scoffed, corrupted half of the attacks until they became naught and dodged the rest by taking to the air again. Jutlin had already chosen his next target, eying the Space Sword of Uranus with mild interest. As he dove in to attack Uranus, Sailor Neptune immediately rushed to her daughter's side.

"Hotaru!!!" Neptune cried.

"Mama..."

"Hold on, Hotaru!" She held her daughter's hand.

"I'm trying..." The girl said weakly. All of her power was focused on healing herself and fighting against corruption. So far she didn't have much success.

"Moon Tiara Stardust!" Came the cry from their side. The glowing boomerang flew over them, sprinkling sparkles of warm light on them, and Hotaru could feel the corruption stop. She caught Sailor Moon's smile with the corner of her eye. "Is it better, Hotaru-chan?"

"Thank you..." Now healing would be easier, but still hard.

"Michiru, let's return to the battle," the winged Senshi said.

"Hai." The Soldier of Deep Waters got to her feet and the two rushed back.

As this happened, nobody noticed Jutlin's eyes flashing dangerously in Sailor Moon's direction for a second. After that, the Corrupt returned his attention to his fight with Sailor Uranus. He had to admit to himself, he had to try here, the enemy was a tad too powerful to act careless. As Sailor Uranus slashed at him with her sword, he also had to dodged attacks from varying elements hurled at him. Regardless, not a problem.

For one, the woman with the sword had the poorest swordsmanship he had ever seen. She had no technique, only wild, blunt strikes filled with rage. Pathetic, and foolish. The only reason he hadn't disarmed her yet was because the other attacks kept his attention divided. Well, no more.

Jutlin spread his mighty wings, and flapped them once, filling the air with corruption as a protective shield around him. The attacks of the other Senshi dwindled down as the air corrupted them, and Uranus had to cease her attack, the foul, poisonous air nearly choking her. That was the only opening Jutlin needed. Once more his blades lashed out, this time knocking the Space Sword from the soldier's grasp. Uranus managed to dodge the following strike he threw at her, and kicked her opponent in the chest. Jutlin's armor protected him though, and he swept with his mighty tail, knocking Uranus her feet from under her. He attempted to stomp on her stomach as he had with Saturn, but Uranus was physically stronger and faster, and rolled out of the way.

A Dead Scream from Pluto burst through the corrupted air and blew Jutlin out of balance for a moment, but once more his armor bore the brunt of the blast. Uranus immediately followed up with a World Shaking and knocked the Saurian to the ground, corruption spreading as he touched it. Jutlin was on his feet again immediately though, and sent a wave of pure corruption at all of his surroundings. The Senshi had no choice but to throw themselves to the ground in order to let the wave pass over them, or risk having their bodies decayed by Jutlin's unbelievably foul corruption.

As soon as the wave had passed, Uranus tried to scramble to her feet again, but suddenly cried out in sheer pain as a wicked claw blade impaled her from the back, going straight through her side. To everyone's horror, it was followed by a second blade impaling her other side, deadly corruption seeping into the wounds.

"As I said to the other, never wield a weapon if you cannot use it, creature," Jutlin hissed in Uranus' ear. "It will only make you targeted, and look where that brought you."

Michiru dropped to her knees, unable to bear it. First her daughter, now her love? Why, cruel fate?!

Meanwhile, at some distance, Sailor Mercury was observing the battlefield through her visor, even though it was obvious even without the mini-computer that they couldn't win this battle.

Jupiter appeared next to her. "Well?"

Ami shook her head. "Hopeless. His armor seems to be strong enough to hold at least three attacks at once, but when all of us attack together, he gets rid of them using his corruption powers..."

"So we need to get rid of his armor!" Makoto said.

"Impossible." Ami said quietly. "As strong as we are, we don't stand a chance in close combat. You see that yourself."

"So you mean we have to give up!?"

Mercury couldn't reply, as her attention was drawn by something else. Jutlin had ripped his blades painfully out of Uranus' crippled body, making the Senshi cry out in pain again. The Saurian didn't care, he already stormed towards his next victim: Eternal Sailor Moon. Jutlin's swords shone in the moonlight, stained with the blood of Saturn and Uranus. He had seen her stop the spreading of his corruption with that glaive-wielding female. He couldn't allow that, so she was logically his next target.

Sailor Moon didn't seem fully aware of it, her eyes were wide with shock as she stared at the brutally wounded body of Uranus. The cries of the others didn't seem to reach her. Only when Jutlin was almost on top of her. Sailor Moon gasped and only managed to avoid being impaled like Uranus by using her own wings and taking to the skies.

Jutlin growled, not liking this. However, he was a veteran of many battles, and his observant eye noticed immediately she wasn't as mobile as he was in the air, what with her smaller wings. With unbelievable speed he changed direction, rushing into the sky towards his opponent, avoiding some more elemental attacks thrown at him as he did so. He saw the winged female raise her staff and prepare some sort of spell, but Jutlin knew a long-range type fighter had no chance against a master of close-combat like him.

He slashed with his blades, knocking the staff from her hands, at the same time ramming his tail in her stomach. Sailor Moon doubled over in pain, leaving herself vulnerable to a second strike of Jutlin's tail, which knocked her to the ground. Just like with Uranus, the dragon-like Saurian sped towards his fallen foe, ready to impale her. He was stopped suddenly when something sickening hit him in the face.

"Pink Sugar Heart Attack!"

Many sweet, pink hearts filled born from the power of love and light slammed with painful force into his face, making him scream with rage at the pain. How could he have forgotten to spread corruption in his wake to protect him?! His enraged gaze looked around, trying to find the culprit. His eyes came to a halt on a certain pink-haired Senshi. Sailor Moon forgotten, Jutlin left her in the crater he had slammed her into, and rushed towards Chibimoon. The youngest Senshi gasped as the Saurian towered above her. His glare seemed to pierce her as his blades had pierced Uranus. Chibimoon tried to be brave, but she couldn't deny that she was terrified.

"A child?" Jutlin hissed, sounding slightly surprised. "I was pained by a _child_?! You will regret that, creature! Things your age shouldn't be on the battlefield yet, they could get hurt!"

All Senshi who could still fight ran towards their fellow soldier, preparing their attacks and gathering their courage as they did so. But Jutlin was faster and stronger. A wave of corruption made them dive to the floor again to prevent themselves from decaying. At the same time, Jutlin's tail lashed out and knocked Chibimoon to her feet, then delivered another powerful strike on the child's back. Like Saturn and Uranus before her, Chibimoon cried out, but Jutlin was unmoved. To everyone's utter horror, the Saurian raised his blades once more.

"Now, child, let me show you the fearsome reality of a true battle! Be proud, though, that you managed to pain me, and that you shall now be slain by Jutlin the Corrupt!"

* * *

**Next chapter: Unlikely saviours!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: I'm glad you're still reading and reviewing. If you didn't, this fic would get no reviews at all. I wonder what's so unapealing about it... Anyway, as for the names, true, they might not be original, but it is a slight crossover, after all, so I think it's fine. And as for Crast and if he shows up, you'll have to wait and see! ;)


	22. Unlikely saviours

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**22. Unlikely saviours**

Chibimoon was frozen with fear as her wide eyes saw the enormous, wicked blades of Jutlin coming down on her, ready to impale her as they had Uranus. Sailor Moon looked up from where she had been knocked to the ground, desperately reaching a hand out to her future daughter in the far distance. The other Senshi tried to reach their friend, but knew they would come to late.

"Die now, child!" Jutlin hissed.

The next moment, there was a loud clang as metal hit metal. Jutlin stood shocked, and found his blades suddenly blocked by a strangely shaped shield with razor sharp edges. Holding the shield was Gravitas, her cold eyes focussed entirely on the Immoral One. From the way she was poised, it didn't look as if she had any trouble blocking the blades at all, though it wasn't easy either, as they could see her tensed muscles.

"Another one?!" the Saurian of Corruption growled, pressing with his blades against the shield. Then he sniffed Gravitas' scent, and smirked. "No, you have the scent of a Saurian! Your body has merely changed… And I know of only one being who can do that… You are family of the Child!"

Gravitas raised an eyebrow and suddenly pushed Jutlin back with her shield. With a flick of her free wrist she sent him plummeting to the ground by increasing gravity around him. Without a word Gravitas attacked, slamming her shield with killer edges towards her fallen foe. Jutlin scoffed and jumped away, lashing out with his blades again.

The Saurian of Gravity blocked with her shield again, then picked up a piece of debris with her powers and hurled it at her foe. Jutlin cut it to pieces with his weapons, but it gave Gravitas the time to jump forward and ram the edged of her shield in her opponent's side. His armour protected him, and with a smirk he hit Gravitas with his tail. She only staggered backwards slightly, using her powers to keep herself upright.

"Gravity…" Jutlin muttered, observing the transformed Saurian before him. "That makes you Gravitas, does it not?"

"Indeed," she replied curtly. "And you are Jutlin, of the Immoral Ones."

The Saurian of Corruption laughed. "Is that what you call us Phantoka? I suppose it fits, at least from your point of view, as we grabbed the power the Great Beings didn't have the guts to give us."

"Don't make me laugh," Gravitas replied, increasing gravity a hundredfold around Jutlin, pressing him deep into the ground. The sound of metal and bones cracking could be heard, but Jutlin was not worried. Corruption flowed from him at rapid pace and would have touched Gravitas had she not timely lifted herself in the air. "You weaklings could never have achieved this power without outside aid."

"Perhaps," Jutlin admitted. "But does it matter? Regardless of your power, Gravitas, I am superior to you. I do admit you have strength and skill, however, even in that weak, weird body of yours. If only these so-called guardians gave me as much of a challenge as you."

"I'm flattered," Gravitas said with some sarcasm. Another display of her powers sent Jutlin flying again, this time crashing him into a nearby wall, head first. Again he shrugged it off, climbing casually to his feet while ripping a huge chunk out of the wall. He corrupted it, then tossed it with his great might at his opponent.

Gravitas stopped it with her powers, but suddenly Jutlin came bursting through the enormous chunk, blades at ready. She raised her shield, but couldn't avoid one blade from grazing her arm. She glared at the wound, but further didn't flinch, despite the fact that it was bleeding quite heavily.

"Gravitas!" Sailor Mercury yelled, worriedly running towards her guest and friend.

"Stay there!" Gravitas snapped. "Take care of your wounded friends. I will handle him until then."

Reluctantly, Mercury nodded and ran towards Uranus, who was the worst off. Neptune was there already, helplessly clutching Uranus' hand. Jutlin watched them, but made no move to attack them. He merely turned to Gravitas and smirked.

"Fine then, Gravitas. Handle me, if you can."

* * *

Ami rushed over to the fallen Senshi and dropped to her knees. The decay had spread quite far, and if they didn't do anything fast, Haruka wouldn't last long.

"Where is Sailor Moon? We need to disinfect the wound, now!" Ami shouted.

"I'm... Here..." The beaten up Senshi came to the group, smiling weakly. "Moon Tiara Stardust!"

The sparks of light had stopped the corruption, but didn't make the wound any less serious.

"Haruka-papa..." Ami looked behind her. Hotaru had barely finished healing herself... She crawled over to her papa and tried to heal the wound, but Soldier of Silence didn't have any strength left.

Chibiusa, all shaken, came to her friend's aid. "Take my power." She said weakly and concentrated. She had always been able to emit raw power, but now she tried to focus it on her friend. And she succeeded.

But the Small Lady managed to transfer was only enough to heal half of the wound...

Ami's face turned grim. But there was no time for useless sadness. She was a future doctor, a medic! What good she is if she couldn't even save her friend?

Not thinking much longer, she reached towards Michiru's back bow and ripped it off.

"What are you...?" The Senshi of Ocean could only say.

"Now it's not the time to think about beauty!" Ami undid the bow and checked its length. "I need two more. Now!"

Hotaru readily offered her own bow, as did Chibiusa. The little girl's was too short, though, and could be used only to cover the wound itself, so Ami ripped off her own. And with those improvised bandages she bandaged the older Senshi's wound.

Ami then motioned to Jupiter, Venus and Mars to come over. When they did, she told them: "Take Hotaru and Haruka to a safer place." She looked at the pink-haired Senshi. "And Chibiusa, too. The battle is over for them. After that, come back as quickly as possible."

"Hai," said Makoto and carefully helped Haruka up. She and Rei acted as supports for her, while Minako supported the very weak Hotaru. When they were out of sight in an alley, the remaining Sailor Senshi turned their attention back to the battlefield.

* * *

Gravitas struck out with her shield, only to have it parried by one of Jutlin's blades. The other one was aimed for her head, but she stopped it with sheer gravity. The two Saurians fought in this stalemate of power for a while, each trying to overpower the other and neither of them succeeding. Gravitas suddenly pulled away, but Jutlin had expected that trick and didn't stumble. Instead, he kicked out with his powerful leg and hit Gravitas in the stomach, sending her flying. The woman used her powers to slow her fall and landed gently on her feet.

Jutlin was already on top of her by this time, however, and once more his blades made an attempt at her life. Thinking quickly, Gravitas threw a chunk of debris between them with her gravity powers, then pushed her shield forward as Jutlin cut through the concrete. The flat of the shield hit him in the face and he wavered for a moment, allowing Gravitas to return the kick from before. The armour, cracked now as it was, offered less protection against the blow, but still enough so it didn't really pain him. It merely caused a bruise. Being slammed into the ground by gravity did not, however.

But Jutlin was a fantastic foe, and not easily defeated, especially not by some extra gravity. With a savage roar he climbed to his feet against the increased gravity and slashed the surprised Gravitas' stomach. The disguised Saurian staggered backwards, one hand clutching the bleeding wound. Jutlin was on her again, expertly delivering strike after strike with his blades, which Gravitas barely managed to block with her shield. She could feel the corruption stinging in the wounds, weakening her quickly and effectively.

A final strike and Gravitas was blown against the ground, her shield knocked from her grasp. Jutlin stood over her, panting, slightly exhausted, but triumphant. His blades hovered dangerously close to her neck.

"Do it," Gravitas hissed. "Do not think I will crack and beg, or tell you anything you want to know. I have more honour than that."

"That you do," Jutlin agreed, a terrifying smirk on his face. "But I can make your death painful and agonizing. If you just tell me where your brother is, I'll make it swift, a death worthy of you. And worry not, we will not kill Ignika, we have more common sense than that."

"I do not fear your corruption," Gravitas said simply. And that was that.

"Then I shall corrupt your mind first, and your corrupted babbling shall tell me what I need to know!" the Corrupt hissed with obvious delight. His weapons started to glow with a sickeningly green light: a glow of corruption. Before he could strike, though, seven attacks flew at him. But Jutlin noticed it in time and corrupted every last one of them, rendering them useless.

"Fools," he snapped at the Senshi. "Do you not recognize defeat when it stands before you? Against me, your ranged attacks are worthless, just like you all are worthless in close combat. How you ever managed to defeat those before me I shall never understand!"

He proceeded to slam one of his blades so hard in the ground that a crack of many metres appeared, through which coursed a never before seen amount of corruption, destroying everything so quickly in its wake that the whole road was done for before a minute had passed.

The Senshi could only stare in horror at the destruction one attack of the Immoral One had caused, and was still causing. Corruption this strong wouldn't just stop spreading after a few metres. It would take whole miles with it before it finally died out, and by then much of Tokyo would already be gone.

"We have to stop it!" Mars cried out, her spiritual senses going in overdrive at all the impurity she was feeling now.

"But Gravitas will get killed!" Mercury replied, panicking. "We have to save her!"

"You go help her," Pluto told Mercury. The stoic guardian of time managed to keep cool even in this dreadful situation. "The rest of us will have to find a way to stop the corruption from spreading."

Mercury nodded gratefully at the older Senshi. She didn't know what made her make such a hasty decision to go help Gravitas. She knew she was no match – at all – for Jutlin. If even Gravitas, who was superior to every Senshi in close combat, had lost to the Immoral One, how could she, the brains of the group, hope to be victorious?

That was logic, of course, but for a moment Sailor Mercury wasn't capable of logic. All she knew was that she had to help Gravitas… somehow. She summoned her harp to her hand and attacked the monster who was spreading corruption all over and who was about to behead the Saurian of Gravity.

"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!"

Jutlin looked up from where he was about to slice Gravitas' throat. He saw the water-based attack coming and scoffed, waving one blade and corrupting the attack to nothing. He laughed when he saw Mercury preparing another attack. Gravitas, meanwhile, was kept to the ground by the pain in her wound and the blade at her throat.

"Have you learned nothing yet, pitiful excuse for a warrior?" Jutlin sneered in disdain at Mercury. "Your attacks are weak. You are weak. You are nothing compared to me, female, and it is time you learned to accept that truth!"

He fired a blast of pure, concentrated corruption at Mercury, at such a speed there was no chance for her to dodge or defend herself. As she saw the corruption speeding towards her, Mercury knew she was done for. Within a moment, she would be hit, and her body would decay at such a speed she'd be a puddle of filthy gore in a matter of seconds.

Suddenly, Jutlin was blown back by a burst of gravity, and crushed deeply into the ground. But the corruption kept speeding towards Sailor Mercury, her doom still inevitable. But not if Gravitas could help it. She liked this girl. She loved her family dearly, but there was something about Ami that made her be slightly more open, more eager to do things, such as reading and learning. She remembered helping Ami recover after she had fainted, she remembered the reading lessons, and the tons of interesting things she had learned thanks to the skill she had learned from Ami. And she'd be damned if she let that girl die now!

How she managed to be faster than the corruption, Gravitas never knew, but she threw herself in front of Sailor Mercury. Somehow she had retrieved her shield, but she knew it was useless against this amount of corruption. The blast hit, and she was blown backwards by the force, against Mercury, against the girl she wanted to protect. The Senshi of Water realized what was happening, and seeing how the corruption shredded Gravitas' shield and began touching her hands, Ami threw her arms around Gravitas and held fast. They'd face death together, then.

A powerful force neither of them had ever felt before suddenly flared to life inside them, at the moment Mercury stood strong together with her friend. Gravitas began to glow silver, and Mercury blue like the seas. Their glows combined, just like their powers, and in that one moment they pushed the corruption back, even healing the damage it had already done to Gravitas' body. Somehow, the two of them knew precisely what to do, being in perfect symbiosis with each other. They thrust their hands forward at the same time, unleashing the power that had somehow been granted to them.

"Voya Aqua Storm!"

A torrent of water so great and powerful rushed towards Jutlin, who had just climbed to his feet. It hit him dead on, and the waves crashed down on him with the force of thousand times the earth's gravity. The attack crushed him completely, and his armour shattered under the pressure. He felt plenty of his bones cracking, and screamed out in excruciating pain. When the storm finally subsided, Jutlin laid bleeding and defeated in the crater him crushing down in the ground had caused.

"C… Curses…" he croaked, blood coming from the corner of his jaws.

Gravitas and Mercury sank to their knees, drained and exhausted by this unexpected turn of events. All their strength had gone into that last, single assault, and it seemed to have saved them all.

"Don't think you have won…" Jutlin suddenly laughed, despite it paining him so thanks to all his broken ribs. "Or… have you forgotten… my underlings who I send out to search… for the child?"

All turned their attention at him, even the other Senshi who had barely managed to stop the destruction, somehow… In their insane battle with this one person, they had completely forgotten that there were at least ten more Saurians on the loose in Tokyo. The disasters those would cause could not be overseen.

What followed that statement of Jutlin, however, nobody had ever expected. A new voice spoke to the fallen Immoral One, and everyone immediately wished they had never heard it. The voice sounded like bones cracking, and it was so horrid it seemed to make their ears bleed.

"Your underlings? Those have been expertly taken care of, courtesy of me."

Everyone turned, against better judgement, in the direction of that horrible voiced, and once they laid eyes on the speaker, they immediately wished they had never done so, for the sight would haunt their nightmares for eternity to come…

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**Next chapter: After the fight!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Well, if it's any comfort, I guess I'm sadistic too for enjoying writing them getting smacked around. I wanted to make the power of corruption more dangerous, and so this was the result. Glad you like it. Hope the fight's conclusion was to your liking, and I guess you know who decided to show up now, no?


	23. After the fight

_Mistakes of the Great Being_

**23. ****After the fight**

The remaining Senshi, Gravitas and Jutlin all stared at the new arrival, even though it scarred their mind and sanity to do so. Yet they couldn't stop watching, regardless of the fact that watching the being made their stomach turn upside down hundreds of times, making them all feel ill. It couldn't be helped, the creature was just so repulsive…

It had a humanoid torso, with short arms and legs of equal length, and wicked spiked blades in the place of hand and feet, on which it walked. The blades serving as hands were so long that the figure was able to stand with a straight back despite being a quadruped. Its head was so indescribably hideous, it could make even the bravest die from fright right there and then. It looked like a human skull, with long sharp teeth in the jaws and red glowing lights serving as eyes. Filthy black hair grew from the skull and slithered down to the figure's shoulders. Jagged, sharp spikes grew out of every of the creature's neck- and backbones, and it also had a thin, long and whip-like tail made of bones. Its was mostly black in colour, but the torso was covered with white plates of bone. The boneblades serving as hands and feet, the hideous head and spikes were white as well, and stained with blood. The whole image of the creature screamed death, and the sound of its voice drained them from any resolve they had, putting despair and hopelessness - of such intensity that it was beyond imagination - in its place.

"I have taken care of your underlings, Jutlin," the creature cackled, a sound that made them all want to go insane. The utterly repulsive monster scuttled closer on its four bladed limbs to Jutlin, not caring that it touched corrupted road as it did so. The corruption didn't seem to affect him at all. "And now all that remains is taking care of you, you whose very existence is an insult to my master."

The hideous red eyes of the beast got a sickening gleam of bloodlust in them. "And if there's one thing Crast the Repulsive can't stand, it's that his master is insulted by some mishaps of evolution with attitude problems!"

As if to further complicate things for the Sailor Senshi, another new voice rang through the night, halting Crast in his steps.

"Jutlin, return to us now!" The voice sounded a lot like Jutlin's, only somewhat older, but there was no doubt that it was yet another Saurian who was speaking now, though from where nobody could see.

"So you can gloat in my defeat? I'll pass, Avsa," Jutlin retorted with a sneer.

"You met unforeseen resistance," the voice belonging to the person called Avsa replied. "No blame falls on you, our leader has told me to assure you of that. Return to us now, my brother."

A dimensional gate appeared right behind the Saurian of Corruption, and Jutlin climbed painfully to his clawed feet. He sheathed his blades and glared at the female creatures that had defeated him by surprising him, not by skill.

"We shall meet again, bunch of fools!" And then, to Crast he said: "As for you, Crast, our master will deal with you and yours, count on it."

Then he dragged himself into the dimensional gate, which closed once he was through. Crast watched him go with mild concern on his hideous features. He shook his repulsive head and snorted in disdain, then scuttled over in the direction of the Sailor Senshi.

"Sailor Senshi… We meet at last, face to face…" he grinned with his horrid voice. They all had to use all their willpower to prevent themselves from covering their ears to block out that voice of nightmares.

Michiru's eyes widened as she recognized the creature. She had seen it in a dream she had together with Haruka. But what was he doing in this dimension?

Setsuna noticed her fellow Outer Senshi's reaction. "You know it?" She asked quietly. Setsuna was doing the best in dealing with her emotions, partly because of her long experience as the Guardian of Time and all the things she had seen, including alternate futures...

"N-no... I saw him once in a dream, as did Haruka..." She closed her eyes as she remembered that. Could it be that he'd ask something as horrible as killing your own daughter again?

"W... What are you and what do you want?" Sailor Moon said, her voice weak and tiny. She was only glad that Chibiusa and Hotaru weren't there to see this vile beast. The rest of the Senshi and Gravitas were also having trouble with coping with their fear, each with different levels of difficulty. Ami and Gravitas were having it the easiest – they were too drained physically and mentally. Minako and Makoto also had been more or less successful due to their personality.

Rei was having a hard time... Especially since she could sense the amount of power this beast had and the horrible nature of this power. It was as if the creature itself was made out of pure negative energy, of all dark things a human soul can possess. Yet somehow... It wasn't evil. How could that be possible, Rei could not comprehend.

"I am Crast the Repulsive," Crast introduced himself. "I have been watching your struggles with these invaders from our home dimension, and was told only to interfere if there was no other choice. I deemed this as 'no other choice'."

"So you are… on our side?" Venus asked tentatively, the thought of speaking with this living nightmare scaring her witless.

"You could say that," Crast replied with a chuckle. He reached out with a tendril of his power and sensed their fatigue, fear, exhaustion and shock. He had a lot to tell them, lots of information they had to know, but he guessed it had been enough for tonight. Besides, his master had to be informed of this. "But I can sense your fatigue and pain, as well as your worry for your comrades… Meet me again tomorrow evening in the park."

He started to leave, but Gravitas gathered her strength and called out, stopping him. "How can we trust you? You are just like an Immoral One to me."

Crast glanced over his shoulder and smiled at her, a sickening expression on his repulsive face. "If I tell you that I work under the orders of master Angonce, and that he will meet you tomorrow, will that make you trust me?"

Gravitas' jaw dropped and her eyes almost bulged out of their sockets at those words. She could barely believe her ears, part of her kept screaming at her that she must have heard it wrong. Master Angonce… here, in this dimension?! She wanted to ask more, but by the time she had found her voice again, Crast had disappeared, vanished in thin air.

At this moment the Senshi heard footsteps behind them. Still shaken from the encounter with Crast, they quickly turned around, only to find out it was Traveller coming out of an alley.

The Saurian woman approached the Senshi and told Michiru: "I teleported Haruka, Hotaru and Chibiusa to your house. Ignika is healing their wounds right now."

Michiru could only nod and smile weakly: "Thank you, Traveller."

"Don't thank me. I wouldn't be myself if I didn't." She then eyed the group. "As for the rest of you... Ignika demands you all come with me back to the house." Her voice was stern, her gaze cold. "He doesn't want to wait, and thus I'll teleport you." With those words, she put her hands around Michiru and the two women vanished.

* * *

They had all gathered in the living room of the Outer Senshi's house, even the rest of Ignika's family, thanks to Ignika showing Traveller images taken from the Senshi's minds of their houses, enabling her to teleport there. Haruka laid on the couch, her wounds having healed enough to let her live, but one could still see the vicious scars where she had been impaled, and she was still in pain. Hotaru and Usagi had been taken care of as well, and Ignika had used his powers to help Chibiusa over her panic and fear of all she had seen that night.

The rest of his family was crowded around Gravitas, who was fine aside from some bruises and cuts, and the fact that she had lost her shield to Jutlin's corruption. But besides that, she looked as stoic, cold and aloof as ever, her expressionless eyes observing each Senshi in turn. Only when her eyes met Ami's would Gravitas' expression change from cold to somewhat warm and friendly.

Ignika finished healing Chibiusa's mind and body, and his hands stopped glowing with a soothing golden light. After making sure she was alright, he moved to stand in the centre of the group. With clenched jaws he looked at each Senshi, one by one, just as Gravitas had. Chameleon and Nightmare already saw the storm coming and covered their ears.

"YOU ARE ALL A BUNCH OF UNBELIEVABLE IDIOTS!"

The Sailor Senshi stared in shock at the white-haired Child of Life who had just yelled at them. Barely controlled anger and rage were visible on his features, and for the first time since they knew him they understood just how terrifying he could be, and he hadn't even used his powers, yet.

"JUST WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?! GOING AFTER AN IMMORAL ONE WITHOUT ONE OF US THERE TO ASSIST?! HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND, OR DID YOU NEVER HAVE ONE IN THE FIRST PLACE?!"

Setsuna opened her mouth to speak, but to everyone's horror he silenced her with one glance.

"DON'T GIVE ME THE CRAP OF US NOT BEING USED TO OUR NEW BODIES YET! GRAVITAS, DESPITE HER HANDICAP, FAIRED BETTER AGAINST JUTLIN THAN ALL OF YOU COMBINED!"

Ignika was absolutely steaming, not only because he was mad at them for leaving them out, but because he was, deep down in his heart, very worried for his new friends. Their recklessness and unwillingness to listen to him and his family really drove them all up the wall, especially since it was as clear as crystal that the Senshi needed help with this new foe.

"IN CLOSE COMBAT, YOU ARE WORTH NOTHING! AND GUESS WHAT?! EVERY AVERAGE SAURIAN KNOWS HOW TO USE BOTH POWERS AND WEAPONS! YOU KNOW WHAT THAT MEANS? THAT THEY HAVE ALREADY WON HALF THE BATTLE BEFORE IT EVEN STARTS!"

The child stomped his foot and summoned his Death Scythe to his hand. A gasp went through the assembled group, and he pointed it at each and every one of them, one by one.

"THIS IS THE LAST TIME YOU LEFT US BEHIND. NEXT TIME A FOE APPEARS, WE WILL FIGHT, AND ANYBODY OF YOU WHO TRIES TO STOP US I WILL TAKE DOWN MYSELF!"

Power radiated from the child as he breathed heavily, all that shouting making him gasp for air. Still, he didn't stop, he had to get this through their thick skulls.

"DID I MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!"

No reply.

"DID I, FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT'S HOLY, MAKE MYSELF CLEAR?!"

"Yes." Usagi broke the heavy silence. "More than ever."

She felt deeply ashamed that it took as much as almost killing three of the Senshi and Gravitas for them to realize the seriousness of the situation and the damage their overconfidence caused. She made Chibiusa, who was standing near the armchair next to her, come closer, sat her future daughter on her knees and hugged her tightly from behind.

Haruka felt angry with herself. She, of all the people, should have known the Saurians' power! But she was fooled by her own sense of superiority... Hotaru wasn't angry, but also ashamed, because despite everything, she didn't disagree with the will of the adults. Michiru was simply too wounded by the possible loss of her family, and just kept stroking Haruka's hair and holding Hotaru's hand. Setsuna had hidden all signs of pain and guilt she felt. She knew the battle before it started, she knew the outcome, but couldn't... didn't dare to interfere.

Rei also blamed herself for not arguing with the others' decision to leave the Saurians out of the battle. She didn't know any of them close enough, but she could have listened to her spiritual powers and understand that the Saurians were formidable allies in battle... But she just rushed into battle.

As for the other three Inner Senshi, a silent conversation seemed to happen between them and their guests as their gazes met.

"_I'm sorry... I should have let you come."_

"_I understand why you didn't. But never do that again."_

"_I told you to bring me along you dimwit!"_

"_You're right this time... I'm sorry."_

"_I should have argued..."_

"_You did all you could."_

Ignika sank down on a couch, holding his head between his hands, tears threatening to spill forth. He was tired, and the worry for his friends gnawed at him. He didn't want anybody else dying. Olmak was too much already as far as he was concerned. More casualties he wouldn't be able to bear. He was happy when he felt Traveller's hand on his shoulder, and he leaned against her in an embrace.

"It's alright now, Ignika, I think they got the message. And they did win against Jutlin, even though it was a stroke of sheer luck. But it has bought us some more time for now," the oldest Saurian whispered, as she caressed through her little brother's hair.

"Which begs the question," Gravitas interrupted. "What in the name of the Great Beings happened to me and Ami?"

Nobody answered her question, for nobody knew the answer, which disappointed Gravitas somewhat. She had hoped Ami, or any of the other Senshi, would have been able to provide her with an explanation. Apparently not.

"It sounds familiar to me," Ignika finally whispered. "At least, from what you've told me, it does. Not that I ever saw something akin to it. Even the Great Beings had only thought of it in theory, master Angonce told me that."

"And what exactly do you mean by that, brother?" Chameleon inquired, an eyebrow raised.

The Child of Life shrugged. "Master Angonce once told me of a theory he had concerning powers. He had observed nature and life for many years, and since I am Life, he talked to me about his studies. Sometimes beings of different species work together to fill in each other's gaps, benefitting both sides in the end. That was no big news, but he found it interesting that it seldom happened with intelligent beings, such as Saurians or even Great Beings. He wondered if that was because we weren't capable of it or if it was because we didn't need it. He ended his thoughts by saying that if it was the case of not needing, then the ability to work together with other species might still be inside us. In conclusion, master Angonce believed that should the need arise, a Saurian would be capable of working in symbiosis with another living being of a different species in order to help them both further. And following that line of thought, he said that that could even mean the combination of powers."

Ignika glanced at both Ami and Gravitas. "It was only a theory, as he could find no way to test this and prove it, because never do you find two intelligent species on the same planet. One always causes the others' extinction. But here in this dimension, we have come in contact with other intelligent creatures, humans. A different species. And the need for a symbiosis arose during the battle, so the old instinct was awakened, and combined the elements of you both that were needed for survival. In this case, your powers."

When a silence fell after he had just laid out such a heavy theory, he looked worriedly at the others. They all stared at him, wide-eyed, and Ignika sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "It's only a theory, and all I could come up with…"

"No, it's alright. Sounds quite plausible," Ami said, thinking and recalling the unity she felt with Gravitas. It was more than merely combining powers... It was becoming one.

Minako nodded. "Yeah, it's just strange to hear something like that from a ten years old kid..."

Ignika chuckled. "Don't forget, I'm a thousand and ten years old already."

"A thousand and nine." Traveller corrected.

"No, a thousand and ten! This planet's year is two days shorter." The child explained.

"Fine, fine." His sister sighed.

"Nevertheless," Rei said, providing some reason. "We need to think of what to do with weapons... Some of us require serious training in wielding them." She looked at Haruka and Hotaru.

Traveller nodded. "I'll teach Hotaru. And Chameleon could perhaps train Haruka..." She paused. "Gravitas needs a new shield, however."

Setsuna shook her head. "We don't have such things in this dimension and time."

Once again it was Ignika who spoke. "Not a problem. All I need is some material that is or was alive, like bone or anything like it, and I can create a new shield for Gravitas. It's not the first time I had to fix weapons."

"I guess that solves it then," Makoto concluded, happy everything was sorted out.

"Not quite," Gravitas interjected, her voice cold and hard now. "Or have you forgotten Crast, and his invitation?"

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**Next chapter: Dreams come true!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Thanks for the tip! I'll try to keep it in mind. Glad you like the chapter. Sorry that Crast didn't appear much yet, but don't worry, he'll be around in all of chapter 29 and 30.


	24. Dreams come true

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**24.**** Dreams come true**

The Senshi shivered as they remembered tonight's encounter with Crast – the most horrifying and repulsive creature any of them had ever seen in their life. The Saurians, aside from Gravitas, looked at each other, confused.

"Who is Crast?" Chameleon asked. Judging by the shiver, he assumed it was something horrible. And he was right.

"Crast..." Minako shivered again, much to Nightmare's surprise. "Is the most vile, repulsive and scary creature I have ever seen. He walks on four blades that serve as his limbs, his body is black and covered with white bone, and his face is a thousand times scarier than your Saurian smiles." The Saurians glared at her. She sweatdropped. "Heheh, sorry..."

Haruka's eyes widened. She sat up a bit and she looked at Michiru. The aqua-haired woman caught the glance and nodded. Haruka lay back down and closed her eyes.

Meanwhile, Rei continued telling about their unexpected encounter, looking at the ground: "I could feel his power... The amount of power was great beyond belief. I haven't sensed a single spark of Light in him... All he emanated was hatred, anger, apathy, all kinds of dark emotions and powers... Except for one." She looked up. "Evil. Despite everything, despite all the repulsive powers of Darkness he possessed, he wasn't evil. At all. I don't know how it is possible."

There was silence for a while. The Saurians tried to imagine what the Senshi had just told, and failed. Setsuna broke the silence then:

"Michiru." The Senshi of Ocean looked at the green-haired woman. "You told me that you and Haruka had once seen Crast in a dream."

Haruka opened her eyes and said: "It is true. Although I wish we never did..."

Michiru nodded. "It wasn't a creature alike to Crast, no, it was Crast himself. And... He put us to a test." She looked down and held Hotaru's hand tighter.

The Saurians were confused as to what a test had to do with all of this, and Ignika asked: "What kind of test?"

Haruka replied, with a pained voice: "We were put before a choice. To save the world or to save our daughter. For in order to free the Universe from the threat, we needed to kill Hotaru."

Everybody in the room gasped. Traveller instinctively held Ignika closer to herself. She didn't doubt the decision she would make for one second. Let the Universe die for all she cares, the life of her brother was more important! Especially since the life of her brother meant the life of the Universe, or at least the world. From the looks her family shared, she guessed that they thought the same.

She looked at the lesbian couple. "And what did you do?" she asked in a low voice.

Haruka closed her eyes. "We passed the test, but barely. We couldn't kill our daughter. But I won't deny it came close to that."

Hotaru looked at her parents wide-eyed. Did they really mean what they said now? She didn't get a chance to voice her question, though, as the story continued.

"It was extremely hard," Michiru said. "When you're told that right behind this door lies the doom of the world, you open it, and see your daughter..." She shook her head. "It was the worst thing ever. But we had a duty to the Universe..." She sighed.

After a brief pause, Haruka continued: "In the end we couldn't do it. But, as it turned out, we didn't need to. All of it was an illusion, a dream created by Crast. He told us that soon his Master would need warriors like us, who value the lives of their comrades more than the duty to the universe..."

Michiru finished the tale, saying: "He never told us his name, or his Master's name... But as soon as I saw that disgusting creature, I recognized him. His Master needs us, that's what I thought."

"But the worst thing is..." Gravitas suddenly said, startling everybody. "That ugly, vile, repulsive, hateful creature..." She still couldn't believe the absurd thing she was going to say: "Claimed his master to be Angonce."

The four other Saurians in the room were shocked by those words. Their jaws dropped to the floor and they stared at their sister with eyes full of disbelief. Ignika had jumped to his feet upon hearing that name. The disbelief on his face was a hundred times as great as on the faces of his family.

"M… master Angonce is in this dimension?!" the boy stammered, his voice barely audible. "He's… he's on this planet?!"

"That's what Crast said," Gravitas replied, a hint of doubt in her otherwise cold voice. "What's more, he said master Angonce will meet with us tomorrow, if we go to the park like Crast told us to…"

"Then we have to go!" Ignika immediately declared. For a change, he was being reckless himself. But the thought of seeing his 'father' again had made him incapable for the moment of thinking with logic. "We cannot ignore the summoning of a Great Being, and certainly not master Angonce!"

"But how do we know this Crast speaks the truth?" Traveller interjected, overcoming her initial shock. "The description given to us makes it seem to me that Crast is one of the Immoral Ones."

Ignika calmed down for a moment, taking in those words. He bit his lip for a moment as he thought about that possibility, but then shook his head. "It can't be, for how else would he know master Angonce's name? Outside from us, there are no Saurians who know the names of the Great Beings. Even I only know master Angonce in person. For this Crast to know master Angonce's name, he has to be an acquaintance of the master at the least…"

"Do not forget," Setsuna added helpfully. "That he did slay the rest of the Saurians that came with Jutlin while we were busy fighting the Corrupt."

"And despite everything, I feel that we can trust him," Rei said.

Michiru and Haruka nodded: "He is no stranger to the word 'honour'."

"And his master seems to value morals."

Chameleon sighed deeply and buried his face in his hand. "Didn't Ignika just scold you about being reckless? You're setting a bad example, little brother."

Nightmare glared at the Saurian of Chameleon. "Look who's talking."

"It doesn't matter if Crast is lying or not," Ignika replied. "If there's a chance that we can meet a Great Being here, then we have to take it, no matter what. Perhaps master Angonce would even be willing to help us fight these enemies, or find a way to block them from this dimension. We cannot ignore these possibilities because a monstrous creature informed us of them."

Traveller sighed, but had to relent. "You're right, little brother." She looked at the assembled group around her. "So I guess all agree to go and meet up with this Crast at the park tomorrow evening?"

"Yes." Usagi said. Everybody else nodded.

"Then I guess I should take everybody home now." The black-haired Saurian said.

Chibiusa looked at her wristwatch. "Oh my gosh, 5:30 AM! Only an hour and a half before it's time to get up, and we haven't even gone to sleep yet!"

Mako coughed. "Ahem. You forget the hours of sleep before we were woken up."

Chibiusa scratched her head. "Oh... But still, school..."

Usagi and Chibiusa looked at each other. Absolutely identical smiles crept onto their faces. They said happily in unison: "To hell with school!" And high-fived.

Ami looked at them both: "What!? Unacceptable!"

"Oh, common, Ami... We've just won the hardest battle in our life!" Usagi whined.

"Yeah, and I nearly got killed!" Chibiusa added. "Please?" Both girls looked at Ami with puppy dog eyes.

Ami sighed. "Fine, fine, but only this time."

The Saurians stared at the scene. All of them thought the same thing: had they _really_ learned anything from today? Nevertheless, Traveller needed to get them home, which she started doing right away.

* * *

Most of the Sailor Senshi spent the next morning and the first half of the day sleeping and regaining their strength. Some had no trouble with it at all: Minako and Ami weren't going to attend college for the rest of the week anyway, Haruka and Michiru didn't have to. Setsuna and Hotaru did skip their classes, but nobody minded it. Rei had severely overslept her work, for which she got a big scolding from her grandfather once he came back from the hot springs. And Usagi's parents were very surprised when even a glass of cold water in the face made their daughter and her pink-haired cousin wake up only enough so to move to the living room and cuddle on the couch together, instantly returning back to being sound asleep. In the end, they let them be.

However, there was one Senshi who had to interrupt her beauty sleep early. Makoto got up at 8:15 AM. She didn't have cooking school that day, but had to phone the restaurant where she had a part-time job. She took her cell phone and dialed a friend who worked there:

"Chieko-chan? It's Makoto. Huh? Well, yes, I am sick... Could you tell Misato-sama that I won't come today? Thanks. No, it's not severe. Just a cold... I'll be back in no time. Yes. Yes, I will. And help you with the meatballs. Yes. Bye now." Mako hung up and sighed. Chieko was a nice girl, but a mediocre cook, and often relied on Makoto's help.

Mako stretched and glanced at the clock. "8:20..." She thought. "Well, since I'm up anyway, might as well cook some breakfast and watch the morning news..." There was no way the destruction from last night could go unnoticed, and Mako wondered what would the news say about it.

Mako came out of her room yawning. She used the door that led to the living room, and was startled to see someone's hair hanging over the couch's arm. "Oh, right, it's Chameleon..."

Mako put a hand to her forehead and sighed. Yesterday she tried to unfold the couch, but it seemed that something was broken, so she just gave the Saurian a bedsheet, a pillow and a blanket. Now the blanket was on the floor, the bedsheet also half on the floor, and Chameleon's head was on the couch arm, the pillow hugged tightly in his arms as he lay curled up. Makoto almost giggled. He was so cute, asleep like that...

"Wait a second." Mako thought to herself. "I have a guy living with me now! I can't walk around the house wearing a nightgown..." With those thoughts she hurried back into her room to change into something more suitable. She knew that Chameleon wouldn't care what she wore, but she felt uncomfortable herself.

In the end she settled on a simple light-yellow dress that she didn't wear anymore because it lost some of its color when she washed it. Some patches of it were lighter than others, making the dress impossible to wear in public, but it was still fit to wear at home, and definitely better than a nightgown.

She went back to the living room, picked the blanket up and covered Chameleon with it. "He'll probably throw it off again, but hey, I can't leave it lying on the floor." She reasoned. Chameleon mumbled something in his sleep as the blanket touched him, and Mako found herself smiling. Quietly, not to wake him up, she went to the kitchen.

There was still time before the news started, and Makoto got to cooking breakfast. She made an omelet for both her and Chameleon, having put much bacon in his half. Her own half of the omelet had tomatoes. All of this was sprinkled with parsley and spring onions. She also made some coffee for herself. She always made coffee herself, never wasting money on instant coffee which seldom was any good. She realized, however, that giving it to Chameleon wouldn't do much good because he might go hyper, and had to make him cocoa with milk. From what she heard, all Saurians liked sweet things.

The wonderful smells of from the kitchen reached Chameleon's nostrils. He inhaled them happily, still asleep. As he reached out to grab something he saw in his dream, he fell off the couch. He immediately jumped to his feet, looking around rapidly. At first he was confused by his surroundings, but then remembered everything that happened and relaxed.

"Way to go, stupid..." He sighed. The dream was just so nice... The smells were heavenly. He sniffed the air and his eyes went wide. They still weren't gone! Does that mean those were real?

He was about to rush to the kitchen, but then his gaze fell on the mess his bed was. Chameleon frowned. He already noticed that Mako liked order in everything and everything to be clean. Being a well-mannered and thankful guest, he picked the blanket, pillow and the bedsheet and threw them all in a neat pile on the couch. Nodding approvingly to himself, he happily went to the kitchen.

Chameleon leaned against the doorframe, observing the scenery. Sun shining through the window and green curtains on its sides on the wooden furniture, Makoto standing by the cooker stirring something in a small silver pot with a long handle, tapping her foot against the black-and-white tiled floor, neat-looking food put on just as neat-looking table... And wonderful smells. It was a nice sight to behold.

Mako glanced at him over her shoulder and smiled. "Ah, Chameleon, good morning. Sit down and have some breakfast."

"Some... what?" Chameleon asked, tilting his head.

Mako laughed softly. "It's what we humans call the morning meal." She turned the fire under the pot off and came over to the table with it. "Come on, join me." She said as she poured a strange black liquid into her cup.

Seeing no reason to disagree, the Saurian came over to the table and observed the meal. It looked strange, but so did everything else in this world, and he decided not to judge it until he tasted it. The cup that stood near his plate had a liquid of nice light-brown color, which was also hard to imagine what it would taste like. Sitting down, he picked up his fork, and sniffed the meal.

"Mmm... Smells really good." He smiled.

"Thanks." Makoto smiled. "It's called an omelet. I know you like meat, so I put some bacon into it."

Chameleon nodded and licked his lips. He put the fork under the 'omelet', lifting it up a bit, leaned down to it and took a bite. His eyes widened with surprise. It definitely tasted better than it looked, and it looked good! The meat, or 'bacon' as Mako called it, was nice and a bit salty, and the omelet itself was nice, too. Just as he was about to take another bite, he heard Makoto saying: "Ahem."

He looked up from his meal. "What?"

"Actually, that's not how humans eat..." Mako said, smiling shyly. "First of all, sit straight." Chameleon obeyed. "Secondly, whenever there's a big piece of food on the plate, humans never bite off it. You should first cut a small piece off it with a fork or a knife, and eat that. Like this." Makoto showed him.

Chameleon did as he was shown. He didn't really like it, because not having his mouth full of food was weird, so he asked Mako: "Why make it so complex? You humans make a whole deal out of simple things like eating and sleeping..."

Mako shrugged: "It's how it is. That's manners that have formed for centuries, and those who don't follow them are looked down upon." She thought for some time while eating her meal. "Actually, I think it all has to do with being clean. Forks, spoons, knives and chopsticks allow you to keep your hands clean, small pieces prevent your from making your face dirty..."

"I suppose." He said. "Still, why obsess with it so much? Dirt is just dirt, nothing good or bad about it."

"Well, and humans don't like dirt. Now that I think of it, that's the reason why we have all those things like forks, plates and all, that's why we keep our houses clean, wash ourselves every day..."

Chameleon choked. "Every day?" He looked at Mako in disbelief. That was definitely unheard of on Voya. It was a jungle world, and finding a nice place to wash yourself and your clothes, like a river or a lake, was a rare occasion.

"Yep." Mako smiled. "Oh, and you should, too, later today..." Her cheeks flushed as she said that.

Chameleon tilted his head. "Is it hot in here all of a sudden again? Your cheeks are red."

"Wha?" Mako put her hands on her flaming cheeks. "N-no, not really... Never mind and finish your meal." She smiled nervously.

Chameleon shrugged and continued to eat his omelet. Even though it wasn't as fun as eating with his mouth full, he had to admit it was nice in its own way, because he could feel the taste better somehow now that the food took little space in his mouth. He reached for his cup to have a drink, and when he did, his eyes widened with surprise once again.

"Like it?" Mako asked.

"Oh yes I do!" Chameleon eagerly nodded. "It's the sweetest thing I ever drank! And it isn't sticky like honey..."

Makoto laughed softly again. "It's called cocoa. I knew you'd like it." She stood up and took their empty plates and put them into the sink. "Now, let's go to the living room. Time to introduce you to another human invention – the television."

Chameleon scratched his head in thought. 'Television'? He knew 'telepathy', 'teleportation', 'telekinesis'... Was 'television' also some kind of psychic power? How would he get introduced to it then? Curious and clueless, he followed Makoto to the living room.

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**Next chapter: The next morning!**

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**Review replies:**

Chaser Warring on Everything: It's interesting that you say this. But what exactly, does this story lack? If I don't know, I can't improve it.

SoulLoss: I always allow anonymous reviews, so that's probably not the problem. I guess the story is just not to the general SM fan's tastes. Maybe too much original characters and new things, instead of just a general save-the-earth story with new sailor scouts or a romance story.


	25. The next morning

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**25.**** The next morning**

Chameleon entered the room and found Makoto looking at the couch. Namely, the pile he left on it. He came closer.

"Something wrong?" He asked.

Mako looked at him: "Why is your bed in a pile?"

"Ehm, well, I figured out that you wouldn't like things lying on the floor, so I tidied up." He smiled innocently.

Mako shook her head and chuckled. "That's a nice intention, but a completely wrong realization of it." She came over to the couch. "Humans like things neatly folded and in their own places." She started to fold the blanket. "And since the couch's primary function isn't sleeping, you have to put your bed away in that cupboard." She took the now neatly folded blanket and bedsheet, as well as the pillow, and opened the lower doors of the cupboard to the left of the table, then put them all neatly on the shelf. She glanced at Chameleon. "Is that clear?"

He shrugged. "Sure." He still didn't get it why it had to be so complex and fixed on neatness, but hey, everybody has their quirks. Even if in this case, it was a whole planet of humans...

"Well, sit down on the couch." Mako said, closing the cupboard doors and standing up. Chameleon watched as she went to the strange big box he couldn't figure out yesterday, and took a small flat black object with many buttons. Sitting next to him, she pointed at the box with it and pressed a red button.

The black screen of the box suddenly became blue, and the Saurian of Chameleon blinked once, trying to figure out what was happening. He looked at the box, then at the small flat thing Makoto held, then at Makoto and finally at the box again. It made no sense at all. He opened his mouth to ask something, but then figures appeared on the screen that had previously been blue. Humans could be seen, as well as heard.

"Why do you have a mini world in a box?" he finally asked, glancing sideways at his human guide.

Mako laughed quietly, holding her hand to her mouth. Laughing out loud would be rude, but the question was just so funny in its naiveness...

"It's not a mini-world." She said, grinning from ear to ear. "It's television. TV for short. As for how it works... Ignika told you about computers, didn't he?"

Chameleon scratched his head. "Yeah, I remember something like that... Something about machines having a memory and storing information..." He shook his head. "I didn't understand anything."

"Well, that's too bad, because TV works about the same... All the things you see there," She pointed on the screen. "Were recorded or drawn by humans and encoded into a machine memory. Now they are replayed at a TV station, from which they are transferred to every TV in every apartment."

Chameleon blinked at her, his eyes betraying that he hadn't understood a single word she had said. "Ehm… Explain that again, please?"

"Well..." Mako started. "Imagine you drew a picture. You want to show it to as many people as possible. But what can you do besides coming up to people and asking them to look? Television goes another way. Instead of asking people to look at the picture, it copies it into millions of boxes like this one, and if people want to see it, they turn on the TV. Only there isn't just one picture, but millions of them, and they change constantly bit-by-bit, creating an illusion of movement." She looked at Chameleon. "Is that any clearer?"

"Sooo… If I get this right, this 'tee vee' has the power to show you what others have shown it?" Chameleon tried, looking hesitatingly and unsure at Makoto.

"Exactly." Mako grinned, glad that he understood it. "You learn fast."

"Heheh..." Chameleon scratched his head. Hearing the compliment was nice.

Mako poked him playfully with her elbow. "Now your cheeks are red." Before he could answer, though, Mako glanced at the TV: "Oh, the news are starting! Let's hear what they say about the destruction caused last night." She made the volume louder.

Chameleon wanted to ask what a 'news' was and if it had anything to do with 'new', but when he saw a human on the screen begin to speak and Makoto listen intently, he decided to shut up and wait with his questions. He began watching the speaking human too, wondering what was so important about what he had to say that Makoto needed this box to see it in the first place. It was all so strange, but then again, a lot in this world was. Still, this was the strangest so far. Parts of people in a box because that box has a memory that it can show to people watching it? Mind-boggling.

"... to destruction that happened last night. We are now on live broadcast with our reporter, Keiko Nakamura. Keiko?"

Chameleon raised his eyebrow as the image on the screen suddenly moved somewhere left, and on the right side an image of another woman moved in, stopping right at the middle of the screen. What's even more weird, behind the new female was a mini-site of battle they've fought yesterday. Memory or no memory, he didn't understand how was it possible to manipulate images that way. He wanted to ask Mako about it, too, but the new woman started speaking, and her image covered the old one completely.

"Thank you, Harumi." The camera zoomed out a little, so that the viewer could get a better look at the ruins and the police experts working on them. "The area which suffered most from the unknown disaster was this construction site that was supposed to become a new forty-storey house by the end of 2011." The camera moved to show different places of ruins, and Keiko kept reporting:

"The reasons behind the destruction are still unknown, and theories as to why it happened range from a deep-lying tubing water inrush which caused the ground under the basement to erode, to terrorist attacks and bombings." After showing the gaping holes in the building's walls, the camera returned to Keiko:

"Other, more impossible theories told by some residents of nearby houses include dinosaur-like aliens and Sailor Senshi who fought against them. Not a single theory has been deemed plausible yet, but we're keeping an eye on the situation development. Harumi?"

The screen split again, and Harumi became visible. "Thank you, Keiko. Now for other news..."

Mako has heard enough and pressed the red button on the remote control again, turning off the TV. She then turned to Chameleon: "Well, what do you think?"

"Weird, to say the least," Chameleon replied. He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "But am I right if I think that this is how you humans give each other knowledge of things they weren't present to witness? If so, then it's damn handy, with the mini world and all… But still, Ignika transferring mental knowledge is still better and more effective."

He waved his hand in a discarding manner. "I mean, they got some things totally wrong. Water had nothing to do with the destruction. Can't they see it was all simply corrupted? And what is a 'di no sour' anyway?"

Mako tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Okay, I'll answer all the questions in order... You're right about the first half – the TV's role, I mean. And I know that mental transferring is better, but there's next to no humans that can actually do that to another one, let alone several million... As for the report..." She leaned back. "The information was distorted on purpose."

"What? Why?" Chameleon asked.

"You asked if they couldn't see that everything simply corrupted – they could. Thing is, there's not a single technology or weapon on Earth that can cause corruption so vast and quick. And in order not to cause panic, they will think up a more or less believable legend that will 'explain' the destruction." She sighed. "Because if they tell the truth, that they don't know how it happened, people will start fearing that it will happen again, and that can make things quite chaotic. Moreover, if they don't tell anything, people will believe it's something so serious it needs to be hidden – and that will cause just the same chaos. So they do as they always do – telling half of the truth, which is always better than any lie."

The Saurian of Chameleon blinked twice. "That's pretty messed up, if you ask me. Why spread lies and half truths? The first step to defending yourself is knowing what you're up against, so why does the tee vee deny the humans watching it this right? They won't be able to defend themselves that way."

Mako nodded. "Exactly. But they don't need to. With our way of life, knowing how to survive isn't necessary anymore. You'd be surprised, but most humans don't even know how to fight. Fighting and using weapons is... Well, not really a privilege, but something you need to be specially taught. Usually those who know how to fight and use a different array of weapons are the ones who defend our lands... from other humans... and the rest don't need to worry."

Chameleon frowned, shaking his head. "I don't understand that line of thinking, but I suppose that's just me. It seems foolish, though, but who am I, anyway?"

Mako shrugged and smiled. "You're a Saurian. Even though you look like a nice 15 year old human boy."

Chameleon raised his eyebrow. "Nice?"

Mako didn't realize that the word slipped from her tongue until Chameleon repeated. "Um, ehm... Forget I said that, okay?" She stood up from the couch, then left the room quickly. Her Saurian companion watched her go, confused.

"What was that all about?"

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While Chameleon was wondering about that, his youngest sister was having problems of her own. Nightmare had been up since seven in the morning, brooding over devious plans concerning herself and her host. The conversation of last night was still fresh in her mind, particularly the part where that 'Mars' girl said the Sailor Senshi needed serious training in the weapon-department. The words were like music to Nightmare's ears. Minako might not have a real weapon, but she had that ridiculous 'love me' chain of hers. While it certainly was a disgusting thing with a stupid name, it could still be an effective and dangerous tool in close combat. Minako simply needed some practice in that area, and that's where Nightmare decided she would come in.

Her first desire had been to immediately wake up Minako and start the practice, but the Saurian of Fear wasn't completely heartless and she understood the fight against Jutlin the Corrupt had taken its toll on the Senshi of Love. So, she had let her sleep some more. But it had been two hours since then, and Nightmare was getting restless and impatient. Thus, she stormed out of the living room where she usually slept on the couch, ran upstairs and barged into Minako's room without a care for the noise she was making.

"Get up, love dove, we've got work to do!" Nightmare shouted angrily, annoyed the human girl hadn't even done as much as stir because of all the noise. To the Saurian's great disappointment, it was Artemis who woke up first. The cat's condition had improved marvelously since last night, but seeing as he had been running for his life the entire night until Minako came back, that wasn't so surprising. Nightmare seriously had been in need of something to strangle, and she had decided Artemis would be that something.

Upon seeing the living nightmare stand next to the bed of his owner, Artemis' fur came upright and he hissed at her, jumping back as he did that. He hated to admit it, but he was afraid of the transformed Saurian, at least a little bit. She honored her name a bit too well.

"Minako, wake up! She's come back to kill me!"

Nightmare rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Relax, fur ball, it's your owner who'll suffer my wrath today. Speaking of which…" Having finally lost all patience, Nightmare pulled back the covers and gave Minako a not too soft kick in the backside. "Get up you!"

Finally, Minako stirred a little. "Just a few more minutes mom…" she mumbled in her sleep. Artemis sighed and shook his head in embarrassment. Some things would never change.

"I'm not your mom, and I sure as hell won't give you a minute, whatever that is!" Nightmare snapped back, now literally dragging Minako out of her bed. The Senshi of Love screamed as she hit the hard floor, awake in an instant. She glared at her guest.

"What do you think you're doing?!" the blonde whined. "I was having such a nice dream!"

"Don't give a damn!" Nightmare sneered. "Now get up, we've got work to do."

Minako blinked. "We do?"

The Saurian of Fear resisted the urge to go bang her head against a wall, instead opting to slap her forehead in frustration and disbelief. "Yes, we do," she replied coldly and snidely. "Judging from what I was told, you Senshi need some serious training in Saurian combat, and I'm the one who's gonna teach you. So get up, love dove, for we don't have all day. You need to be ready for our appointment this evening!"

Minako audibly gulped. Training with Nightmare wasn't exactly something she looked forward to, or even something she wished to experience at all. "Do I have to?" she asked, pouting.

"Yes!" Nightmare shouted. "I'm going to teach you how to fight a Saurian, even if I have to ram it in your empty head myself!" She grabbed Minako's wrist and started to drag the Sailor Senshi out of the room. "And we're starting now!"

"Wait!" Minako protested. "At least allow me to change out of my nightgown and have breakfast!"

The transformed Saurian frowned. "Have what now?"

"Breakfast, that's what we call the morning meal," Artemis explained helpfully. The cat had to admit, it was a nice change of pace to see Nightmare work out her frustration on somebody else than him for once.

Nightmare sighed, but dropped Minako's wrist nonetheless. "Fine, go stuff yourself. Won't do to have you faint from hunger while I'm pounding experience into you, I guess. But hurry it up, love dove!"

Minako climbed to her feet and fled to the bathroom as fast as her legs could carry you. Artemis glanced at the annoyed Saurian of Fear. "I think you scared her," he noted dryly, cautiously taking a few steps closer towards the disguised girl. Nightmare delighted in hearing that, and grinned.

"Thanks for the compliment, cat."

Artemis fell silent for a moment. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully with his paw while studying the Saurian of Fear, more specifically the expression in her eyes and on her face. There was a gleam there, one of delight. No doubt delight in the fear she was invoking in Minako – and Artemis – but it wasn't the only delight. For a very short moment, Artemis thought he saw an expression of relief on the transformed girl's face. Relief for what, however, he could not say. And maybe it was just a figment of his imagination. The cat did wonder, though, why Nightmare was so bend on training Minako, after the two of them had clashed so forcefully the past day and night.

Unaware of her feline companion's pondering, Nightmare was pacing around and waiting for Minako to reemerge from the bathroom so they could get a bite to eat and then start fighting. She had a lot of reasons to 'train' Minako. First of all, it was a matter of payback. The Senshi of Love had been driving her nuts since day one, now it was her turn. Secondly, it was because she saw the truth in Rei and Ignika's words from the night before. The Senshi were strong, but definitely needed help while dealing with this enemy, particularly in close-combat. Teaching them how to defend themselves better in close-combat really wouldn't hurt, either.

Her third reason was one that she could barely accept herself: she _cared_ about Minako, somewhat. Very faintly. Just a tiny bit. But regardless of everything Nightmare was, she was not an ungrateful Saurian. Despite driving her crazy and insane, Minako had still sheltered her and fed her. Giving her some experience that could save her life in return seemed like a fair trade to Nightmare. She had seen the wounds that Haruka and Hotaru had suffered. She didn't want Minako to get those herself. It might change her personality, or decrease her cheerfulness. And that wouldn't do. As much as she hated to admit it, Nightmare knew that Minako being anything else than she was now would be even worse than her current self, because it would feel unnatural.

The disguised Saurian of Fear let out a very deep sigh and buried her forehead in her left hand. She was becoming way too soft, it seemed, and she despised it. Yet there was nothing she could do about it, she had softened and that was that. Trying to toughen again would only make her look like a fool. But she'd be damned if she let herself soften any further! No, pounding some sense into Sailor Venus would definitely allow her to feel normal again, as well as get rid of all the pent up frustration. If only Minako would hurry up…

But said blonde girl was feeling no obligation to do so at all. In fact, she was doing the very opposite: try to stay in the bathroom as long as possible. The Senshi of Love hadn't liked the tone in Nightmare's voice or the look on said girl's face at all. Minako new that she was in for one hell of a 'training' the moment she'd set a foot outside after breakfast. She was not looking forward to that. Then again, maybe after they had done something Nightmare liked, they could do something she liked?

A big sunny smile appeared on Minako's face as that thought crossed her mind. It seemed perfectly fair to the Senshi. She'd do whatever Nightmare had in mind, but afterwards, they'd go on one big shopping spree!

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**Next chapter: Saurian teachings!**

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**Review replies:**

Chaser Warring on Everything: Well, if you ever do know what this story lacks exactly, please do tell, I'm willing to listen. Glad you still like the story, though.

SoulLoss: Predictable how, exactly? I can kind of understand where you're coming from, but I'd appreciate it if you could elaborate it a bit more. And perhaps future chapters and developments might still prove to be more of a twist than the previous chapters suggested. I'm glad that you'll remain here to read and review, though. I really appreciate hearing what others think of this story.


	26. Saurian teachings

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**26. Saurian teachings**

"Okay, love dove, the idea is simple: I try to kill you, you try to survive. Can your air-filled head understand that?" Nightmare said with a sneer an hour after she had dragged Minako from her bed. The Senshi of Love had taken as much time as possible while in the bathroom and during breakfast, trying to stall as long as she could. But finally Nightmare had lost what little patience she had left and had literally chased her human guide outside. Now they stood in Minako's small garden, facing each other. Artemis was watching from a tree.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Minako quickly stammered, eyes wide with panic. "What do you mean try to kill me?!"

The Saurian of Fear merely raised one eyebrow. "Exactly what I'm saying. Don't tell me you thought the Saurians you've fought so far weren't trying to kill you!" Nightmare let out an exasperated sigh and shook her head in disbelief. "If I'm going to knock some experience into you, the best way is to simply fight like we would in a real battle. Got that?"

"But we're only practicing!" Minako whined.

Nightmare ignored her and unsheathed her Terror Katana with one swift movement. The naked blade of her weapon glowed red with the power of Fear. An amused grin appeared on the Saurian's face, and she got an almost feral look in her eyes.

"Don't think for even a moment that I will hold back, love dove. I'll fight you like any Saurian would, which means I'm going in for the kill!"

That being said, the transformed girl let out a chilling hiss and stormed towards the panicking blonde, who turned around and started running as soon as reality sank in. Screaming, Minako fled behind the tree Artemis was sitting in.

"Artemis, she's serious!" the Senshi of Love cried out in disbelief, just as blasts of Fear sailed past her. Yelping, Minako pressed herself closer to the tree.

"I know she is!" the cat replied.

"Well, what should I do?!"

"Fight back, of course!" Artemis sighed, not believing that his owner hadn't thought of that herself. "If she's going to be serious, you have to be, too! So henshin!"

"Right!" Minako agreed, her facial expression turning serious. Clenching her fist in determination, she raised her other hand and shouted: "Venus crystal power, make up!"

There was a flash of golden light, and then Sailor Venus stood where Minako Aino had been just a few seconds before. Steeling herself, the Senshi of Love came from behind the tree, and out of hiding.

"Now we're getting somewhere!" Nightmare said with a smirk. "Seems you've learned lesson one: never be a coward! Now let's see if you can fight!"

The disguised Saurian charged at her human guide again, but this time Venus was ready, or so she believed. Calling upon her power, she threw her love-me chain at her guest, in an effort to trap her and stop this nonsense before anybody could get hurt. Nightmare, however, was not a foe that could be defeated so easily, proven when she knocked the golden chain out of the way with a simple swipe of her Terror Katana. The red glow of the weapon increased as its wielder called upon her own power, and unleashed a blast of pure fear at Sailor Venus. The transformed Minako dodged the blast easily enough, and retaliated with her Love and Beauty Shock. Her jaw dropped, however, when Nightmare countered and dispelled the attack with her power of fear.

"Love and light can easily be dispelled and undone by fear, love dove," Nightmare explained upon seeing Venus' dropped jaw. "Don't think your attacks are invincible and indestructible, or you'll be in for a nasty surprise like now. Any attack can be countered or dispelled, most of all by its polar opposite."

Hearing this, Sailor Venus thought back to last night, and how Jutlin the Corrupt had been able to prevent any attacks from hitting him by using his own power to corrupt everything thrown at him. She realized that she shouldn't have thought that only an Immoral One would be capable of this because of their immoral powers. For as she just witnessed, a normal Saurian like Nightmare was more than capable of doing the same thing.

"I see a light has dawned," Nightmare noted rather sarcastically. "Perhaps your head isn't as empty as I thought. Just now you realized that you underestimated me, no?" When Minako grudgingly and slightly embarrassed nodded, the Saurian of Fear smiled approvingly. "Lesson two: never underestimate your opponent, learned then, I hope?" Almost as an afterthought, Nightmare added: "I say it is always better to overestimate your opponent than underestimate him, because overestimating will keep you on your toes. Underestimating will make you as reckless as that dimwit Chameleon who calls himself my brother. Ideally, of course, you neither over or underestimate a foe, but judge his power and level of threat correctly."

"And you always do this?" Venus asked with a frown. She could even begin to imagine Nightmare doing something as logical as analyzing her foe in the heat of battle. Certainly not with that temper of her.

"Of course I don't," the transformed girl said with a careless shrug. "Gravitas does it for us."

Minako almost fell over and she stared incredulously at her 'teacher'. "Then why are you telling me this?! When we fight, we rely on Ami to analyze things for us!"

"That may be," Nightmare replied calmly. "But what if Ami isn't there? You needed to know what I just taught you regardless, for when you're on your own."

"And when you are on your own, do you listen to your own advice?" the Senshi of Love inquired, sounding suspicious. Her suspicions were proven when the Saurian of Fear shook her head, grinning madly as she did so.

"Nope, but why should I? I'm not weak like you Sailor Senshi. I can defend myself, both in ranged and close combat. But can you?!"

As she shouted those words, Nightmare once again charged at Sailor Venus. Catching the human blonde off guard, she managed to get close enough to use melee attacks before Venus had the chance to react or dodge. Minako's fears of getting sliced to pieces were unnecessary, however, as Nightmare showed the goodness in her heart by merely striking Venus with the flat of her blade, giving the Senshi of Love only a big bruise. As Minako fell to the ground, Nightmare retreated a few steps and sighed.

"See what I mean? That was absolutely pathetic. You allowed yourself to be caught off guard, and so I could close in and strike. Had this been a real battle, you would have been gutted, love dove. And you would have deserved to be, too."

Minako just kept staring and thought: "She's goddamn right..." It always happened so that all the enemies they'd faced before the Saurians, except for some of the mindless youma, used ranged combat and magic. It was never necessary to engage in close combat... But now the need has arrived. "Alright. Stop fooling around and remember your days as Sailor V. Alone back then, alone now. Focus."

She stood up and held her Love Me Chain firmly.

"Bring it on."

A terrifying smirk crept on Nightmare's face. "As you wish…"

The disguised user of fear unleashed a wide blast of her power, but Venus countered it with her Love and Beauty Shock. If her attacks could be dispelled, then so could Nightmare's. And she was right, as the blast of fear vanished when it clashed with her own power. Still, the Senshi of Love knew now that she didn't have time to gloat over that discovery, her opponent wasn't deterred at all and continued the fight as if nothing had happened. Gloating now would only create an opening for Nightmare to strike. She threw her Love Me Chain at the younger girl, only to find it parried by the Terror Katana.

Unbeknownst to Venus, Nightmare was pleased, if only a little. It seemed to her that the Senshi of Love had learned her lesson and was now, somehow, determined to fight and win. Of course, Nightmare had no intention whatsoever to allow that. No, determination wasn't everything, she knew that. No matter how sure of herself Venus was now, Nightmare still had more experience, and thus, the upper hand. She had far more tricks up her sleeve than her opponent suspected, while Nightmare was sure she had seen almost the entire arsenal of attacks Venus possessed. That was another weakness the Senshi had, at least in her eyes: a too limited array of attacks. In battle, you had to be capable of changing strategy and attacks in an instant. It could mean life or death.

Again, Nightmare charged, only to get another Love and Beauty Shock fired at her. Smirking, she raised her katana before her and let it brim with fear. With the weapon that glowed red now, she charged straight through the blast as if it wasn't there at all. Venus was surprised, but only a little, and immediately fired another attack. A wise decision, Nightmare decided, and she was pleased that her opponent was less easily stunned now. But she was still too slow! Knocking the attack aside once again with her powers, the Saurian of Fear closed in on Venus. She readied her Terror Katana for a strike through flesh. Sailor Venus raised her Love Me Chain to catch the blow with, but that was exactly what Nightmare had predicted she would do. With a simple leap, she jumped over Venus, blasted her with fear while in midair, and then landed again on her two feet behind the Senshi of Love. A swift move, and the Terror Katana was pressed against Minako's throat.

"I win," Nightmare declared with satisfaction and delight.

Minako gulped. "Good thing she's not really my enemy..." Although she did fare better than last time. But in real battle this wouldn't do...

She just had to figure out something... Nightmare had those power beams...

"Hmm... What if...? Yes. Yes, it might do the trick. The chain is just condensed magic energy. If I control and manipulate that energy, I can change my chain into anything!" She has never tried that before, but nothing she knew how to do so far was enough.

"Um, Nightmare? You can remove the katana from my throat now, I get the point." Minako said. The Saurian grinned and did so.

Minako rubbed her throat. "Okay, I have an idea how to improve my combat, but I need to train alone for a while. I've never tried such things before."

Nightmare shrugged, and almost reluctantly removed her katana from Minako's throat. Quietly she sheathed it, then looked at her defeated opponent thoughtfully. She wasn't really sure what Minako had in mind, but if she thought she could improve, well, it might be best to let her continue to think like that. She turned around and started walking back to the house.

"Suit yourself. I'll be inside if you need me to kick your sorry behind again, love dove," the Saurian of Fear said with a sneer. Then, on a slightly softer tone, she added: "And that wasn't as big a disaster as I thought it would be. Not many ever succeeded in dispelling my fear, love dove."

With that said, she vanished into the house, leaving Minako by herself.

Minako, just to be sure, turned the other way round and studied her chain. "After all... Chain can be used not only as a whip... Let's see if I can make a kusarigama out of this." She smiled and focused. "And once I make the blade, it'd be easier to make energy waves..."

* * *

"Change your stance! You're not holding that to use it as a magic wand! It's a weapon, meant to strike and parry, so remember to hold it like that. And to hold it like a weapon comfortably, you need a stance that is ready for physical combat," the voice of Traveller instructed, sternly but gently. Her pupil, Sailor Saturn, was having it less difficult and far less extreme than a certain Senshi of Love. Traveller was a patient teacher, apparently, and Ignika was there to lend advice as well. The other three Outer Senshi watched as their daughter was being taught how to use her Silence Glaive as a weapon for close combat, instead of just a tool to channel her power through.

"Place your feet a bit further from each other, Hotaru," Ignika added from where he was standing, leaning on his Death Scythe. "That'll allow you stand more firmly on your feet. You can catch a physical blow much better that way, and you're less likely to fall or get unbalanced."

Sailor Saturn did as she was instructed, but it was at all not easy. The stances and the ways of holding her Silence Glaive were so different than what she was used to. She found herself constantly falling back into her old habits and ways, yet to her relief neither of her teachers had lost their patience yet. Once she had gotten in a correct stance, Traveller nodded approvingly.

"Good, your stance is correct. I think it is best if I teach you how to parry first, as defense against physical attacks is what you Senshi could use most for the moment…" the Saurian of Teleportation muttered, more to herself than to Hotaru. "Now remember, Hotaru, your glaive is a weapon for close combat, however, because it is a polearm, it still allows you to keep a greater distance between yourself and your foe than say, a sword does. This is a great advantage, however, the downside is that a polearm almost always demands two-handed usage, which limits mobility and speed. You have to keep this in mind, is that understood?"

The Soldier of Death and Rebirth nervously nodded once, but said nothing. She wished they didn't have so many spectators, it wouldn't embarrass her so should she do something stupid.

"Well then, let's move on," Traveller continued. With a simple motion of her hand, she summoned her dual headed trident to it. "The main difference between my trident and your glaive are the attack methods. A trident jabs, a glaive strikes, at least in the Saurian way. It is important to know this, as a different methods requires a different way of parrying. It is far more difficult to stop a stabbing weapon with a parry meant for one that slices. As we have two kinds of weapons here, my trident and Ignika's scythe, I'll teach you how to defend yourself against these two first."

She mentioned Ignika to come over, which the Child of Life eagerly did. He knew what Traveller wanted to do, and didn't mind helping out. The oldest of the Saurian family addressed Sailor Saturn again: "Now, though different, Ignika's scythe and your glaive are both weapons that slice. The way to parry a stab from mine is thus the same. Observe well, Hotaru."

Traveller attacked her little brother with a jab from her trident, as she had said she would. Ignika expertly blocked his sister's weapon with a strike of his own. The blade of his scythe caught the head of the trident coming at him, and knocked it out of the way, pinning it down to the ground. Ignika then used the opportunity to deliver a gentle kick in his sister's stomach. As this was merely a demonstration, Traveller wasn't hurt at all. She merely smiled gratefully at her brother, and reclaimed her weapon.

"A weapon that stabs has force coming from behind it, force that drives it forward," Traveller explained to the attentive group of Outer Senshi. "Because of this, a blow from a weapon that slices can easily knock the stabbing weapon off course. The most effective way to parry a weapon like my trident is, like Ignika demonstrated, to catch it with your own blade while striking it downwards. Always make sure to strike downwards! That way, you have gravity on your side, making it easier."

Hotaru nodded again, making sure all she was being taught stuck in her head. She remembered all too well the feeling of Jutlin the Corrupt his blades ripping through her chest, and the pain of the corrupted wounds that followed. She had no desire to ever feel that again, and vowed to herself to become good enough at using her glaive to prevent such disasters in the future.

The following hour Traveller and Ignika instructed the Soldier of Ruin patiently and expertly how to defend herself against their attacks. They explained and taught her the defensive moves one by one, had her practice them on her own first, then later had her use them against her tutors' weapons. Lastly, Traveller switched to a slightly higher gear and challenged Hotaru to a small fight. Of course the Saurian of Teleportation held back during it, but even so Sailor Saturn found herself disarmed rather quickly, to her great disappointment.

"Don't be angry with yourself," Traveller told the young Senshi as she retrieved the Silence Glaive from the ground and handed it back to its owner. "You really can't expect to be able to beat me after just an hour of practice, while I've been practicing and fighting for thousand years."

She smiled and gently squeezed Saturn's shoulder. "You weren't disarmed as soon as the first strike, that's a great improvement already, if what Gravitas told me is true. So if we keep this up and train an hour every day, you'll be able to keep the likes of Jutlin off your body within a month already, I assure you."

"My sister's right," Ignika added with a bright smile. "Sure, you won't be an expert yet, but you'll know enough to stay alive in close combat long enough for close combat help – that's us – to arrive. So don't feel bad too much, Hotaru."

The purple-eyed Senshi returned the youngest Saurian's smile. "Thank you, Ignika. And you Traveller."

"You're quite welcome," Ignika's oldest sister replied. "It's the least I can do after all you did for my little brother. But let's take a break now, shall we?"

"Alright." Hotaru smiled. She undid her transformation and went over to her parents.

Haruka put her hands on her child's shoulders and smiled. "You did well, hime."

"Thanks." The dark-haired girl looked at her parents, relieved that they found her performance good.

"So, what shall we do now?" Ignika asked.

Michiru came over to them. "Me and Haruka have been thinking... And we decided it's time for your sister to learn to do something, too." She glanced playfully at the older Saurian. "Let's go inside, there's music waiting to be played."

Despite having lived a thousand years, Traveller felt her heart skip a beat. She eagerly followed Michiru to the house, followed by Haruka and Ignika.

* * *

**Next chapter: Human arts!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: I see, thanks for explaining. It has to be said, though, that coming up with chapter titles can be the hardest part about writing a chapter, and sometimes by the time I have to update I still don't have a title, and then I have no choice but to go for an obvious if predictable title. My apologies.


	27. Human arts

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**27.**** Human arts**

The company arrived at the living room. Traveller could barely hold her excitement, but at the same time caution and concern – what if she isn't suited for making music after all? Meanwhile, Michiru explained:

"We decided to teach you to play the piano, after all. It's easier to learn to play it than to play a violin, and while it can't be carried around, it has another advantage."

"Oh? And what is it?" Traveller asked.

"It leaves you free to sing." Haruka smiled.

Traveller froze and looked at them in disbelief. "Sing? Saurians don't sing."

Ignika nodded. "We simply can't because of how our voices are..."

Haruka simply chuckled. "But you both have human voices now. And judging from what I know, they might be quite good. You won't know unless you try." She motioned Traveller to sit on the special bench next to the piano, just enough for two people to sit together comfortably.

Traveller sat down and eyed the instrument cautiously. So many black and white rectangular keys... She did notice there was a pattern in how they were placed, though. Haruka, meanwhile, took a book with notes and a blank music book, as well as a pencil. Putting those on the piano note holder, she sat down and said:

"First of all, I'm going to play for you myself, so you can see what we will eventually come to. Michiru, alas, haven't been able to give a good example." She glared playfully at her love. "Watch closely."

Haruka opened the book at a page close to the end of it, and started playing "Für Elise".

To say Traveller was stunned would be an understatement. The music was so beautiful... She found herself touched by the melody again. It started off with a fast pattern, later slowed down and played quieter and somehow sadder... The sad pattern was played twice, and then suddenly changed to a fast lively one, which in return turned into a small passage of pure, sheer happiness and fun, like in childhood... But it was over way too soon, replaced by the same sad pattern as before, sounding even sadder now. Then, the sounds of sadness were replaced by loud, fast, angry notes of danger, and confusion, which changed back in the all-too familiar sad pattern through an array of fast-flowing, changing notes. The music didn't change anymore, and Traveller admired it until the music ended with a quiet, soft sound...

Silence was long. Her only word was: "Beautiful."

Haruka smiled: "Thank you. Michiru was right, you're an acute listener. But for now let's start with the basics."

"Now, human music consists of notes. Each key on the piano corresponds with a different note. There are high notes..." She played a few. "And low notes..." She played a few. "Every note from left to right is a bit higher than the one before it." Traveller nodded. So far it was quite easy. "Now, to make things easier, all the notes are divided by sets of seven, called octaves."

Ignika perked in: "Um, pardon me for interrupting... Doesn't 'octa' mean 'eight'?"

Haruka chuckled. "It does. The eighth note is the beginning of a new octave. Now, the octave we will be using for now is called the first octave, and located here." She played it. "Each octave consists of seven notes, plus the first note of the next octave." She sang the notes as she played each of them: "Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, Ti, Do."

Traveller nodded. "I see. Seems logical... Why give notes names, though?"

Haruka shrugged. "Because it's easier to tell them apart this way when recording the music or pointing people at their mistakes. Because sometimes when you sing, you can get a note wrong, making a false note, and it's easy for a person to say which." She smiled. "Now, let's test your hearing and voice..."

"They are perfectly fine, thank you." Traveller frowned.

Haruka chuckled. "You misunderstand. Besides normal voice and hearing, there's also such thing as musical hearing and voice. They determine how good a musician you can be, because if you can't hear the difference between a pure note and a false note, you won't get far." Seeing Traveller's frown, Haruka smiled. "Don't worry. The test is rather simple. All you have to do is to listen closely and reproduce the note I'll play with your voice. Understood?"

Traveller, still frowning, nodded. She wasn't sure it would work at all.

"Let's get started then. Like this: Do-o-o..."

"Do-o-o..." Traveller sang. To her surprise, the sound that came out of her throat was quite pleasant.

"A bit louder, please." Haruka pressed the key again.

"Do-o-o..." Traveller looked at her teacher, uncertain.

Haruka nodded approvingly. "Good. You hit it right away. Meaning you got it right. Let's move on."

A few minutes later, they were through the octave and sang it twice back and forth.

Haruka looked at Michiru, then back at Traveller. "I'm impressed. You have an excellent hearing and a voice. I'll do my best to teach you to use them properly."

Traveller made a small bow, grateful for the words. "I thank you, you have no idea how much this means to me." Then she turned to her little brother and winked. "Maybe you're right, little brother. Maybe I can do this."

"Never doubted it for even a moment," the white-haired boy replied with an eager smile. A bit uncertainly, he addressed Haruka next: "And thank you for wanting to teach my sister, Haruka. I appreciate it." The Child of Life wasn't sure if Haruka had completely forgiven him yet for turning her into a man, and he didn't want his sister's dream squashed because of a mistake he made.

"You're always welcome." Haruka smiled. "Wouldn't want you getting angry and turning me into something again, no?" She winked at Ignika, and everybody laughed.

* * *

Chameleon and Makoto were walking down the busy streets of Tokyo, the first hesitatingly and a bit nervously following the latter. Yes, he could walk on his own well enough now, but he still didn't feel at ease on these busy 'streets' with all those people and noisy 'cars'. The air was bad enough to make him want to puke, and in general he just didn't feel safe. That's why he stuck closely to Makoto, but not too closely, as Makoto had requested. When he had asked her why not, she said something weird. Something about not wanting to make people think they were a couple. Chameleon had no idea where the people on the street would get that idea from. Sure, he liked Makoto, and her cooking, and as far as humans went she certainly looked beautiful. And she was strong, which also pleased him. But him and her mates? He didn't understand how anybody could think that.

There were other things he didn't understand, such as where they were going. Makoto called it a 'dojo', a place where people went to fight. The idea that there were places specifically made for fighting was strange to the immortal Saurian. All one needed for practice was, in his opinion, space. Sure, there was no space on these streets, but that park for example had enough place. And the top of those tall buildings certainly had, too. Makoto had told him you could get on them by taking the 'lift' or stairs, whatever one preferred. So why walk all the way to this 'dojo' when there was a perfectly fine roof nearby?

He didn't know, and he was wondering if he should ask, but he didn't want to come across like a real idiot, especially not in this crowded street. No, he would probably ask her when they were alone again. He just hoped that it would be soon, for the masses were getting on him. Chameleon liked company, sure, but there was company of your family and far too much company from way too big crowds. Like here in the human world. How did Makoto and the others cope with it? Just as well, Makoto soon put him out of his misery.

"We're here."

Chameleon looked at the building they came to. It was a one-storey, square wooden building, sort of reminding him of Hikawa Shrine. He didn't get to think much, though, as Makoto led him inside.

The entrance was not unlike that to Minako's house, albeit with special little lockers to keep your footwear in. Mako took her shoes off and placed then inside one, motioning Chameleon to do the same. After that she was just about to go to the locker room to change into her training uniform, when the changing room door opened and out came two girls.

"Mako-chan!" The two girls said in unison.

Makoto smiled: "Ah! Moriko, Mariko, long time no see!" She greeted her two friends. Chameleon, however was looking at the two almost wide-eyed. Those two looked almost exactly the same, except for the fact that one had her sandy-blonde hair in a braid, and another in a bun.

The twins asked Makoto about how she has been and why has she stopped coming to the dojo recently, and only then noticed Chameleon.

"And who's that guy?" Moriko asked.

"Huh? Um... Well..." Mako gasped inwardly as she realized that she hasn't thought of a backup story or a name for him. The answers came quick, though: "That's Masahiro. Masahiro Genkai. He's my friend."

Mariko looked at Mako with a glitter in her eye: "Friend? Don't you mean 'boyfriend'?"

Mako freaked out a bit at that proposition. "Wha? No, no way! What gave you that idea?"

"Nothing really. Just hope that you finally got over your old sempai." Mariko smiled.

"Heh... Anyway, Masahiro, meet Moriko and Mariko Nomura. They are friends from my old school." She smiled.

Chameleon, glad to finally be noticed, bowed to the girls, like he had seen Mako do on several occasions during the walk and said: "Nice to meet you."

"Well, I'll go change into my uniform. Masahiro is here to watch only, so head inside." With those words, she disappeared in the changing room.

Chameleon followed the two girls through the door that led to the training area. He looked around, and saw that the training room took most of the building. The floor was covered with soft white matting with a big blue square in the middle, and the walls were wooden. He nodded to himself. Not that bad of a training place, although the soft floor was kind of strange. There weren't much people in the dojo besides Chameleon and the twins – just a group of teenagers who were about to leave, and several adults.

"Normally there's more people at the dojo at once, especially when our usual gang comes along, but today it's quiet..." Moriko shrugged. "In a way, it's even nicer. Anyway, since you don't fight, go sit there by the wall."

"If you're sure it's alright…" Chameleon muttered, after which he did as told. He quietly sat down and leaned against the nice wooden wall, letting his gaze go through the dojo. It was quite interesting, he had to admit. The ground was covered with these soft things, which would make it less painful should somebody fall to the ground during a fight. He didn't really approve of that. Sure, it might prevent wounds, but getting hurt was one of the risks of a battle. If this was a place to practice fighting, then it should try to be as much as a real battleground as possible, including the risks rough terrain brought with it. For example, he would find it much better if the floor was made of wood like the wall was. What good was practicing fighting if you couldn't get hurt? What would keep you on your toes then?

In the end, he decided it was just a silly human precaution thing. After all, Makoto had told him most humans didn't fight, and they got false information through the tee vee to avoid having to fight, too. It wasn't so surprising then that when they practiced, they weren't acting as if it was a real battle.

The Saurian of Chameleon turned his attention to the few other occupants of the dojo. From this distance, he couldn't really observe their fighting style very well, but what he did see was that they were all fighting unarmed. He frowned at that. Fighting barehanded wasn't really his style, and he didn't think high of it either. Fighting barehanded gave you no way to channel your power through an outside tool, which made using powers harder. Also, while it could be a powerful way of fighting if one looked purely at the close combat aspect of it, it held many disadvantages when compared to armed combat. Fighting barehanded prevented you from parrying attacks of almost all weapons, and unlike a weapon, you couldn't use your hands for throwing in a last desperate attempt to keep your foe away.

However, while he didn't think much of barehanded as a fighting style in real combat, he did acknowledge that it could serve as great training. Barehanded practice allowed one to increase his physical strength, as well as his reflexes. And well, he supposed the techniques could come in handy once in a while if one found himself disarmed. Still, he thought it best then to try and reclaim the weapon instead of fighting barehanded and disadvantaged.

Just then, Makoto entered the room and pulled him from his thoughts.

Mako was now dressed the same as Moriko and Mariko – a uniform consisting of plain white drawstring pants and a white quilted cotton jacket fastened by a brown belt. To Chameleon, the jacket looked quite thick and sturdy.

"Well, girls, how about we start?" Mako said, coming over to them.

Moriko raised her eyebrow. "What, you aren't even going to do the warm-up?"

Mako shrugged. "No, I'm fine. Today I just want to have some sparring." She didn't want to show Chameleon that humans need to do exercises before practicing martial arts, it's confusing enough for a seasoned fighter.

"Suit yourself then." Moriko nodded. "I'll go first."

"Okay, sis, I'll go sit with the new guy then." Mariko said. After the twin with the bun left, Mako and Moriko bowed to each other, Moriko shouted: "Hajime!" and their fight started.

Moriko charged at Mako with an attempt to make a punch, but Mako blocked it; taking her friend's hand and grabbing hold of the belt, she threw Moriko over her hip, but the latter quickly released her hand from the grasp and got to her feet while sweeping Mako off her feet by simply grabbing them by the ankles and pulling up. As Moriko went for making a joint lock on her right leg, though, Makoto managed to slip out of her friend's grasp and pulled her down on the floor as well. Before the other was able to react, Makoto was on top of her, holding her down and making an armlock. Soon enough, Moriko tapped her hand on Mako's shoulder, giving up. The girls got up and bowed to each other again.

Chameleon had observed the fight with interest. He was pleased to see that Makoto had apparently won, even though he didn't understand the rules of this form of fighting. Judging from what he had seen, Makoto was quite strong, physically at least, as well. He made a mental note to never upset her, for he now knew he'd regret it, armed or not. He found the general style of this unarmed combat interesting as well. It was very different from what he was used to, and seemed to follow a strict pattern of predetermined moves. There was no evading or anything, just head to head fighting, a contest of pure strength. He liked that, and liked it even more that Makoto was good at it, but the Saurian of Chameleon knew that against an Immoral One, all these moves and fighting style would be useless. No Saurian opponent would allow his foe to come this close. But still, as he realized before, it was a good way to train one's strength and reflexes. That counted for something, at least.

While Makoto and Moriko continued fighting and Chameleon intently watching it, Mariko was watching Chameleon. When she came along, the boy didn't greet her or anything, or start a talk. That was impolite and a bit unnerving, but Mariko decided not to mind it. Now the younger boy was watching the fight like he'd never seen judo before. That was plain weird. After all, there are a lot of movies and games – even though those mostly involve karate. But this Masahiro guy didn't seem to know anything about the style. And yet there was something in the way he watched the fight, something unsettling... "Weird guy." Mariko concluded.

After another hour of practice, Makoto decided it was enough for today. She didn't want to bore Chameleon by having him sitting there observing all the time. So, she showered, put on her regular clothes again, said goodbye to the twins and then left for her apartment together with her guest, who had been mostly quiet during it all.

As they walked down the streets, the Senshi of Lightning turned to her companion: "So, what do you think?"

"Well, it wasn't exactly what I was expecting, to be fully honest," the disguised boy said with a smile. "Very different style of fighting unarmed than what I'm used to. I can see you're proficient in it, and that it helps you build up your strength, but…" He proceeded then to give her a full report of his thoughts about all he had observed. He told her what he did and did not like, what he thought could be useful in a real fight and what was an absolute waste of time. During it all, he did his very best to remain as polite as possible, and tried hard not to insult his host. Makoto, on her part, didn't say anything and just listened at first.

"Well, that's about it," Chameleon finally finished, sounding uncertain. He glanced nervously at the girl beside him. "Hope you're not offended."

Mako smiled: "No, of course not. Nowadays martial arts are mostly regarded as a sport, something people just enjoy doing in their free time, but in the past when those were just invented, they were used as means of fighting when disarmed." She thought for a while, then shook her head. "Anyway, enough about fighting. Let's hurry home and make something tasty for dinner."

Chameleon eagerly nodded, wondering what's in store for him to taste today. Mako smiled at his anticipation and said:

"I'm thinking of meatloaf."

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**Next chapter: Speaking of talents...**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Most of the time I manage to find a title, and if I don't, my co-writer does, so I'm good for now. Thanks for the offer, though! As for your request, I agree it would be interesting, but I dunno if I can ever make it happen in the planned story. I'll need to look for a possible opportunity. Thanks for the review!


	28. Speaking of talents

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**28. Speaking of talents…**

That evening all of the Sailor Scouts and the family of Saurians had gathered in the park, ready to meet the vile creature who had introduced himself as Crast, and listen to whatever he wanted to talk to them about. Those who had already seen the monster were mentally preparing themselves for the second encounter. If barely a few minutes had already made them want to go mad, how could they possibly hold on to their sanity for an entire conversation? Those that had not seen the creature yet were wondering just how horrid he truly would be.

To pass time until Crast arrived, which could be a matter of minutes or hours as the being had not said a specific hour, the Saurian family sat together to talk about the past few days. It was the first time they were all together again since Ignika's family's arrival in this dimension, and the Child of Life was curious how Chameleon, Gravitas and Nightmare their time had been with their Senshi hosts.

"Well, it has to be said, humans are weird," Chameleon said quietly, not wanting the Senshi to hear him. "Makoto's home is full of things which I can't even begin to understand, and most of it doesn't even feel natural."

"I agree," Nightmare added with disdain in her voice. She looked positively disgusted as she remembered her time in Minako's sunny little house. Agreed, not all of it had been bad. The ramen had been delicious, and 'training' Minako had been very satisfying. But that didn't take away that all the rest in the house, such as fireless lights, a weird box with people in it, and many other things, were all weird, unnatural and strange. "Though there were natural things in Love Dove's house, too. Such as flowers…" The Saurian of Fear her face twisted into an expression of distaste as she though of all the flowers Minako had.

Ignika chuckled. "Yeah, you never liked those. But it's still better than nothing natural at all, no?" He then looked at Gravitas. "And how's your living quarters? Does Ami have anything weird?"

The emotionless Saurian thought for a while. "Well, Ami's place isn't much different from what you already told. All the things you found weird were present, and I had found them strange, too. However..." Gravitas paused, closing her eyes. "There was something special there." A smile appeared on her face. "Books."

Chameleon frowned, not recognizing the word. "What are books?"

"Books?" Ignika repeated, sitting up a bit. "The Great Beings had those, but I was allowed to read only a few. I should have known Ami would have some… Did she teach you how to read, Gravitas?"

"Oh yes, she did." Gravitas smiled even wider, her eyes getting a somewhat dreamy look, which caused her family to stare at her, since it was rare for the Saurian of Gravity to show so much emotions. "I can't really judge it, but I can say that reading was a... fascinating experience. So many new words, so many discoveries..." She looked at Ignika. "Though I couldn't understand most of what I have read. Ami promised to study with me and explain them, though. She says I'm talented."

"Speaking of talents." Traveller smiled with a happy sparkle in her eye. "I too, have learned something unimaginable."

"Oh? And what would that be?" Nightmare asked, raising her eyebrow. So far, it seemed to her that everybody was faring better with their humans than her. She mentally cursed the Great Beings sense of humor.

Instead of an answer, Traveller stood straight, closed her eyes, took a deep breath... And sang, in a loud, clear, beautiful voice:

_Deta deta tsuki ga  
_(Rising, rising is the moon)_  
__Marui marui manmarui  
_(Large and round, large and round, round round one)___  
__Bon no you na tsuki ga  
_(Plate-like full moon will rise soon.)

_Kakureta kumo ni,  
_(Hiding, hiding is the moon)_  
__Kuroi kuroi makkuroi,  
_(Behind the clouds, dark clouds, black black clouds)___  
__Sumi no you na kumo ni.  
_(Plate-like full moon will hide soon)

_Mata deta tsuki ga,  
_(Appearing, reappearing is the moon)_  
__Marui marui manmarui  
_(Large and round, large and round, round round one)___  
__Bon no you na tsuki ga  
_(Plate-like full moon will rise soon.)

For a moment all was quiet after Traveller had finished her song, the rest of her family, save Ignika, staring at her with wide eyes. Even Gravitas looked stunned and surprised. Traveller saw her family's reaction, and for a short while she was afraid they had not enjoyed her song, that they would laugh at her. But she banished those thoughts quickly, they were her brothers and sisters after all!

Finally, Chameleon said, his voice filled with awe: "A Saurian who can sing well, now I've seen it all…"

"You know I hate agreeing with useless here, but he's right…" Nightmare whispered slowly. "Every Saurian should envy you, sis..."

Traveller smiled shyly. "Thank you... I was surprised myself I could learn to do it. But music is important to me, as well as to Haruka and Michiru, so they shared their knowledge with me. This simple song is just the beginning." Traveller sighed. "Even though I'll have to say goodbye to it once we're back on Voya. But until then, I have to learn as much as I can."

Everybody nodded. Then Gravitas, who hadn't said a word after Traveller finished her song, asked:

"Have you been given a human name yet?"

Traveller, taken a bit aback by the sudden change of topic, shook her head. "No. I guess my hosts didn't have the need to give it to me yet. Why?"

Gravitas closed her eyes for a few seconds, then looked at her sister. "Among the books I read yesterday there was one that listed common human names and their meanings. And I think, my sister... You should be called Amane."

"Amane?" Traveller repeated.

"'Heavenly sound.'" Gravitas gave her sister a small smile.

Traveller thought for a while, and then smiled back at Gravitas. "I like that name. Thank you."

"Yep, that's a very fitting name for someone so awesome." Chameleon smiled.

Ignika frowned, though: "It's a good name, but... Don't human names consist of two words? I'm Eiju Genkai..."

Chameleon said: "Well, when Makoto gave me a name, she used the word Genkai, too. I think it's sort of a shared name for us."

Gravitas nodded. "It's something called a 'surname' or a 'last name'. It is shared by people of the same family."

"Well, it's settled, then. Amane Genkai I am." Traveller smiled. "And did you get a name yourself, Gravitas?"

She nodded. "I did. Ami named me Hiroko. Meaning 'broadminded child'." She looked at her brother. "And what's your first name?" Seeing his confusion, she added: "Human names consist of a 'first name', or 'given name', and a 'last name'. Our last names are all Genkai, so what's your first name?"

"Oh, that." Chameleon smiled sheepishly. He should've guessed. "Masahiro."

Gravitas smirked slightly. "'Straightforward'. Quite fitting."

Ignika looked at his youngest sister, and noticed Nightmare was looking rather mad and displeased. She had crossed her arms and huffed once she noticed her little brother was looking at him. "Something the matter, Nightmare?" the Child of Life asked, unnecessarily.

"Stupid Love Dove didn't bother to give me a name, or teach me anything special or do something I like!" the Saurian of Fear snapped back viciously. "Why do I have to be stuck with her? She's got nothing but air in her head, and her personality is making me absolutely sick to my stomach! I can't believe I promised you to live with her, Ignika, I must be getting soft or something… It's absolutely terrible!"

"Cheer up, Nightmare," Ignika said with a voice full of sympathy. He gently squeezed her hand. "I'm sure she just forgot about the name since the need didn't arise yet. But she's a good person at heart, and I'm confident that you know this as well. She didn't have to take care of you, but she still did, no?"

"I suppose so," Nightmare grumbled, not wanting to be rude to her beloved little brother.

"Besides, even if she doesn't teach you anything, I'm sure you can teach her something, right? After all, me and Traveller teach Hotaru how to use her Glaive. You're not going to tell me you didn't grab the opportunity to torture Minako yourself once you heard the Senshi need to be taught close combat?" the Child of Life looked at his fearsome sister with a knowing smile, a smile Nightmare eagerly returned with a gleeful and almost sadistic grin of her own.

"You're quite correct, little brother," the Saurian of Fear chuckled darkly. She glanced at the subject of her 'teachings' for a moment, after which she leaned a bit closer to her family and whispered: "You'll love what I'm going to tell you now…"

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While the Saurians were telling each other of their life with humans, the Senshi were having a similar conversation. At first they had been discussing Crast and the coming meeting with him, but quickly decided to change the subject. No wonder, considering how hideous he is.

"Sooo..." Usagi said. "How is your life with the Saurians? Anybody else got turned into a man yet?"

Haruka frowned. "Is this a running joke now?"

Setsuna chuckled. "I suppose so. After all, the occasion was so extraordinary... I don't doubt it will be remembered for ages." She smiled teasingly at her friend.

"Coming from the Senshi of Time, it sounds like a promise." Rei added.

Haruka sighed and put a hand to her forehead. "Joy."

"Anyhow..." Chibiusa said to switch the subject from teasing Haruka to something more interesting. "Living with a Saurian must be strange."

"Indeed." Mako nodded. "Not to mention embarrassing at times." She blushed.

"Oh, right..." Minako looked at her teasingly. "You live with the only guy besides Ignika. Now tell me, what's he like?" Minako eagerly waited for details.

"Ehm... Well... Chameleon..." Mako paused. "He's a nice guy. Sure, he needs to be explained everything, but... He's polite and helpful, in his own way. And he seems eager to learn things. Oh, and he loves my cooking." Mako smiled.

"That's no wonder." Ami smiled back. "Personally, I think that the day somebody doesn't like your cooking is the day the world's gonna end." She winked at her. "But nevertheless, I think eagerness to learn is their racial trait, as well as the incredible speed of learning."

Michiru smiled. "I see a familiar sparkle within your eyes... You have something extraordinary to tell us, no?"

"Oh yes!" Ami smiled even wider. "It's Gravitas. Two days ago, she took interests in my books, and asked me to teach her to read. We read a fairy tale book together, but then I had to go to college to get some more homework..." She paused to hold everybody's attention. "And by the time I came back, she had read one third of my library."

Everybody's jaw dropped. Only Setsuna seemed not that amused, keyword being 'seemed'.

"That's... Hard to believe." Rei said.

"Yeah, seriously. More than fifty books during several hours? Unbelievable!" Minako said.

"Indeed." Ami nodded. "I was shocked too, so much I actually fainted. But Gravitas has incredible intuition as well, so I guess that's why she could read Japanese hieroglyphs without confusing how to read them. When we talked about it later, however, it turned out that most of the things she read about were beyond her understanding, and she did it just because she enjoyed finding out new words. So I'm going to teach her."

Hotaru said: "That sounds promising."

"Yes. And..." But Ami didn't get to finish her sentence, as the Senshi heard a singing voice coming from the Saurian group, and instantly fell silent.

After the song was finished, Usagi said: "Wow."

Minako looked at the Outers wide-eyed: "You taught Traveller to sing?"

Haruka smiled: "Yeah, we did. Well, mostly I. She wouldn't let me stop until I taught her to play something that resembles a melody more than chords..." She chuckled.

Hotaru added: "The entire lesson took Haruka-papa only three hours, and by the end of it, Traveller played 'Tsuki' on the piano and sang it perfectly."

"Saurians are full of talents, it seems." Mako smiled.

"Indeed." Setsuna said. She then turned to Minako. "And what did you teach your guest, Minako?"

"Ehm... Well..." The Senshi of Love didn't know what to say. But she didn't need to, as everybody heard:

"Stupid Love Dove didn't bother to give me a name, or teach me anything special or do something I like! Why do I have to be stuck with her? She's got nothing but air in her head, and her personality is making me absolutely sick to my stomach! I can't believe I promised you to live with her, Ignika, I must be getting soft or something… It's absolutely terrible!"

Nightmare finished her rather long rant, and the Senshi looked at Minako accusingly. She backed away a bit. "What did I do?"

"Oh, nothing." Rei said. "And that's the problem. You do realize it's our responsibility to help the Saurians adapt to our world as good as possible, don't you?"

"Uhh... Uhh... Yes... But... What does that have to do with hobbies?" Minako raised her eyebrow.

"Haven't you been listening close enough?" Ami asked. "It's clear that Nightmare now feels bad because of the treatment others got and she didn't get."

"Yeah, well... She gave _me_ the treatment non of you got!" Minako said.

"Oh?" Haruka asked, interested. Maybe she wasn't the only one who got... But then she remembered only Ignika could do it. She cursed mentally.

"Yeah! She decided to train me... In a real battle! I swear, her katana was at my throat three times in a row!"

Hotaru raised her eyebrow. "That's a bit extreme. Traveller and Ignika taught me in a much more normal manner."

"Perhaps it's payback for bad treatment, though. You know how those spunky teenagers are." Usagi said thoughtfully. Behind her, the family of Saurians suddenly burst out in laughter at something Nightmare had just told them. Minako turned red a bit as she didn't doubt for a moment that Nightmare had just told her family of her 'training'.

The other Senshi laughed, but their merriment quickly melted away as the air grew cold and depressing around them all of the sudden. Gravitas and most of the Senshi recognized the feeling, and it filled them with dread. The evening birds had stopped singing and fled, together with all other animals in the park. Even the trees and the other plants seemed to lean away from what had appeared in their midst out of the blue. An aura that screamed death and pain overtook the Senshi and the Saurian family. Those who had already been through this before mentally prepared themselves, but even so they felt their sanity slip away as that horrid voice drifted through the air. The voice that sounded like bones cracking.

"Good evening, Sailor Senshi, Ignika and family… I have been waiting for you, with impatience, you could say… Heh, heh… My master wishes to see and speak with you all. So we had best be going, no? It wouldn't do to keep Angonce the Kind waiting, oh no, that wouldn't do at all!"

Hearing those words, Senshi and Saurians turned, hearts heavy, in the direction of the voice to place their gaze once more on the sickening form of Crast the Repulsive.

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**Next chapter: Master Angonce!**

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SoulLoss: I hope I'm not testing your patience too much by dragging the wait for Angonce's first appearance like this. But rest assured, next chapter he will make his debut in this story!


	29. Master Angonce

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**29. Master Angonce**

Ignika, Chameleon, Traveller, Nightmare, Haruka, Chibiusa and Hotaru, who saw the utterly vile creature known as Crast for the first time in their lives, could only stare at it with utter horror in their eyes and their jaws dropped. Even Nightmare had to admit she was disgusted beyond belief, and that the sight was one that could give even her bad dreams. Never in her life had she dared to think that there was a creature under the sun that was just so hideous as the quadruped monster before her was. Chameleon and Traveller pretty much had the same line of thought.

The Child of Life was having bigger difficulties coping with Crast's presence, though. His powers and senses were in overdrive and screamed at him to just get as far away as possible from the monster. Everything about it just was utterly wrong. Crast was by himself the biggest insult to Life Ignika had ever encountered. There was just no way that something like this could come to exist, not naturally at least. By all means, with all the negativity and horror in its body, it shouldn't even be capable of sustaining its own body. Yet it did, with ease even, it seemed. Also, and his scared Ignika even more, he could sense that the vile creature was incredibly powerful. So powerful, in fact, that he even trumped Ignika. But there was something, Ignika couldn't pinpoint what exactly, something familiar about the power Crast wielded, though it was defiled and twisted almost beyond recognition. The Saurian of Life shivered as he realized Crast his power felt similar to that of a Great Being!

Haruka was, sort of, prepared for Crast's appearance, but it still struck her as horrible and mind-breaking. Still, she found her strength, held Michiru's hand firmly and looked at Crast almost in a challenging way.

Hotaru was frozen with fear, which eased a bit when she felt Setsuna's hands on her shoulders. She almost gagged as she looked at Crast's vile form. Still, she had it easier than others, as her power was Death. But even so, the power the creature emanated was disturbing and overwhelming even for her.

Chibiusa had the hardest time of them all. Being nearly killed by an Immoral One was the worst experience in her life, but this... This was like a thousand Immoral Ones with millions of corrupted blades. She shut her eyes tightly and hid behind Usagi.

Crast saw the effect he was having on the Senshi and Saurians, and it thrilled him to no end. He enjoyed watching them squirm and try to desperately hold on to their sanity. As far as he was concern, being in his presence was a test in itself. Those who couldn't handle something as minor as his appearance, when that was the smallest evil he could do, were not worth his time, and certainly not the time of his master. Only those with a strong will, one strong enough to overcome his appearance, deserved an audience with master Angonce. So far, none of his spectators seemed to have cracked yet, and it pleased him, somewhat. Sure, the youngest was hiding from him, but it was a brat, he had expected nothing more. Slowly, he spoke once again, enjoying the sight of them flinching under every word he uttered.

"The master is waiting… I shall not make him wait any longer," Crast told the assembled guardians of the earth and visitors from Voya. A terrifying smile grazed his vile face. He then addressed the Sailor Senshi in particular: "You are given a great honour, Senshi. You shall be the first humans to set foot inside master Angonce his home in this dimension."

One moment, they were in the park, cowering under the presence of Crast, the next moment the world faded around them in a microsecond and they suddenly found themselves standing before a mansion. It was a mansion made out of such pure stone that it appeared to be crystal, and it gave off an aura of calm, serenity and peace. It was surrounded by a garden full of plants the Senshi and Saurians had never seen before. The group was startled by this sudden transport, Traveller the least because she was used to teleporting. Still, all of them were equally amazed by this place, even Setsuna.

Crast ignored this, and the beauty of his home, though, and merely skittered over the crystal path through the garden to the house, and walked straight through the front door as if it wasn't there. This startled the group of disguised reptiles and earth's guardians again, but they quickly recovered from that and followed the same path Crast had taken. Once they approached the front door, it seemed to open by itself for them. Cautiously they entered, one by one, Ignika going first because of his eagerness to see his master and 'father' again.

The Child of Life took in his surroundings. The millennium old being trapped for eternity in the body of a child had expected this place to be more like the Fortress of the Great Beings on Voya had been, but it wasn't. It had much more in common with the house of the Outer Senshi, and looked to be just a place for just living, and not for experimenting, studying and governing as the Fortress had been. Still, there was definitely a familiar air about this place, and the presence of a Great Being could clearly be felt. Ignika recognized the presence of his old master immediately, and his excitement only increased.

Still, the boy paid attention to the interior of the mansion. The hallway Crast was currently leading them through was not affected by the monster's presence: it still was much like a normal human house, but had that touch of Great Being design that made it immune to something so vile and repulsive as Crast. The walls were white and pure, and had a few paintings, of such beauty they could only be made by a Great Being. A few lights hung on the ceiling, but for the moment they were extinguished. Many doors of wood of the highest quality could be found, and on each was a golden plaque describing what was behind the entrance. This was familiar: the Great Beings had ordered their chambers similarly in their Fortress of Voya. It seemed Angonce carried on that habit even when he was alone now. There was even a spiralling staircase of marble at the end of the hallway, leading to the low upper floor, where the private rooms of both Angonce and Crast were.

Ignika found himself being at ease by how familiar it all was. It looked nothing like the Fortress on Voya, but it had the same idea, the same builders and the same feeling of something grand and mystique to it, and the young Saurian liked that. It took him back to his youth, a millennium ago, and to the days when life on Voya was peaceful. It felt good to relive it all in his mind again.

The Senshi also noted the pureness, order and serenity of the mansion. Michiru, for example, was froze with awe as soon as she saw the first painting.

"_My God..._" She thought. "_This is genius! So otherworldly... So high and beautiful…_" She put her hand on her chest. "_It brings light to people's souls..._"

Her admiration, however, was interrupted by Haruka, who gently hugged her beloved and whispered: "We can't keep a Great Being waiting." Michiru slowly nodded and followed her love and the other Senshi, even though she felt she could be looking at that painting for hours and never get enough. Her soul was a bit eased, however, as she briefly glanced at other paintings on the walls.

Rei, despite the presence of Crast, felt the serenity and peacefulness better than anyone else. She also could feel a trail of great power behind almost every object in the mansion. Each object radiated spiritual power and beauty like a holy relic. Yet it was obvious that they weren't intended to be so. Rei wondered just how powerful and high must the one who made them if he could unintentionally give so much energy to anything he touched.

Setsuna was feeling strange as she glanced at the walls, paintings, and felt the soft atmosphere of power. As the Guardian of the Time Gates, she was hard to amuse. Everything from primitive savage dances to unimaginable technologies of the far future was familiar to her. And yet... Despite the similarities, everything here was from a different dimension. A different timeline. And that made Setsuna feel uneasy.

Hotaru, while still affected by the presence of Crast, could feel the other aspect of her power, Rebirth, reacting to this place. It eased her soul and mind to feel the serenity lingering in every thing, every object she passed. Everything seemed to whisper calming, yet undecipherable words. She wondered how could one give a shard of a soul to everything that surrounded her.

Usagi and Chibiusa, while feeling strange, were put at ease somehow. To Chibiusa, the mansion felt almost the same as her palace in Crystal Tokyo, and she easily took the role of Small Lady while walking down the corridors. Usagi remembered the time from her former life as Princess Serenity. And she had the feeling that she will need those forgotten skills of polite diplomatic talk and other things any Princess or Queen should know. She concentrated on the memories, determined not to make a fool of herself like usual.

Ignika's family were also looking around in wonder. It all looked human, and at the same time it didn't. None of the three girls or the one boy had ever met a Great Being in person, or even been inside their magnificent Fortress, and so were unused to much of what the Great Beings made or lived with. For Traveller, Gravitas, Nightmare and Chameleon, the Great Beings were godlike figures who had granted their race powers and healed the planet, but that was it. The finer points of their existence, or what more they did besides godly things, they did not know. Ignika did, but he had never really felt the urge to share, and they had never pressed him.

Crast was aware of all the thinking and pondering going on behind him, but he ignored it, for he didn't care one bit. He merely skittered through the hall on his bladed limbs, finally coming to a halt before the door that gave entrance to the living room. With a mere push of his dark will, he opened the door and gestured for the company following him to enter.

"Here we are," he said. "My Master shall now bestow upon you the great honour of speaking to you in person. I advise you all to mind your manners and show only the greatest of respect. He or she who doesn't shall not leave this place alive." The last part was said so menacingly and darkly that it robbed all Saurians and Senshi of the newly acquired peace the mansion had given them, and they all shivered out of fright. They could feel his foul gaze on all of them, felt his threat tear at their minds and sanity. But luckily for the guests, a voice drifted from the living room through the open door, and saved them all from Crast his horrid gaze and voice.

"It is quite alright, Crast… No need to threaten our guests. Do not forget this universe needs them, and that it is not our place to interfere with the balance of this universe, unless it is facing a threat from our home universe."

The voice that spoke those words was the total opposite of Crast's. Whereas the monster's drained you from all joy, all hope, all calmness and everything positive, this one instead gave all those things to you, and it lifted all of the guests' spirits. The voice was old and young at the same time, and nothing could match its beauty. It was the voice of a being with immeasurable power, filled with endless wisdom and the burden of eternity. Except for Ignika, nobody had heard such a voice before, but they all felt welcomed and eased by it, which they needed after being guided here by such a monster as Crast the Repulsive.

"Please, enter, I want to meet you all," the voice said again on a friendly tone.

Ignika was the only one who didn't need to be told twice. He had recognized the voice right away, and now the child could not be held back anymore. He stormed inside the room, much to Crast's annoyance. The others followed, Saurians first as they chased after their brother, at a more respectable pace. When all of them were inside the living room, Crast went inside as well and closed the door behind him with his mind. The guests found Ignika, on his knees but with raised head and sparkling eyes, at the side of a being who sat calmly but regally in a very expensive looking couch.

All the newcomers gasped as they laid their eyes for the first time on Angonce the Kind, one of the Great Beings.

He was beautiful and handsome beyond belief, and his body and face looked ageless. His skin was pale, almost white even, and seemed to glow, giving the illusion of him being made out of silver. His long, flowing hair had the same color, as did the regal robes that clothed him. The only thing about this magnificent being that was not colored white-silver, were his eyes. They were bright gold in color, and were deeper than the deepest oceans. They held a twinkle of youthful mischief in them, but most of all the wisdom and the burden of millennia upon millennia of living. One of his gloriously divine hands was placed fatherly, kindly and lovingly on Ignika's head, and the child could once more feel the softness of them, as soft as a baby's skin, or even softer. Being in touch with his master also made him feel the power coursing inside Angonce, power that dwarfed even Ignika's when it came to sheer amount. But the other guests didn't have to touch the Great Being to feel the power, the wisdom and the glory radiating from the being before them.

Still, no words could ever do the appearance and power of Angonce the Kind any justice. But for the Saurians it was clear: they were looking at a god, one of the many who had saved their home world and blessed their race. Traveller, Gravitas, Nightmare and Chameleon all fell on their knees just as their little brother had, and bowed their heads as a sign of deep respect. They dared not speak, for they thought that their own voices seemed like the sound of nails on a chalkboard when compared with the voice of the Great Being for who they bowed, and they could not possibly insult Master Angonce by letting him hear them.

The Senshi, standing in a semi-circle with Usagi and Chibiusa in front of it, were completely taken away by Master Angonce. His divine appearance, the power he radiated, it was overwhelming and welcome. So intense and light was his divine power that the Senshi felt their disguise of normal human girls that was given to them by the late Queen Serenity fade. No words were said, no henshin wands taken nor even touched, and yet before Master Angonce stood the Sailor Senshi in their battle uniforms. The Outers also had their weapons appear.

Usagi and Chibiusa had undergone a different transformation. Responding to Master Angonce's spirit and power, their own powers awakened, and where they once were now stood Princess Small Lady and Neo Queen Serenity.

But not only their Senshi appearance had surfaced. Master Angonce's presence revealed their core, the very essence of their soul. All the lives and battles they fought in the Silver Millennium, came back to them in this brief moment. Obeying the long forgotten instinct, the Sailor Senshi stood on one knee before the Great Being, in the same way as Haruka and Michiru knelt before the Messiah. Serenity and Small Lady, being royalty, did a graceful deep curtsy and remained in that position with ease.

"Pray tell, why do you bow for me, Sailor Senshi…?" Angonce asked, sounding amused, as his golden eyes observed the sight before him. He gave Ignika and his family a smile, before continuing: "I can understand why my son and his family does… But why you? After all, am I not what you would call an 'invader'? This universe is not my own, this planet not my home. I am no god or anything akin, nor do I have the right to interfere with matters of this plane of existence… So, please, do tell, to what do I own the honor of such a display of deep respect? What have I done to earn it?"

Everybody thought: "Why are we, indeed?" But they didn't need to trouble themselves with trying to explain.

"Master Angonce... " Usagi stood up from her curtsy and answered for all of them, with the ease and dignity of a true Princess that she used to be and a true Queen that she would be. "In our dimension, on planet Earth, we value and respect those who have the power of Light within them. We treasure what is good, and fight what is evil. Your power and Light is unmatched by any being we have met so far, and it is only fair that we recognize your superiority." She smiled kindly. "Please, do not think of yourself as an invader. Those who do not have malicious intentions towards our universe are not invaders, but guests. Ignika and his family know it." She curtsied again. "On behalf of my planet, which I will rule one day, I bid you welcome to our dimension, and offer my apologies for not greeting you sooner."

Angonce's smile dropped as he heard Usagi's words. They were meant to be welcoming and kind, he was aware of that, but the words had awaken a painful memory in the Great Being's ancient mind. He stared wistfully at Crast the Repulsive. "I thank you for your kind greeting, and do not apologize for the time of your welcome… I have been here for five centuries, unnoticed and unbothered. That is how I wished it to be." The Great Being rose to his feet, and when he raised himself to his full height, he was almost two meters tall, and he seemed even more intimidating and majestic than before.

"But you speak too kindly of me. My Light is nothing compared to yours, nor is my power. Because regardless of all the power me and my brethren possessed, we made unforgivable mistakes, and helped give birth to a terrible evil, an evil of proportions you cannot even begin to understand…" the godlike entity continued. "And yet, you must all understand, because it is this evil that threatens this world, this universe, this dimension. This is why I insisted on us meeting, so I can relay all my knowledge about this to you all. I owe you this, for the threat you face, is partly my doing. And in this light, can you truly say I am superior? Can you truly say I do not pose a threat, and that I am thus not an invader?"

All the Senshi and Saurians looked at Master Angonce in shock, disbelief evident on their faces.

"_How could one so divine create evil?_" Makoto thought.

"_It is_ _impossible. My brain refuses to compute that._" Ami thought.

"_His spirit is void of all evil... I do not understand how it's possible._" Rei thought.

"_I just can't believe it._" thought Minako.

The thoughts of the Outer Senshi, however, were more grim:

"_So_ _Great Beings also make mistakes..._" Setsuna frowned.

"_The_ _Saurian invasion is his doing? Then he's an enemy._" thought Haruka. "_Yet my heart and soul can't accept it._"

Michiru bowed her head: "_He creates beauty so divine... How could he be the cause of evil?_"

Hotaru bit her lower lip: "_What kind_ _of unimaginable evil did he bring? Can we handle it?_"

The Saurians all had looks of surprise on their faces as well, but there was no real disbelief or sudden doubt to be seen. Most of all, they were all curious as to how a Great Being, one of the saviors of their home world, could do something that resulted in the creation of evil. It was Ignika who voiced these thoughts:

"But Master Angonce, how is this possible? I can sense you have not a single speck of darkness inside your soul. How can you and the others of your glorious kind be able to create evil then?"

The response the child got was a sad smile from the deity. Once again Angonce placed his hand gently and lovingly on Ignika's head. "That we do not have any darkness inside our souls and minds, Ignika, is precisely the reason why we unknowingly created evil in the first place…"

"Master Angonce..." Chibiusa rose from her curtsy. "It might be not be my place to talk, after all, I am still a child in mind and body..." She looked into the Great Being's eyes. "But if there is something I learned during the 902 years of my life... It's that mistakes need to be corrected. No matter how grave they might be, you have to try and make it right. I have unknowingly threatened my planet's existence, have been possessed by evil because of my mistakes... Yet with the help of my friends, everything was restored. Nobody loves me less for being the Black Lady. So, please, Master Angonce..." She curtsied again. "Don't reproach yourself for it. What's done is done, it can't be helped. And thus we have to face the new day, and deal with the consequences."

"You are young still, Small Lady," the Great Being replied kindly. "Nine hundred years is a fleeting moment in a Great Being's eternal life… Yet you speak words of wisdom, and words of truth… But they do not, can not apply to me and my kind. The mistakes I and my kind have made, are far too grave for that. They cannot even be corrected, for we lack the power. So take the blame I must, for it is all that there is left for me to do. It is all that I can still do."

Angonce the Kind seated himself again and sighed. Somehow, even such sad an action looked ethereal and beautiful when done by him. "I have no friends. I have nobody I can rely on to aid me. The mistake that made all of this happen must indeed be corrected, but it is too late for that. One hundred thousand years too late…"

He bade them all to rise and take place in the chairs and couches in the living room. "Be seated, my guests, and listen well to the tale I will relate to you. The tale of the Great Being's fatal mistake, the one mistake that can never be corrected ever again… The one mistake that gave birth to an evil whose power you can not even begin to understand…"

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**Next chapter: the shadow of the past!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Well, here he finally is, Angonce as I imagined him and his kind to be. Inspiration for his ethereal buty came from the Elves from Tolkien's writing, as well as an image I found on wikipedia from Sauron before he was corrupted as he would have appeared in Peter Jackson's trilogy. I hope you weren't dissapointed by this chapter. Thanks for reading and reviewing!


	30. The shadow of the past

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**30. The shadow of the past**

The guests of the Great Being all followed, though with some reluctance, his request and sat down in the couches of the living room. Only Crast remained where he was, not in the least because his hideously structured body made sitting down in a couch next to impossible. He did, however, skittered a bit closer so the circle, standing almost directly behind Setsuna, who couldn't help but shiver and feel incredibly uncomfortable. The Senshi of Time tried to ignore the monster, however, and directed all her attention to the Great Being, who sat between Ignika and Chibiusa, as per his request. Angonce looked as beautiful and brilliant as ever, but his expression had turned grim, and it didn't suit a face as divine as his. Once he was sure everyone was seated and listening, the Kind began his tale.

"More then hundred thousand years ago, my fellow Great Beings and myself lived peacefully on a planet we called Spherus Magna. It was our home, the world we originated from, the world we were born on. We were one of the many races on Spherus Magna, and at first we did not carry the name 'Great Beings'," the ethereal being said to his listeners, who were all paying full attention to the tale, the mere sound of Angonce's voice enrapturing them. "My race was born immortal and curious. We wanted to know how the world worked, how the universe worked, how everything worked. We loved to experiment, we loved to create. All over Spherus Magna we erected great fortresses in which we could experiment, grow wise and create as much as we wanted to."

Angonce smiled sadly as he remembered those days of eons ago, days he still considered the best of his long, never ending life. "Some of our creations and experiments proved beneficial to the other intelligent races of the world, and they came to trust us. It was them who granted us the name 'Great Beings', and they made us the Scientist Kings of their world. The beginning of the end…"

The godlike entity let out a deep sigh, one so sad it made all in the room – except for Crast – feel sorry for the Great Being. "It wasn't that we did not want to help our fellow inhabitants of Spherus Magna, but overseeing the day to day affairs of the people felt limiting and unsatisfying to us. We wanted to experiment and create, not rule and judge. We felt burdened and wished to relieve ourselves of that burden. So we made our first, and probably gravest, mistake: we took a member of all six tribes on Spherus Magna and enhanced them into powerful figures, each wielding and being an element. They were the Element Lords, and for the first few thousand years, they did what they were supposed to do: take over the daily duties of ruling from us, and allow us to go back inside our fortresses and create. So confident in these six creations of us we were, that we neglected what went on in the outside world. And when finally we did look back, it was already too late."

"So enraptured in our experiments we had been, that we had failed to notice that something had begun to leak from the core of our planet. What it was, we don't know to this day. It was a glowing, silver liquid, but with frightening powers. It appearing on the surface of our planet was the spark that lit the fuses that were the Element Lords. Seeking the power of this substance, they declared war on each other, and the six tribes of Spherus Magna were plunged into a terrible war of unseen proportions…" Angonce paused for a moment and looked up. His gaze found those of the Senshi, and he saw pain in their eyes. He knew that this world, and their country, was no stranger to war either.

"We tried to stop it. We ordered the fighting sides to cease this madness, but our long absence and neglect of the world had caused the faith the people had in us to all but vanish," the Great Being continued, reliving it all in his mind's eye as he spoke. For the first time in millennia, Angonce the Kind felt pain once again. "Desperate to stop the war, we instead tried to take away the source of the conflict: the powerful substance that had leaked from our planet's core. It was then that we found out the terrible truth: the substance wasn't just leaking out, it was destroying our planet. By forcing its way to the surface, it has caused structural damage to Spherus Magna. If we had investigated sooner, we might have been capable of doing something to stop it, or to limit the damage… But we were too late. Spherus Magna was going to shatter into pieces, and there was nothing we could do about it."

Angonce sadly shook his head, the heavy weight of that failure pressing hard on his shoulders again. "We tried to warn the inhabitants, but once again found no listening ear. And what we had known would happen, did happen: our home, the beautiful world of Spherus Magna, shattered into three great pieces, with an incredible amount of debris circling around it. The results were disastrous. One fragment of the planet had taken with it all water, creating a planet covered with nothing but water. Another fragment had taken most of the great jungles of our world with it. The largest, central fragment, where most survivors were, were left with little water and little vegetation. It was a barren, desert wasteland: Bara Magna. We Great Beings had been capable of finding refuge elsewhere when the Shattering happened, and after the disaster we descended to the fragments again to try and help the survivors. But the hate of the war still lingered, and the resentment towards us for not stepping in sooner was still fresh. We were chased away."

The Great Being sighed again, and buried his face in his hands. "We were ashamed, disgraced and left without a home. The Great Beings, the 'Scientist Kings' of Spherus Magna, had seen their world die. What were we to do now? We sought refuge on another planet for a while to think about our future. It didn't take long for us to reach the decision that we had to repent for our mistakes. Our neglect of those who had trusted us, and our selfish desire to not be disturbed while creating and experimenting, those things had caused the downfall of Spherus Magna. We decided then and there that all our future research and creations had to be for the benefit of anyone but us. We would travel the cosmos in search of other inhabited worlds, and lend aid should it be required. By doing this, we hoped to repent at least a little bit for the great mistake that had caused the destruction of our beautiful and beloved home. Alas, as it turned out, we were about to make a mistake even graver…"

Before anybody could ask what mistake that was, Angonce beat them to it and continued his tale: "It wasn't even a mistake born out of ignorance or neglect. We truly had only the best intentions in mind when we did what we did then. But it turned out to be the worst mistake we had ever made. You see, my assembled guests: after failing Spherus Magna so badly, we truly wanted to put our knowledge and creations in the service of others' benefit. But to succeed in that, we felt that we had to be free of all selfish thoughts and inner darkness. Otherwise, us wanting to be left alone to create for ourselves would just happen again. And so, the Great Beings, all of us, expelled our inner darkness from our bodies. We cast it out and away, making us into beings who held nothing but light and kindness. A mistake of unbelievable proportions…"

All the Senshi exchanged shocked, unbelieving glances. Expelling inner darkness? How is that possible?

Rei shook her head and thought: "_Light and Darkness should always be in balance to be complete. Disrupting the balance is dangerous._ _So I have been taught, and I see it is true._"

Michiru and Haruka frowned. Each thought: _"We would have done the same if it was in our power." _

"_Darkness is evil, it must perish." _Minako thought. _"Yet why did Master Angonce call it a mistake?"_

"_Expelling Darkness..." _Ami tried to grasp the concept. _"I can't imagine it. Yet... The laws of Physics say that energy can never vanish or be destroyed, only converted into a different form... So where did the Darkness go?"_

Setsuna sighed as she realized:_ "I have never come across such an action during the entire course of this dimension's history. I cannot even predict the consequences of such an action."_

Hotaru looked at her hands holding the Silence Glaive._ "I have known Evil and Darkness. Yet even Mistress 9 wasn't pure evil. I cannot imagine what could a being without Light be like..."_

Mako frowned: "_You always have to try and think of the consequences before doing anything drastic. But this is another race's thinking..._"

Usagi thought: _"As Queen Serenity, I understand putting the well-being of people before your own. And yet... Galaxia sealed Chaos within herself for the sake of the Universe, for the safety of people all over the dimension... And we all know what happened."_

Chibiusa looked determined: _"Mistakes need to be corrected. I don't believe it's too late. The Senshi had always found a way when all hope was lost, so why not now?"_

Angonce smiled bitterly. "I can sense in your minds that you do not understand why we did this, or why it was a mistake. I know it is hard, for young people such as yourselves who have lived not even a fraction of the time I have, but try to understand. We were desperate and deeply saddened. This wasn't what appeared to be a hopeless situation such as those you have been in before. We had lost the world. Imagine if you had failed in any of your fights against those who threatened to destroy your world… Would that not influence your way of thinking? It did for us. We were not prepared for a situation like this. We had never imagined that evil could win. But it had, and it was our fault. Is it that strange then, that we wished to be free of these dark influences that had killed our world, and prevent other species of coming in contact with it?"

The Saurian family had so far listened in silence to the Great Being's tale. Aside from Ignika, it mostly blew their minds. Ignika's brother and sisters, were, after all, raised in a simple life and way of thinking. They weren't guardians of the cosmos, wielders of Life or Scientist Kings, but normal, disguised Saurians. Had it not been for the fact that they too had seen battles and evil thanks to being the family of the Child of Life, concepts such as inner darkness and light, planets shattering and politics would be beyond their care or understanding.

Angonce sensed this from them, and he longed for their simpler outlook on things. Regardless, the tale wasn't finished, so he continued telling it. "Regardless of if it was right or wrong, fact is that we did expel our Darkness from our bodies and soul. From then on, things such as envy, hate, corruption, prejudice or selfishness were beyond our understanding. We were free of that, and thought that from now on, our decisions could not fuel evil in any way. While in a sense this was correct, it still was a terrible mistake. Our new outlook on life did aid the other worlds we visited greatly, and our incapability to understand dark emotions did prevent us from making the mistakes that led to the downfall of Spherus Magna. And yet, not understanding can prove to be a mistake in itself. Because it prevented us also from keeping these darker emotions in mind when making new creations. With our new, light-filled minds we could not understand why anyone would want to use our creations for evil. I know Ignika has suffered a lot because of this neglect."

Angonce gave his 'son' an apologizing look, but Ignika shook his head and assured his master that he didn't blame Angonce in the least. Grateful for this, the Great Being thanked the Saurian of Life and then went on with his story.

"And yet, all these small neglects pale in comparison to the _real_ consequences of casting out our inner darkness. In our desperation and sadness, we cast it off without looking back. But nothing aside from the Void can ever truly erase something from existence. The dark halves of our souls as of such still existed. Unwatched, unguarded and ignored, but alive and full of hate for those who shunned it. Inner darkness is not by nature evil. But when we expelled it, it started to resent us. Resentment turned to anger, anger to hate, and hate to evil. This shared hatred for us, the Great Beings, caused the dark pieces of our souls to come together and form a single, new, sentient and absolute evil entity. An entity who exists solely to undo or corrupt whatever we Great Beings have made. It is this entity that created the Immoral Ones such as Jutlin, it was this entity that made the Saurian race chase after you, Ignika, and it is this entity that is the mastermind behind the invasion of this dimension…" Angonce spoke slowly, as it it hurt him to speak. But when he spoke the next words, he truly began to shiver: "This being… is Zyglak."

"Zyglak…" Ignika repeated, also shivering as he spoke the name. "That means 'Mistake', in your ancient language, does it not, master Angonce?"

"That is correct," the Great Being replied with a kind smile to his son. His face turned grim again when he further explained: "He named himself that, just to spite us, knowing it hurts us and that we can't do a thing about it."

"Forgive me my utter rudeness, master Angonce," Traveller interrupted, "but why can you not? Are you not, after all, a Great Being? Your power dwarfs even Ignika's, so how could you and your brethren not simply erase this mistake from existence?"

"While it is true that I am more powerful than Ignika," Angonce answered kindly to the Saurian of Teleportation, "that doesn't mean I stand a chance against Zyglak. He is, after all, made out of the inner darkness of all Great Beings except one, meaning he in turn dwarfs me too, in sheer power."

"'All except one'?" Gravitas said suddenly, her face frowning. "What do you mean by this, master Angonce?"

"I meant exactly what I said: Zyglak is the combination of the inner darkness of all Great Being except for one. There was one Great Being who also expelled his inner darkness from his body and soul, but choose not to leave it behind, and instead care for it, seeing it still as a part of him. As of such, Zyglak could not add this Great Being's inner darkness to his substance. But in the end, it matters little, as his powers are still far beyond your comprehension."

"Who was this Great Being, master Angonce?" Chibiusa asked curiously.

Angonce smiled kindly again, an expression that warmed the hearts of all but Crast. "The one who kept his darkness with him…" He paused for a moment, his eyes meeting those of the repulsive monster behind Setsuna. "It was me… I did not leave my darkness behind as the others did, but kept it with me in the utmost secrecy. It pained me so much to part with a piece of myself, that I couldn't bring myself to leave it behind. In time, just like with Zyglak, this inner darkness of me also became a separate, independent, sentient entity. A dark version of myself, so to speak. But because I did not neglect him, he did not fall into evil, and merely sees the world through dark eyes. That I sheltered you and kept you safe was also part of the reason you are, to this day, still loyal to me, right, Crast?"

The shocked Senshi all turned to Crast, and immediately regretted it. For his looks and repulsiveness were damaging their sanity once again. But this time, they looked at him through different eyes.

Hotaru thought: _"I know now. ...Crast proves that even Mistress had light in her."_

"_Why haven't I noticed this before?" _Wondered Rei. _"Crast is everything Angonce is not. And Angonce is Crast's polar opposite." _Then again, Crast was so disgusting and mind-damaging she'd rather not think of him more than needed.

"_So that's what Crast meant in the dream..." _Thought Haruka and Michiru. They suspected that their inner Darkness, should it ever be revealed, would be a lot less powerful, yet the thought that everybody has a monster alike to Crast residing within... was unnerving, to say the least.

Ami looked away and clenched her fists. _"How many Great Beings are there anyway? If this is the Darkness of one Great Being..." _She didn't dare to finish her thought.

Setsuna, who had been thinking along the same lines as Ami, did, however: _"The amount of Zyglak Darkness would be beyond imagination. It is terrifying to think what harm he could have done to the Universe and the course of history."_

Mako tried to imagine a being worse than Crast, but failed. She thought, frowning: _"How could they not notice such a mistake? Why haven't they done anything about it?"_

Minako was asking herself the same thing. _"Unity was always a key to victory... Surely their combined Light would have extinguished Zyglak?"_

"_Something's not right here..." _Thought Chibiusa. _"The reason must be something more serious than a mere lack of power."_

Only Usagi realized one thing: _"If Master Angonce tells us this now... Zyglak will soon come. And God help us then..."_

"_Now I understand why Crast felt so much like a Great Being, and yet at the same time not,_" Ignika said to himself, not even bothering to look at Crast again. He wanted to spare himself that. Judging from the looks on his family's faces, they were of the same opinion. Though the news was shocking, even to them, as long as Crast wasn't any threat to Ignika, they didn't give it much further thought. If the Great Beings could grant a child control over all of Life, then a repulsive monster could be a Great Being's inner darkness just as easily.

"I see you have begun to understand the problem at hand," Angonce spoke quietly, his eyes downcast, his face grim with worry. "If Crast, who is the inner darkness of just one Great Being, is already so hideous and powerful, how powerful is Zyglak then? The answer is simple: he is powerful beyond your understanding. Even if all of you combined went against him now, he would snuff you out in an instant."

The magnificent being gave them no time to recover from this news, and continued on to weave his tale: "I also sensed that some of you are wondering why we Great Beings were not capable of destroying Zyglak. It is painful and shameful to admit, but the answer is very simple: regardless of what he has become, he is still a part of us, and we, filled only with Light as we are, could never bring ourselves to kill something that is partly us. It would be the same if I took out a piece of your souls now and gave it flesh, then ordered you to kill it. Would you be able to do it? Would you be able to kill a piece of yourselves?"

Haruka and Michiru nearly gasped as they heard that question. They vividly remembered their dream... It was only now that they realized its purpose. Out of all the Senshi, they were the most likely ones to say 'yes'... And yet... Looking at Hotaru, they felt that their answer on this question would be a solid 'no'. No matter what was at stake.

Usagi and Chibiusa thought the same as Haruka and Michiru, looking at each other. Despite the time difference, they were still a mother and child, and killing each other was out of question. Each would rather give her own life so the other could live...

Makoto frowned as she remembered a very frightening and painful moment of her life... Losing her parents. Losing them _was_ losing a part of herself... But that was something she couldn't control. To kill a part of yourself on purpose... It was impossible.

Most of the Senshi were thinking among the same lines as Makoto. Hotaru didn't want to lose herself, for she knew that if she killed a part of herself, she would be incomplete, and after years of being torn between herself, Sailor Saturn and Mistress Nine, she didn't want that anymore. Rei was convinced that no part of one's body or mind is useless or downright harmful. She believed in balance, and that it was the answer to all things. Ami and Minako could imagine only one situation where they would have to kill a part of themselves – fighting against their friends. But that was out of question.

Setsuna didn't know what to think. She would kill an enemy without a second thought... But what if the enemy was herself?

Angonce smiled, appearing pleased. "I see none of you would be able to. Good, very good. That is how it should be. And that is why we Great Beings could not erase Zyglak from existence. There are only two ways to do that: take him back in our souls, or kill him. We could never bring ourselves to kill him, and remerging with ourselves can not be done without his consent, which is why he is still alive at this very moment. But we did fight him, when he revealed himself to us centuries ago, just after we had left Voya. And our combined might was capable of standing against him, but we could not get rid of him. With no other option, we went for a temporarily solution: we sealed him away in an empty dimension. We knew it would not stop him, and indeed, he broke free years and years ago, but by that time, we had already vanished."

"Vanished? What do you mean by that, master Angonce?" Ignika wanted to know, his golden eyes curiously observing his mentor.

"After our fight with Zyglak, we Great Being decided that we could no longer remain in our home dimension. Zyglak would chase us to the end of the universe and back, and we would always fight him to a stalemate, drawing the universe in a never ending circle of destruction and terror," the glorious being known as Angonce replied kindly to his 'son'. "It was a hard decision for us to make, as it meant leaving our universe to the claws of Zyglak, but what choice was there? Zyglak exists solely for undoing whatever we do, so no matter what we build or created for the good of others, Zyglak would only come to corrupt it. Worlds that we had not yet visited were, because of this, relatively safe. It was a meagre comfort, but one nonetheless. And so we Great Beings split up and broke the walls between dimensions, each of us going somewhere else. I myself came here to this universe, and after a century or two of wandering settled down on this blue planet, Earth, which reminds me so of my long lost home on Spherus Magna…"

The kind entity of light let out another deep sigh, slumping a bit forward in his seat as he buried his face in his hands once more. "I made this mansion and lived here with Crast for the past few centuries. I kept to myself, cloaking myself from both space and time, unnoticed and unbothered. I had no right to interfere in the affairs of this dimension. Here on Earth, I was able to, after many millennia, finally have a bit of peace again. I had time to think about and mourn all that had happened and in general I was satisfied and maybe even happy. Until a few days ago… when I felt the dimensional walls shatter once more. I recognized the way they were being breached, because, after all, I was one of those who had given the Saurian race the power to open dimensional gates in the first place. And on that moment I knew that the moment I had always feared would come, had indeed arrived: the past has caught up with me, and Zyglak has found me."

The tension in the air after master Angonce's announcement was so thick you could cut it with a knife. The Saurians' faces looked grim and hard, the Senshi had an expression that was a cross between worry and fear. Crast looked absolutely indifferent, but that's how his persona was, and it was all that could be expected. Angonce let them mule over it a bit, but he was still not finished with his explanation.

"I know you are afraid," the Great Being said quietly. "And by all means, you should be, terrified even. But do not be petrified by it, nor should you panic. Zyglak has discovered my presence here only when he detected Crast interfering in your battle last night. It will still be some time before Zyglak himself will make a move, or cross into this dimension. He will deploy his forces, made out of corrupted creations of us, first, to gather information and make it safe enough to travel to this plane. We must take advantage of the time this gives us. Because as powerful as he is, Zyglak is _not_ indestructible. There might be a chance to rid all dimensions from this evil once and for all."

Angonce's voice was even, and held no real hope, as if he was afraid of hoping. "Zyglak thrives on corrupting and darkening Great Beings' creations. In this dimension, where there are no creations made by my kind, he will be weakened. If you can manage to contain the damage done by his underlings, and limit the chaos made by them, he will not be able to feed of that either. And though mankind is foolish indeed and the Earth is full of war and suffering, it's kin is alien to this monster and he will not be capable of feeding off that source right away. Though however slim it is, this provides you all with a chance to strike him down."

The Kind looked at the Saurians and Senshi sharply, as if judging them. "But only if you are united. And I do not mean just being together. Sailor Mercury and Gravitas have shown that my age old theory of symbiosis is indeed true, and this has given me the slightest speck of hope. Symbiosis is more than just a great power, it is pure unity in energetic form. This directly opposes the essence of Zyglak's being, which is chaos. Two opposites cancel each other out, after all, and I think that this Symbiosis is the key to defeating this unholy creature. And yet…"

Angonce hesitated for a moment, his facial expression twisted in a divinely beautiful frown of confusion. "And yet I have the feeling that Symbiosis is the key to something greater still, but I cannot fathom what. Not yet, at least, for I know too little of it. As of such, I can offer you no other way but symbiosis. It is our only chance to stand against the incarnation of all Great Being's inner darkness."

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**Next chapter: Memories and thoughts!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Well, whatever Sauron was when he had that form, that picture was a big inspiration for Angonce regardless. XD I'm a big fan of Tolkien's work, too. It is amazing how detailed the world that man came up with is. And as you can see, our friends did learn about Spherus Magna in this chapter. Hope you liked it! Thanks for the review!

BookLoverAF: I'm glad you found it interesting! Thanks for reading and reviewing!


	31. Memories and thoughts

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**31. ****Memories and thoughts**

A little while later, the assembled group of Saurians and Senshi left the mansion, guided – to their great regret – by Crast. The repulsive inner darkness of Angonce insisted on leading them out to make sure they didn't touch anything of his master, and also so that he could teleport them back to the park. The location of Angonce's mansion had to remain secret, after all.

Ignika had wanted to stay longer with his 'father' and talk about all that had happened in his life, and while Angonce had said he would love to do the same, there was no time. The Great Being had looked tired and totally expended, as if relating his story had drained him of all his energy. He told them that he was still creating and learning, but didn't want to reveal anything yet out of fear of drawing Zyglak to this world sooner than anticipated. The Kind had also revealed that he had no intention of actively interfering with any coming battles, not unless Zyglak himself was involved. The reason for this was simple: should Angonce actively step in, it would cause Zyglak to retaliate by crossing the dimensions. This had to be avoided for as long as possible. Angonce did promise, though, that he would aid them in whatever other way he could, and that Crast too, would continue to keep an eye on things and interfere where they could not.

And so, with sadness, the company had bade their goodbyes to the magnificent, godlike entity and departed. While they were walking down the crystal path outside the mansion, though, Ignika's thoughts weren't with his mentor. No, the Child of Life was thinking about something else he had witnessed this evening. Full of curiosity, he turned to Usagi.

"Usagi-san, I'm sorry to bother you, but I noticed something. When all the other Senshi came in master Angonce's presence, they took on their Senshi forms. But you and Chibiusa looked entirely different, and the power you held was startlingly great. Why is this? What exactly happened?"

Usagi smiled at him: "Oh, that... Well, it's a long story, and it has to do with mine and Chibiusa's real origin."

"Real origin?" Ignika repeated, confused.

Chibiusa, deciding it was her time to shine, told the story of her nation: "Many centuries ago, Earth wasn't the only populated planet of the Solar System. Every planet had its own population, nature, culture, and a Royal Family to rule over it. But the most powerful planet was the Moon, because it possessed an artifact called the Silver Crystal. It was a great force to be reckoned with, and thus all the planets pledged their allegiance to the Moon Kingdom. All except Earth. And so began the Silver Millennium."

Ignika frowned. "What does 'royal' mean?"

"Hmm..." Usagi thought for a moment. "It's a bit hard to explain... Royal Family is the family of those who are destined to rule by the right of birth. Which in this case was because the Royal Families had powers beyond normal humans. Like you witnessed me and Chibiusa having."

"Is that so? Does it make you... Royal?" Ignika looked at them curiously.

"Indeed it does." Chibiusa nodded happily.

Ignika frowned again. "But I've never seen you doing anything to rule the planet... Granted, I don't see you very often, but if you were the ruler, my family wouldn't have to hide now."

Usagi replied: "That's because we aren't rulers yet. We are merely reincarnations of those who ruled in the Silver Millennium. Allow me to tell the rest of the story." Receiving a nod from Ignika, Usagi continued: "The Silver Millennium was brought to its downfall because planet Earth made a pact with an evil entity named Queen Metallia. While it was nowhere near as powerful as Zyglak, its dark powers were enough to brainwash and control all of the Earth's royalty and their closest servants. Except for one person..." Usagi sighed.

"I was the Moon Princess then. My name was Serenity. And the only person who did not fall under Metallia's spell was my beloved, Prince Endymion. He warned me of coming danger, but it was already too late. Metallia attacked, and killed everyone who had been defending the palace. That included all the Sailor Senshi except for Saturn, who hadn't been awakened then yet. My mother, Queen Selena, had sacrificed herself using the power of the Silver Crystal to send the Senshi, Endymion and me to Earth to be reborn in the distant future. So here we are now."

Ignika let this sink in his head a bit. To do something like sending people into the future, that 'queen' must have had a lot of power. Or no, it was this special crystal that had the power. But still, to be able to use it must have required tremendous mental discipline. He wondered what had happened to the crystal, before another question popped up in his head and he turned to Chibiusa:

"But what about you? You aren't a girl reborn from the past, are you?"

Chibiusa giggled. "No, I'm exactly the other way around. I'm a girl born in the future sent to the past." Seeing Ignika's very confused stare, she explained: "In ten centuries from now, an Ice Age will occur on this planet. And after it ends, Earth will once again be united as a Kingdom, with the magnificent capital city of Crystal Tokyo. And the rulers will be Neo Queen Serenity and King Endymion. Who are currently known as Usagi Tsukino and Mamoru Chiba."

Ignika looked at Usagi: "So you'll be the 'queen' like your mother?"

"Indeed. And Chibiusa will be the Princess. Princess Small Lady Serenity." She looked at the pink-haired girl lovingly and stroked her hair.

Ignika's brows furrowed in confusion. "Wait... So your mother was a 'queen', and you were a 'princess'... And in ten centuries you'll be a 'queen', and Chibiusa a 'princess'..." He gasped as the realization dawned on him. "You don't mean...?"

"Yep." Usagi casually said and put her hand on Chibiusa's shoulder. "Chibiusa is my future daughter."

Ignika's jaw simply dropped. This was a matter of time travel, and though no Saurian of Time existed, he knew the timestream was not something to be messed with. Wasn't this current situation dangerous? Then again, he realized, Setsuna was the guardian of time, wasn't she? And she didn't seem to mind Chibiusa's presence at all, so it probably was okay. He decided to not further think about it. This world was weird, and this only proved it once again.

"I guess that explains why are your powers so similar, then..." Ignika said slowly.

Usagi smiled. "I guess so. Now, to answer your original question... What you have seen is our Queen and Princess forms and powers. We can't normally access them like we can transform into Senshi, they only come in hour of dire need. Kinda like symbiosis."

"I see..." It was still hard to process at the moment. Then he suddenly remembered something else. "By the way, Chibiusa, you never mentioned that you are only a hundred years younger than me."

"Well, I didn't really see the need to..." Chibiusa twirled a strand of hair with her finger.

"But, don't you humans age faster than that? Even if you aged at the Saurian speed, you'd be very old by now." Ignika looked at the girl curiously.

Chibiusa frowned and looked at the ground. "In the future humans will gain access to eternal life. They'll age normally to about 25 years old, and then stop aging. And me... I stopped aging at six. And I just couldn't grow up. I hated it, and that led to horrible consequences..." She fell silent.

Ignika wanted to ask what sort of consequences, but the look in her eyes and the silence she had fallen into told him that she probably didn't want to relive it, so he left it at that. Though, one last question remained:

"You do look older than six now…"

"Yes, and I'm really glad about it." Chibiusa smiled, happy about not having to explain. "I began growing up rapidly once I finally obtained my Senshi form. Not too fast, though, only about twice normal human speed. I'm 902 years old now, and already look like a ten year old." She happily explained.

"I see…" the Child of Life muttered, not really knowing what else to say. It was a lot of new things about his human allies that he had to take in. Add to that that they already had to deal with a lot earlier, and he could be forgiven for having a reeling mind. Shaking his head a few times, the disguised Saurian skipped on ahead to walk with his oldest sister.

Soon enough, they reached the edge of Angonce's domain, and Crast teleported them all away, back to the park.

* * *

The sky was already getting dark when the company arrived back to Tokyo. Somehow, looking at something as normal as the park felt strange and alien after witnessing the magnificent Garden of the Great Being's Mansion. All of the Senshi and Saurians had a lot on their mind, and most of them desired to get home, where they could rest and think about everything they have learned in peace and quiet.

Usagi and Chibiusa were the first ones to take their leave, hastily saying goodbye as soon as they looked at the time. "Ikuko-mama will kill us if we're late for dinner today!" Usagi explained as they dashed off towards the exit. The rest of the Senshi weren't in such a hurry, so they calmly walked together, enjoying the evening breeze.

Gravitas and Ami were walking in front of the group. Gravitas looked indifferent and emotionless as usual, and Ami was lost in thoughts.

"You're quiet," Gravitas said.

Ami snapped out of her thoughts: "Oh, sorry... I was just thinking about symbiosis."

"What about it?" The emotionless Saurian asked.

"Well... Remember that Biology book you read?" Ami asked.

The result she got was a bit unexpected – Gravitas furrowed her brows trying to figure out _which_ Biology book Ami meant. There were quite a few...

Ami chuckled. "The textbook for students of medical universities, second tome."

"Ah." None of the words made any sense for Gravitas, but now she could at least understand what book Ami meant. After all, that gibberish was written on the title page right under the title. "So what of it?"

"Well, you read the chapter about instincts... And you probably remember the paragraph about animals raised by humans remembering their forgotten instincts once in the wild and never forgetting them anymore."

"I do." Came the reply.

"So I was wondering... If symbiosis is also a forgotten instinct... Perhaps now that we, sort of, remembered how to do it, we can do it again by will?"

Gravitas mused over the statement for a while. "Sounds plausible. But I'd rather not test it out."

"Why?" Ami raised her eyebrow.

"We don't know if we can control this power. Last time it controlled us. Also, it leaves us drained. Thus I wouldn't try anything like that without supervision."

"I see... I guess you're right." Ami sighed.

Elsewhere, Chameleon and Makoto were walking together, and they too were both lost in thought. The disguised Saurian wasn't usually one for deep thoughts, but he had to admit that this time it was required. This symbiosis master Angonce had spoken of seemed very intriguing, and from what Ami and Gravitas had told him, it was powerful enough to defeat an Immoral One. He wondered if he too, could gain such a power. Probably, as it was a sleeping instinct in every Saurian and human. But he'd need a partner for it. Ami and Gravitas had managed to pull it of, and they lived together. Maybe he and Makoto could do it then, too?

The Saurian of Chameleon glanced at his human host. Though he had known her for only a few days, he already had come to see her in a totally different light than when they first met. When he first laid eyes on her, he found her weird and ugly, like every human seemed to him. But he was human himself now, or at least partly, and it had influenced his way of thinking. He no longer looked at her like an alien creature, but like he would look at a Saurian female: a curious look that studied her appearance.

And when he looked at her like that, she was okay. He had seen some other human females when walking through the 'streets' and boy was he happy he lived with her. At least she was athletic, tall and strong. And the color of her hair was nice. Add to that that she made delicious meals, and Chameleon found himself liking the Senshi of Lightning very much. She had become a good friend in such a little amount of time. At least to him, he didn't know what Makoto thought of him. Humans took so much more time with everything, after all, including forming friendships.

Just then, Makoto noticed his glance and looked back at him. "Hmm? Something wrong?"

"Huh? Oh, it's nothing, just thinking." Chameleon replied.

"I see." Mako nodded. "Well, I've been thinking, too... And came to the conclusion that you should train Haruka in sword-fighting."

Chameleon raised his eyebrow. "Why me? Not that I mind, you Senshi really need help with close combat."

"Oh, it's quite simple." Makoto replied. "Haruka's Space Sword, despite being called that, is actually pretty short, and is closer to your daggers than to Nightmare's katana. Besides, Haruka tends to rush head on, and teaching her some evasion techniques would come in handy. And I can't imagine anybody being better at it than you." She smiled widely at her guest.

Like Chameleon, Makoto was beginning to like her guest. There were things she liked about him from the start – honesty and being ready to rush into action whenever the need or chance occurs. And while living with him, no matter how short that was, she realized that he was gentle and even polite – in his own way of course. But he never missed the chance to help Makoto with housework or cooking – even though the only thing Mako allowed him so far was peeling vegetables. And it was very strange to have someone to help you after living so much on her own. Strange, but welcome.

And while the two were figuring out their feelings and talking to Haruka about her training, Minako walked alone, as Nightmare decided to enjoy the long-awaited chance of being away from the stupid love dove for as long as possible.

Minako sighed. The words she heard Nightmare say at the meeting... Not really hurt her, but she felt guilty and somewhat ashamed for not giving Nightmare enough attention. Not that it was an easy thing to start with, after all, she was a slightly unstable spunky teenager with Fear-based powers who loved to annoy and anger everybody with her snide remarks, but still... Nightmare was entrusted to her, and she had to make her stay at Earth worthwhile.

"But what can I possibly teach her?" Minako thought. "I mean, I have never been the one to like studying, let alone teaching... Besides, it's not like she'll want to study, anyway. She's a 13 years old human girl, with her hormones just kicking in..."

Suddenly, Minako stopped dead in her tracks. "Wait... Hormones?" She thought, then slapped her forehead. "Of course! That's why she's always so moody and quick to anger!" She sighed, relieved. "Thankfully, I know how to deal with that."

It was simple, really. Sport was always an excellent way to work out whatever inner turmoil hormones put you through. Nightmare knew that herself – if not consciously, then definitely somewhere deep inside her mind – what with chasing Minako and Artemis all around the house or going all-out in that training battle. Nightmare needed an activity, a different and more constructive way of using her energy.

"And I know just the perfect thing for that." Minako nodded, satisfied, to herself, and went ahead to the park exit where the other Senshi and Saurians were already waiting.

* * *

**Next chapter: Of anime and Saurians!**

**

* * *

Review replies:**

SoulLoss: I'm glad you enjoyed the previous chapter! I had great fun writing it. As for my version of events, I think it could have happened. If Makuta can expell their inner darkness and drain the light of others, I'm sure the Great Beings, the indirect creators of the Makuta species, could do so, too. I hate to dissapoint, though, but Zyglak's not going to disappear for a while. So far I've written up to chapter 36, and we're only headed for the introduction of the second Immoral One yet. Zyglak is still quite far off. But when he appears, I promise it'll be with a bang. As for your filter, I only see one word crossed out. =)


	32. Of anime and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**32. Of anime and Saurians**

The next morning in Minako's house, Nightmare woke up at sunrise, as she was used to doing. Sure, in this world the natural rhythm of day and night didn't seem to matter anymore thanks to such things like fireless lights – lamps, she corrected herself – but the Saurian of Fear still saw no reason to ditch her natural instincts.

She sat up on the couch she was allowed to sleep in and threw the blanket of herself, not caring where it landed. Minako was used to messes in her house, anyway, and if it bothered the love dove, Nightmare reasoned that she just had to clean it up herself then. Because it certainly didn't bother Nightmare how her 'bed' looked when she wasn't sleeping in it.

The reptile-turned-human had to admit, though, that it was comfortable. More comfortable than any place she had slept in before. The 'pillow' was damn soft, and if it weren't for the disgusting flower motif, Nightmare would even have vocally admitted that she liked it. The blanket was warm and fuzzy, though she didn't get what it was made of. It felt unnatural, and it made her slightly uncomfortable. Not that she would ever admit that out loud, of course.

After stretching her arms and back, and letting out a lazy yawn, Nightmare got to her feet. She looked at the strange machine called a 'clock' on the wall. Minako had tried to explain her how humans measured time, but if it weren't for Artemis, Nightmare wouldn't have gotten it at all. She frowned. The 'big hand' was on the symbol that was supposed to stand for 'three', and the 'small hand' was on the symbol for 'six'. If her memory served her correct, 'six' in the morning meant it was still way too early for Minako to get up. Nightmare decided to not even bother trying to wake her host up. She wasn't really hungry or thirsty at the moment, anyway, and besides, she knew where to get such things by now.

So it was really just a question of finding something to occupy herself with until the silly love dove woke up. Nightmare debated to go outside, but then remembered the doors were locked and she had no idea how to open them. And love dove wouldn't like it if she wrecked her house. Not that Nightmare was afraid of Minako, oh no, but Minako might tell it to Ignika, and Ignika to Gravitas and then Gravitas would scold her and she hated it when Gravitas scolded her. There was no choice then: she'd stay inside. What to do, though? She was getting bored, and it was so silent in the house, aside from the ticking of the clock. At least outside there were birds.

Her eye fell on the machine Minako had called a 'television'. It was a fascinating thing, even for Nightmare. It was a box that basically allowed you to magically see into other, miniature sized worlds, without the people in those worlds knowing you were watching. Minako had tried to explain the technical details, but she lost Nightmare faster than one could say 'fear', so she kept it simple and told the Saurian it was just magic. But it was magic Nightmare had learned to use correctly. She hesitantly picked up the 'remote' from the table. It was another weird thing, but by pressing the buttons with numerical symbols on them, you could turn on the box and change what world to watch.

Feeling bold, Nightmare turned on the TV. After all, it wasn't as if Minako had forbidden her to use it on her own. What harm could watching do?

The 'screen' lit up, and Nightmare had to cover her ears for a moment. The volume seemed way too loud to her ears, which were far more sensitive than human, especially after the long silence before that. Cursing silently, she turned the volume down and started switching channels.

First three channels had nothing interesting. Humans, machines, scenery... But the fourth channel had caught her totally unprepared.

"What the?" Nightmare looked at the screen wide-eyed. Sure, looking into a miniature world was strange, but this was even stranger. 'Cause what she was seeing now definitely wasn't a human world.

First thing that struck her was that this world seemed... Flat. As if depth didn't exist there or something. Yet it still somehow had perspective, objects becoming larger or smaller gave that effect. Next, it was chaotic. Images seemed to change each other without any logic at all – and she didn't understand how could one shift view so much. What was even more weird, object colors changed. And there was this strange... 'singing' in the background. Only a little while later did Nightmare see a more or less normal image – a flat human girl walking in the rain of this flat world towards an equally flat guy. And then came the weird picture of that guy having... Wings?

"W... What the heck was that?" She wondered aloud as some invisible human off-screen was giving thanks to sponsors. But the next thing she heard and saw made her jaw drop even more:

"_The human whose name is written in this notebook... shall die."_

"WHAT THE HECK!" Nightmare nearly shouted. She couldn't stop watching as the scenes rapidly changed to a human female being assaulted by a group of males ("For mating?" - thought Nightmare briefly), the guy from before drawing symbols, then one of the males being killed by a huge car, and that guy saying:

"_The Death Note... It's for real!"_

Then came a scary, definitely inhuman being saying some gibberish about 'heaven nor hell' ("What a lovely smile." thought Nightmare), and then the image split in two – guy drawing symbols and humans dying at the same time. He was talking about 'passing righteous judgement'...

"_And I... I will become the God of this new world!"_

Blue-green screen, symbols, silence.

With shaking hands Nightmare reached for the remote and turned the TV off.

The Saurian of Fear was afraid. She hated to admit it, but she was. She wasn't sure what the heck she had just seen, but it beggared belief. Strange, flat humans, inhuman beings with lovely smiles, a book that killed if you drew symbols in it, males trying to force females into mating… It was unreal. It was scary. What if such things could happen here, too? What if somebody didn't like her and wrote her name in that book? She'd just die, without being able to do anything about it! Slightly less worse was the fact that in that strange world she had seen, people – okay, weird people, but still – were being killed by a madman who thought himself a Great Being. What if that madman came to this world? What if he met Zyglak, or they teamed up, or…?

Panicking, Nightmare fled up the stairs of the house and barged inside Minako's room, not caring one bit that she damaged the door and was making one hell of a ruckus. She shook, pulled and beat the still snoozing love dove, screaming at her to wake up.

"Get up, love dove! Damn it, get up, you silly twit! Somebody's going to kill me!"

"OW!" Minako woke up after a particularly nasty tug on her hair, only to find herself still shaken and beaten by the Saurian. "Hey, stop that right now, you're gonna kill me before whoever does that to you!"

Nightmare seemed to become aware of that, as she let go, but nevertheless, she continued screaming: "There's a madman out there who can kill us all with a notebook!"

"Huh?" Minako's eyes widened.

"I've seen it, love dove, I've seen it with my own eyes in that TV box! A madman killed a whole bunch of humans in that weird flat world! Drawing symbols in a book! Do you know what that means!" Nightmare kept on screaming, clenching her fists to prevent herself from clinging to Minako and shaking her again.

"Wait, wait, wait... Flat world? In the TV?" Minako asked as calmly as she could. At first she was scared when Nightmare woke her up like this, but as she started talking, Minako understood what was wrong.

"Yes! And..." Nightmare stopped and was silent for a moment. "Why are you so calm about it?" She asked quietly.

"First of all, you should calm down yourself." Minako got out of the bed. "What you've seen isn't real. And once you calm down, I'll explain. Let's go to the kitchen."

Nightmare was still panicking, but seeing her host act calm still calmed her down a bit, too. Minako might be air-headed, but if her guest was really in danger, even she would realize that and act accordingly. So Nightmare willingly followed her host to the kitchen and accepted the tea. Nightmare had drunk tea once before. She liked the drink, but only if there was a lot of sugar in it. Minako knew this, and had fixed it accordingly. The Saurian of Fear's hand was shaking a bit as she held her cup, but once she had taken a few big gulps of her tea, she somehow calmed down a bit more. Unbeknownst to her, the tea had some calming herbs in it.

Minako sat down across from Nightmare and looked at her guest. "Poor girl..." She thought. She knew that sooner or later Nightmare would come across an anime, even planned to show her something herself, but this was way too soon and way to hardcore. Death Note is definitely not fit for children and Saurians with their tender untainted psychic.

After Nightmare had finished her tea, Minako said: "Well, I can totally understand why you were scared, but I assure you, there's nothing that threatens you, or anybody else in this world for that matter. Well, except for Zyglak."

"B... But I have seen those weird flat people being killed in the TV!" Nightmare looked back at Minako with scared eyes.

Minako sighed. "Those people and the rest of the world is flat because none of it is real. They're just moving drawings, nothing more."

"Moving drawings? How the heck does that work? You're making no sense!" Nightmare shouted.

"No, for once, I am." Minako got up. "Wait here, I'll get something and show you."

Minako quickly went upstairs and grabbed her Biology notebook from the table. She was bored once (or twice, or thrice... Heck, every Biology was boring) and drew something that will perfectly explain how moving pictures work.

Nightmare's eyes widened as she saw the notebook, but she quickly calmed down. It was green, not black. And love dove wouldn't want to kill her, now would she? "Considering how I've been acting..." She thought fearfully. But quickly tried to shake it off.

"Look here." Minako put the notebook on the table. "Pictures moving is actually and illusion that's created when many slightly different pictures go after one another in a very fast pace. Something like this." She took the bottom left corner of the notebook and let the pages fall fast, revealing to the astonished Saurian a pencil flower opening up.

She could barely believe it, but the proof was right before her eyes. Nightmare sighed relieved. "So, it was just a lot of pictures? An illusion? Not real?"

"Yep. None of it. As for sounds, they're recorded separately. And what you heard is just a story somebody else thought up." Minako smiled at her guest assuring and friendly.

"So it really can't hurt me?" the Saurian of fear inquired carefully.

"Nope, except for perhaps giving you nightmares... But no real physical threats." Minako was happy Nightmare understood. After all, she could have a much harder time convincing her everything is okay.

"Nightmares?" the transformed reptile repeated, her face suddenly confused and no longer panicked, and there was a strange gleam in her eyes. "Are you kidding me? Now that I know it's not real, I think it's great! It was very interesting, and I love that weird dude with his pleasant smile. What's it called? And can I look at that world again? I wanna know how it goes on!"

"Ehh..." Was the only thing Minako could say.

"How did she calm down so fast?" thought the astonished Senshi. But the initial shock vanished fast: "Oh, right. Teenage hormones, mood swings... And motherwort works really well on Saurians." Minako smiled at her guest and said:

"Well, let's go watch it now, before it's over."

The Saurian of Fear didn't need to be told twice. She eagerly ran back to the living room, jumped on the couch and turned on the TV. To her relief, the flat world was still on the screen, though there was no sign of the madman... Nor of the smiling dude.

"Jeez, I sure hope they'll be shown again..." Nightmare thought aloud as Minako came over. "What's the idea behind killing humans, anyway?"

Minako sat next to the Saurian and said: "He thinks that by ridding the world of all the bad people who commit crimes like killing or stealing, he'll build a perfect world without crime, pain and injustice. A good world for good people."

Nightmare frowned as she thought about that. At first, the idea seemed nice, but when the Saurian of Fear gave it a bit more thought, she found that there were flaws in the idea. After all, the 'perfect world' would be build by blood, and why she wasn't averse to killing, she'd hardly call a world that came to be through killing 'perfect'. And also, how far did you go in dealing out death? Was every crime worth death? Granted that Nightmare knew little of human crime, but even Saurians sometimes stole and killed. But if for example one had to choose between stealing and starving, wouldn't stealing be a more logical choice then? And was it really a crime then, instead of an act of desperation coming from the urge to survive? She shook her head. She was thinking too much about this, but Nightmare did realize that there was no way the madman was making a perfect world.

Minako watched the Saurian's expressions change as she was thinking. "So you see, the situation isn't simple. On one hand, he's doing a good thing by ridding the world of filth, but on the other hand, he's a killer like any other. So there are people who support him, and those who are against him..."

"_Ryuk, you should check this out..."_

"Oh, here they are!" Nightmare jumped, landing on her knees on the couch and pointed at the screen, grinning from ear to ear. Minako sighed, sweatdropping, and shrugged.

As the madman was showing Ryuk something on computer and talking nonsense, Nightmare asked with stars in her eyes: "Isn't this guy dreamy? Sure, he's freaky, tall, weird eyes, but man, what a smile!"

"_Legend of Kira the Savior... Huh, sounds pretty cool."_

"Pretty cool?" Thought Nightmare.

"Wait, wait, wait... So you actually like Ryuk?" Minako's eyes widened.

"Yeah!" Nightmare looked at her host. "Don't you agree he's nice?"

"Uhhh... I guess... but I find Light way more attractive, sorry." Minako replied.

Nightmare sat on the couch normally again, leaned back and sighed: "Ah, whatever, you humans have no sense of beauty, anyway."

The two girls sat in silence as they listened to Light talking about people afraid to show their true feelings in public, but doing so on the Internet, because there they're anonymous. It was pretty interesting for Nightmare, despite half of it being gibberish, but she had more important matters to discuss.

"Hey, love dove, what is Ryuk, anyway? Definitely not a human, and he's nothing like any creature I've seen before." Nightmare looked at her host, eagerly waiting for an answer.

"Well, Ryuk is a Shinigami, a God of Death, who exists for the sole purpose of writing people's names in the Death Note." Minako explained. "He got bored of the Shinigami world, and dropped a Death Note into the human world, where Light found it. Ryuk is very cunning, 'cause he fooled the Great God of Death himself to get a second Death Note, while they are usually allowed to possess only one."

"Wow." Nightmare's eyes widened. "What else do you know about him?"

Minako shrugged. "Well, nothing really, except that he loves apples."

"Apples?" The Saurian repeated, confused.

"Apples. It's a fruit." Minako explained.

"Oh. And do we have apples, love twit?" Nightmare asked.

"Sure. Should I bring you one?" But before Nightmare could answer, something else happened on the screen:

"_I head up an international police task force which includes all member nations. I am Lind L. Tailor, otherwise known as L."_

"Who's L?" Nightmare asked, confused by the gibberish.

"Ah, that's Kira's arch-nemesis." Seeing the confused glance, Minako explained: "Number one enemy. A detective set on finding and executing Kira no matter the cost."

"Then he's foolish if he shows his name and face so openly on TV. Light can kill him right away!" Nightmare laughed.

Minako grinned wickedly. "Watch and see."

Soon enough, Lind L. Tailor said something that made Light go mad, go on an impressive ramble about him being justice and becoming the god of the new world. Light wrote his name, and he dropped dead.

"See? What did I tell you?" Nightmare grinned, but then a huge "L" symbol appeared on the screen. "Huh?"

"_Kira... It seems you can kill people without being there in person. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't just witnessed it."_

Nightmare watched with her jaw dropped as the unknown human with a really weird voice told things that showed he's way ahead of Light, giving him a blow after a blow.

"_Well, Kira, it seems that you can't kill me after all."_

It seemed like an unreal game between the two individuals, where Kira had just fallen into his first trap. But what Nightmare liked even more, is that Ryuk was laughing while L so brilliantly interfered with Light's plans and explained his thoughts and reasons. Finally, L finished.

"_Let's meet again, Kira..."_

"Whoa. L is so freaking... Clever! Gravitas would love that guy." Nightmare said, her eyes wide.

"You think?" Minako raised her eyebrow.

"Yeah. She does have emotions, love dove, she just doesn't show them." The Saurian of Fear explained.

"_Each of them has to hunt the other down without knowing the other's name of face... And the first one whose identity is revealed will die. Humans are... So much fun!"_

Nightmare laughed: "Can't disagree with you there, Ryuk. If they thought this up, they're definitely fun!"

Then the fun was interrupted by another dark-green screen with symbols, and a song started, accompanied by moving images and symbols.

"Huh? What's that?" Nightmare frowned.

"It means this episode is over." Minako took the newspaper lying nearby and opened it at the TV program page. "And the next one will be shown this evening. Or you can watch it the next morning, like you did today."

"This evening, definitely!" Nightmare answered firmly. "This universe is very interesting, and since it's not real and can't hurt me, anyway, I want to see more of this, as soon as possible! You better not make me miss the next part, love dove!"

The Saurian of Fear leaned back in the couch and stared thoughtfully at the now turned-off TV. She had shown a lot of excitement and happiness, right in front of love twit. As of such, Minako would now know that Nightmare could be nice and happy, too. That was unfortunate, but it couldn't be helped. She liked this story about this 'Death Note', and to be fully honest, she was actually relieved that she had found something she liked in this weird human world. Now, she wasn't the oddity among her family anymore.

Nightmare got off the couch and stretched. "It's still such a long time before it's evening, though..."

Minako grinned. "Oh, don't worry, I have an idea of how to pass the time."

"Oh?" The Saurian raised her eyebrow.

"Yep. Trust me, you'll love it. Maybe not as much as Death Note, but it definitely would be fun." Minako promised her Saurian guest.

* * *

**Next chapter: Of sports and Saurians!**

**

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	33. Of sports and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**33****. Of sports and Saurians**

"Tell me again, love dove... Just WHAT THE HECK are we doing here?" Nightmare asked as they entered the... 'gym' as Minako called it.

"Why, giving you an activity to pass time when you're bored, or waiting for a new episode of Death Note." Minako grinned.

To Nightmare the gym was a strange building for sure. For one thing, it was the biggest one she had seen yet in terms of space. She wondered why humans would leave so much empty space, because they seemed so bent on putting a lot of objects in one room. If it was up to Nightmare, she'd throw most of the stuff at Minako's house away as soon as possible. Except for the TV, perhaps.

Nightmare continued observing the gym. The rectangular room wasn't entirely empty – two smaller walls had some sorts of ladders attached to them, and above each of those was a metallic structure with a square, painted piece of wood attached to it, which in turn had a ring with a net attached. Nightmare had no clue what it was supposed to be used for. Also, Nightmare noticed the huge net hanging between the two poles in the middle of the room.

"What is a fishing net doing here?" she thought.

The last things that struck her as weird was the floor. It was colored blue and red, and had weird lines painted on it, seemingly dividing it into zones. All in all, it made her very confused.

"So... What exactly is this activity? And why the heck does it need to take place in a huge room like this?" The Saurian teenager asked, glaring at Minako. The Solider of Love had changed her outfit – now she was wearing what Nightmare could only describe as a very tight-fitting short tunic with no sleeves, and very, very short pants. She also had footwear not too unlike Nightmare's.

"Well, as I told you before, it's a game." Minako explained as she went to the corner of the room. "It's played by two teams with six people in each, on a specially designed court like this one." She took a ball from the bag that was lying in the corner. "Each team gets one side of the playing field, and the goal of the game is..." She came over to Nightmare and made the ball spin on her finger. "...to get the ball to hit the ground of the opponent's side for 25 times."

"And that's supposed to be fun?" the Saurian sneered, an eyebrow raised.

"Not when I tell about it, apparently," Minako chuckled. "Besides, it isn't as easy as it seems. Because you aren't allowed to actually hold the ball."

Nightmare frowned upon hearing this. "What? Why?" It seemed to make little sense to her. If the goal was to get the ball hit the ground twenty-five times, why complicate things with rules like that? Then again, the teenager realised, these were humans. They made even eating complicated.

"_That_ is what makes the game fun." Minako said proudly. "You're limited to a determined set of moves to get the ball flying as you need it to fly. It requires skill and practice. Plus it's a team activity, so you need to know your partners' and enemies' strong and weak points. The game is more than just tossing the ball – it's a competition of skills, teamwork, and tactics. Plus it's a very active game, and by the end of a proper training session, you're completely drained and covered in sweat, so you need to bring along at least one spare shirt. Sports really help with emotional problems, you know." The last sentence was spoken on a low tone, as if Minako meant it to be only about herself.

"I still don't see how this can be more fun than sparring," Nightmare replied with her arms crossed.

Minako sweatdropped. "Having weapons is illegal in this country, unless you have a special license... I suppose I could take you to fencing lessons, but those have even more rules, and I don't know a thing about it."

"We could just spar with each other again, love dove! You need the training," the Saurian of Fear shot back angrily.

"Then let's make a deal. I give you training in volleyball, and then we have another sparring. But only after you've got the hang of the basics," Minako said teasingly with a glitter in her eyes.

Nightmare growled and glared at her host, but nonetheless nodded. "Fine! I'll kick your sorry ass at this shitty game so hard even master Angonce couldn't heal it anymore!"

Minako laughed. "I'd love to see you try. Now..." Minako took the ball in her both hands and walked away to have some distance between her and Nightmare. "There are three moves which you have to learn to be able to play at a beginner's level. The overhead pass..." She tossed the ball in the air and hit it with her fingers to make it fly high straight above her head several times. "The bump pass..." Without taking hold of the ball, she changed her position, put her fists together and hit the ball with her outstretched forearms. She did this several times, too, with the ball flying smoothly and predictably. "And the underhand serve. But I'll show you that later, after you get a hang of these two. Try it." Minako tossed the ball to Nightmare with an overhead pass.

Nightmare caught the ball with ease, catching things thrown at her was nothing new, though the way Minako passed it to her was new. The Saurian of Fear studied the round object in her hands curiously. The material it was made of felt strange and familiar at the same time. Leathery, yet at the same time not really. Shrugging, she made to do the first move Minako had shown. She threw the ball and hit it with her fingers, but instead of it coming straight up and back down, like with Minako, it flew away from her. The Saurian frowned. What had she done wrong? What did she do wrong that love dove could do correct?

"Not that easy, huh?" Minako smiled compassionately. "Try it a few more times, and then I'll tell you how to do it properly."

Growling, Nightmare retrieved the ball and tried to make the move again and again. But no matter how hard she tried to guess what's wrong, the ball kept flying at random directions, mostly behind her back. It was simply frustrating, and she had no choice but to admit defeat, no matter how much she hated to do it.

"Jeez... I give up, love dove, tell me how to handle this stupid ball!" Nightmare shouted.

Minako nodded and came over to the Saurian. "Gimme the ball..." Having taken it, she started explaining: "There are two tricks to this move: first is to position the fingers correctly. See?" She showed Nightmare how the fingers are supposed to be positioned while handling the ball. "The second trick is to tense your fingers correctly upon contact. If they're too relaxed, the ball will fly backwards over your head. Some people usually have trouble with positioning and moving their arms correctly, too, but you got that right."

"Feh. I knew there was some trick to it. There's no way I couldn't have done something as simple as that." She took the ball in her hands, tossed it up, and hit it. It took her a couple of times to learn just how much she isn't supposed to relax her fingers, but once she got it right, effortlessly did fifteen overhead passes in a row. It didn't avoid her keen Saurian eyes that Minako hasn't been exactly standing still while showing her the moves. In fact, she shifted her position a bit every time in order to hit the ball at the right point and send it to a right direction. Doing the same was easy for the Saurian.

Nightmare caught the ball, looking smug. "Well, love dove, does this count for learning the first move?"

Minako chuckled. "Not exactly. You need to learn to send the ball not only directly above your head, but in other directions as well. But that should be easy now."

Minako was amazed by the Saurian's learning speed, but by now it proved to be the norm among their kind. They adapted, and adapted fast, it was necessary for their survival. Still it was amazing to see her perfectly making a move that would take no less than two or three trainings for a human to get right, and even more to master.

Minako went over to Nightmare and took the ball again. "Now that you've learned how to hit the ball correctly, you can alter the distance and height you fly it to." She faced the wall with the windows opposite of her, and tossed the ball so that it hit the ground right on the border line. "This is a necessity to play the game, as you need to toss the ball both to your teammates and to the opponent's side as an attack move. You also need to be sure that the ball flies as you intend it to." She went to pick up the ball and turned around, coming closer to Nightmare but still remaining on a good distance. "We'll now practice together. I'll pass the ball to you, and you pass it back to me. Got it?"

Nightmare snorted. "I'm not hatchling, love twit. Of course I get it! You weren't this smug and confident when it was me in the teacher's place!" The Saurian grinned a feral grinned and readied herself. She was getting into a competitive mood now. The game itself didn't interest her much, but she wanted to wipe that smile of her host's face. No, she wouldn't be bested by love twit, she flat-out refused to.

Minako grinned back at the Saurian. "That's the spirit! Now, get it!" Minako passed the ball...

The ball was intended to fall behind Nightmare, but the Saurian noticed the trajectory, and did a couple of steps back in advance. In return Nightmare sent the ball directly at Minako's face – which the Senshi also had noticed, taking a few steps forward and tossing the ball back before it reached the intended height. The Senshi sent the ball to the left of Nightmare, making her run to catch it before it fell. The Saurian did reflect the ball, but instead of going towards Minako, it went straight ahead and hit the wall.

"One point for me." Minako smiled.

"What! But it was you who failed to catch it!" Nightmare shot angrily.

"True, but we aren't playing the game now, we're practising the moves." Minako explained. "Besides, if the ball hits the wall or any zone outside this line..." She pointed at the border line. "... the point goes to the enemy of whoever sent the ball there. Same goes if it hits the ceiling."

"Stupid, idiotic rules..." the Saurian of Fear growled, before getting in a stance again and letting out a low hiss. "Alright, love twit, let's do this again!"

Several minutes later, when the score was 4:3 (Minako leading), the Senshi of Venus caught the ball with her hands instead of tossing it back at Nightmare.

"That'll be enough for now." Minako smiled at her guest.

"Hey! It's not fair to interrupt like that! You didn't give me a chance to beat you!" Nightmare crossed her arms on her chest. She was just beginning to like the game, after all, it was quite competitive, and now it so abruptly ended.

"Don't worry, you'll get your chance. I was just thinking I should teach you the second move now." Minako made the ball spin on her finger again. "And since I caught the ball in my hands without warning, you can have the point. 4:4, we're at a tie."

Nightmare crossed her arms and snorted, but kept her mouth shut. It went against her competitive nature to leave things at a tie. She was used to competitions, such as battles, where there could only be a winner and a loser, no room for ties. One had to go for a full victory, always. But on the other hand, maybe if she put her feelings aside for now and learned this next move, she'd have a better chance at beating Minako. She hated the fact that the Senshi of Love was better at it than she was.

"Fine. Teach me, love dove."

"Alright. To make a bump pass, put your hands like this," Minako showed her guest how to do it. "Stretch your arms out, and hit the ball with both of them." She then did several bump passes, making the ball fly directly above her. "Make sure the ball hits only your forearms, though, or it will fly in a wrong direction. And keep your arms as tensed as possible, otherwise the ball can hit too hard and leave a bruise."

"Feh. Bruises don't scare me one bit, love dove. Gimmie the ball." The Saurian of Fear seemed eager to learn this move and rub that stupid annoying smile off Minako's face. Hmm… Maybe she should hit the love dove with the ball a couple of times? Nightmare grinned ferally. Oh yes, that would be perfect.

Unaware of Nightmare's murderous intent, Minako smiled and… Tossed the ball with her right hand from behind her back over her left side, hoping to catch the Saurian by surprise.

Nightmare had picked up that the smile wasn't Minako's usual smile right away, and had concluded from that that her host was up to something. So she wasn't caught off guard when Minako tossed the ball in an unexpected way, and the Saurian of Fear caught it with one hand without flinching or moving one foot.

"Nice try, love twit, but you can't catch me off guard. I've got eons of experience training my reflexes," Nightmare snapped, sounding bored and unimpressed. Taking absolute delight in the slight pout appearing on Minako's face, the reptile-turned-human proceeded to try out the move the Senshi of Love had just demonstrated.

Minako chuckled and smiled at her again. "Next time when I toss you the ball, try to make a move on it right away instead of catching. Otherwise your reflexes might be a hindrance in the game." Having made this comment, Minako continued watching the Saurian's struggle with the ball.

It wasn't going that bad from Minako's point of view. Sure, the ball often flew to the sides, or behind Nightmare's back, or hit the ceiling, but it was alright. She'd get the hang of it.

"Hey, Nightmare."

"WHAT!" The Saurian glared at her.

"Toss me the ball and watch my stance closely." Upon receiving the ball, Minako immediately proceeded showing the move. "See how my legs are positioned? Also, you don't have to hit the ball so hard. Work on accuracy, and on altering the height." Minako showed it a few more times. "If you just hit the ball with full force, you'll break the ceiling, and it definitely won't do us any good."

Nightmare growled. This teaching and the tone Minako did it in were annoying beyond belief. But nevertheless Nightmare followed the given advice, and after several more tries did the move correctly.

"What now, love twit?" The Saurian glared at her host.

"Now comes the part you'll like again. We'll be tossing each other the ball with both moves. It's quite simple – when the ball flies high, use overhead pass, when it flies low – the bump pass." Minako smiled with a glitter in her eyes. "Now, was the score… 5:4 when we finished?"

"WHA…? W… HOW?" Nightmare couldn't even breathe properly upon hearing this kind of atrocity. Was this love dove really so stupid or she was openly cheating?

Minako laughed loudly. "Relax, I was just kidding. 4:4, a tie."

The Saurian scowled and thought: "You'll pay for these jokes, love dove."

Minako threw the ball in the air and tossed it towards Nightmare with an overhead pass. Nightmare reflected it, alright, but the aim was deadly. If it weren't for years of Minako's experience, her face would now be one big bruise. But Minako managed to step back and dodge it just in time to send the ball back at Nightmare with a bump pass. Nightmare growled and sent the ball flying high towards the ceiling, which it hit, and flew back down straight at Minako's head… Only to be reflected with an overhead pass, and caught by Minako.

"Point for me." The Senshi of Love declared.

"WHAT!" Nightmare's eyes almost bulged out of their sockets.

"Don't you remember what I said? Hitting the ceiling or an area beyond the border line gives a point to your enemy." Minako frowned. "And anyway, why were you directing the ball as if you wanted to kill me?"

"Because I was trying to do just that," Nightmare answered darkly, her voice a low, dangerous growl. Oh how she wished she didn't have to obey all those silly little rules. And why couldn't she get in just one measly little hit? Just one. The Saurian of Fear let out another feral growl. If she wanted that ball to hit Minako's face, she'd have no choice but to put all her strength after it. No holding back now. She didn't care if the building or anything got damaged. She wanted Minako to stop looking so smug. It infuriated her. Nightmare hated Minako being better at something than she was. Some would call that petty, but if any of the Saurian's family had been there, they would have shrugged and shaken their heads. Because they knew that was the kind of person Nightmare was. Quick to anger and annoy, extremely violent, extremely difficult to make friends, and always wanting to win and be the best.

Hearing the growls and looking at Nightmare… Well, scared Minako, to say the least. She realized that she might have overdone it with the training if it made Nightmare so angry. And an angry Nightmare was very dangerous. So she tried to do a logical thing – back off while it's not too late.

"You know what. Maybe we should quit for today." Minako said in a low, even tone, which still gave away some of her fear. "We've been training for more than an hour, and you've made amazing progress… But if you can't see it as nothing more than a game and take teasing so seriously… It's better to quit."

"Eh? Wha? Quit?" Nightmare seemed more surprised than mad. "No way, love twit! I'm just getting into it! You can't just say in a battle that you're tired and expect to be allowed to walk away! You gotta finish what you've started, so that's what you and me are going to do!"

"I don't feel like getting hit in the face by a ball, Nightmare," Minako said meakly, hoping to calm the Saurian of Fear down a bit. She really was scary for the moment, and the bright sunny girl didn't like her companion that way at all.

Nightmare growled and got in a stance that looked as if she were getting ready to pounce on Minako, but to the Senshi's relief, her companion then visibly relaxed and let out a deep sigh. Nightmare snorted, rolled her eyes and crossed her arms, but her anger seemed to have vanished somewhat.

"It's not as if I was really going to kill you, idiot," she snapped. "I was going to try and hit you, that's all. Besides, it's good training for you, too. It'll teach you to be on your toes, as well as train your reflexes and reaction speed."

Minako sighed, relieved. "Well then, let's…" But she never got the chance to say what she wanted, because the gym door opened and someone else came in. A whole bunch of people, in fact.

"Hey, Minako-chan! Haven't seen you in a while." A tall brown-haired guy walked over to Minako, followed by another guy and seven girls. All the girls were wearing matching uniforms not unlike Minako's outfit with numbers on them. The guys were wearing a different uniform, consisting of a baggy t-shirt and baggy shorts.

Minako smiled brighter than ever at the guy who spoke to her and almost ran towards him. "Kyosuke! What a pleasant surprise. What are you doing here?" She turned to the other new people in the gym. "And hello to you all, too."

"Well, me and Masahiko were walking home from our soccer training, and saw the girls playing volleyball. And since the volleyball uniform looks so charming on young ladies, we couldn't resist a chance to watch girls at play." He glanced at the girls playfully, earning himself a lot of giggles.

Masahiko pushed his glasses up his nose, and finished: "But then it started to rain, so the girls decided to move indoors. We followed them. So now we're here."

Nightmare didn't know what to think when all these people came in. Their sudden appearance had startled her, though she succeeded well in hiding that. Now she was glaring at them in silence, extremely annoyed that they _dared_ to interrupt her and Minako's private battle for supremacy. She had heard those stupid males mention something about the girls playing volleyball, too. If she remembered correctly, volleyball was the silly name for this type of battles, Minako had told her that. But why did they have to do so here and now? She and Minako were busy here! From the looks of things, though, it didn't seem as if these people were going to leave quickly. And so Nightmare glared darkly at them in silence, now and then letting out a very low growl to show her irritation.

It was then that one of the girls noticed Nightmare. "Minako-chan, who's that?" She asked.

Minako paled a bit and glanced at Nightmare, seeing her irritation and hoping it won't turn to anger again. She could very well blow up their cover! So Minako quickly said:

"Oh, her? She's my cousin. Her parents went away on a business trip and left her in my care, but she's a real nightmare, so I had to skip school." She hoped that Nightmare would regard being called a nightmare as a compliment. "So, today we decided to play some volleyball, and came here."

"I see…" All the newcomers looked at Nightmare. She indeed looked like a difficult, if not hellish kid at this moment – what's with all the glares, dark face expression and crossed arms? It amused them how could a sunny girl like Minako have a cousin like that.

"And what's your name, young lady?" Kyosuke asked, smiling sweetly.

Nightmare inwardly frowned as she heard Minako lie. She, that love dove's cousin? As if! The thought alone was ridiculous and made her ill. On the other hand, she supposed Minako couldn't tell them that she was in truth a reptile from another dimension with the power of fear at her command, and that she was merely transformed to look like a human, but wasn't really one. Now she had another problem at her hand: this silly male had asked her name – on a sickly sweet tone – and Nightmare knew she couldn't just give her Saurian name. Otherwise, her family wouldn't have gotten human names. So what should she say? She glanced at Minako for help, but the idiotic love twit looked as nervous as she was. Nightmare suppressed the urge to sigh. And then, all of the sudden, an idea appeared in her head and she smirked.

"I am Kira."

That earned her a lot of confused glances and raised eyebrows – after all, she wasn't the only one aware of the existence of Death Note, but Minako quickly saved the day:

"Uh, yeah, her name is Kira. Kira Genkai. Her dad is European, you see, and so… Over there it's a nice normal name, hahahaha…" Minako laughed nervously and way too loud while rubbing the back of her head.

Somehow, this foolish act seemed to convince everybody things were alright.

"I see…" Masahiko smiled. "Is she a fan of Death Note, per chance?"

"How did you know, four-eyes?" Nightmare raised her eyebrow.

"So, anyway, do you wanna play with us?" A member of the volleyball team asked. "Kyosuke and Masahiko already decided to join us… What do you say?"

Minako paused and glanced at Nightmare, uncertain. "Well, I wouldn't mind, but Kira… We were already leaving, you see, so…"

"We were not." Nightmare raised her eyebrow at her host.

"Yes, we were." Minako glared at her guest. Didn't she understand that being around such a large company of humans was dangerous for her, especially if she lets her temper get better of her?

"Oh yeah?" Nightmare glared back.

Minako sighed. Apparently not. "Yeah. And if you behave like a good girl, I'll buy you a t-shirt with Ryuk on it."

The glare Nightmare sent Minako could incinerate even an Immoral One, or make the blood of even Gravitas run cold. It was that scary and filled with outrageous fury. A low, dangerous hiss escaped Nightmare's mouth before she was even aware of it, and she dangerously advanced on her 'cousin'. "Do. Not. Belittle. Me. In. Public," she snarled furiously. Nobody was allowed to speak to her like that when other people could hear it, nobody but her family, and even then it drove her mad. Nightmare growled again and looked ready to pounce on Minako right there and then.

Minako gulped and backed off a bit. "H-hey… K… Kira… I didn't mean it like that… I just thought I'd buy you something, and you really like Ryuk… How about a bag?" Yes, it was belittling and embarrassing, trying to bribe Nightmare like that, but what else could Minako do? She never had a sibling, and thought that promising to buy neat things could work anytime with anyone a few years younger than her.

Nightmare growled again, but then realized it was all futile. The love dove was so stupid she could make a worm seem like genius, but she at least tried. She sighed and shot Minako another murderous glare.

"Fine. It'll be a t-shirt. But once we get home, prepare to have your ass handled to you in at least thirty different ways." With that, she stormed out of the gym, not bothering to say goodbye to anyone.

All the people stared at the Senshi of Love. "God damn it, Minako, just _how_ do you deal with her every day?" Kyosuke asked wide-eyed.

"Barely." Minako admitted. "But it's not that hard, she seldom gets this mad. Just an unlucky day."

Minako got a lot of sympathetic looks from her friends and teammates. She smiled back at them, trying her best to look cheerful. "Well, I'll be going now, before Kira wrecks something. See ya all!" Having said that, she went towards the exit.

"Bye! Good luck, Minako-chan! Have a nice time surviving!" came various cries from behind her.

Minako turned back and smiled one last time at them, then left.

"What a weird couple." One of the girls said.

"Yeah…" Another one replied. The clapped her hands. "All right, don't waste time! We've got training to do!"

And so the day went on, with the volleyball team training, Nightmare being bent at making Minako suffer, and Minako figuring out how to survive the battle round two.

* * *

**Next chapter: Of shopping and Saurians!**

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Review replies:**

Chaser Warring on Everything: I'm sorry, but I personally don't think that's the case. While it may be true that the Senshi have no true connection to the Saurian cast or the villain, at least in the sense that Ignika and his family aren't senshi and Zyglak isn't some old enemy/evil senshi/incarnation of Chaos. But I don't think you could just replace the Senshi with just any other cast. I made a conscious decision to write this for the Sailor Moon universe, and tuned the story to meet that decision. I choose this fandom because it was best suited for the idea, and from the beginning I wrote Ignika, for example, like he is just so there was an obvious similarity to Hotaru in him. If you replaced the SM cast with any other, the personal connection and relationship between the OC cast and the canon cast would be lost, in my opinion. If this truly was a story that could be done in any fandom, I wouldn't have done it for SM, but instead for a fandom I'm more familiar with and more comfortable to write for. Of course, this is my opinion on your opinion, so I'm saying that in my eyes you're wrong, not that you ARE wrong as an undebatable fact. It's an opinion, and you're very much allowed to have it. =)

SoulLoss: Oh, I guarantee you that it was entertaining to write this chapter, too. I love writing about Nightmare and Minako situations, they're always so easy to do, they practically write themselves.


	34. Of shopping and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**34. ****Of shopping and Saurians**

The second day after their visit to the Great Being, Chameleon was sitting in Makoto's kitchen, watching his host prepare some 'breakfast' for the two of them. The disguised reptile was feeling happy and at peace, for reasons he couldn't even specify himself. He just felt great, and if he still had his tail, it would have been wagging to show just that. Despite having a strange feeling that told him today wouldn't be ordinary – as if any day spent in this world was ordinary – Chameleon remained unbothered and carefree. Delicious smells were filling the kitchen, and the Saurian of Chameleon felt his mouth water. Makoto really was fantastic when it came to meals, and there was no way he'd ever trade places with one of his sisters or even with his brother. He'd do anything for them, except for that.

Makoto, meanwhile, was very aware of Chameleon's happy impatience. She could feel him watching her back. Makoto smiled. It was really nice having someone to live with for a change. She stirred the contents of the pot once again and turned the cooker off. Today, Makoto was cooking millet porridge with raisins. Of course, being a Saurian, a predator, Chameleon wouldn't think much of it, but Mako made sure to make it as sweet as possible without being too sweet. And Chameleon had already learned not to judge human food by appearance.

After putting the plates neatly on the table, and noticing Chameleon's curious looks as he glanced at the meal, Mako asked:

"How is it?"

"Well, it certainly looks neat... And smells nice." Chameleon grinned. "How come you know how to make so many delicious meals?"

"Well, it sort of comes from my old sempai..." Makoto sighed and smiled sadly. Noticing Chameleon's confusion, she explained: "That's the guy I once loved. He, well..." Mako turned away. "He didn't like me being all tomboyish, athletic, strong and into martial arts... So I tried to become more feminine for him. Learning to cook was part of it. But in the end, he still left me, for a cute, petite, shy and lady-like beauty." She then shook her head and proceeded to take spoons out of a drawer.

Chameleon raised an eyebrow and snorted. "What kind of idiot is he, throwing away all this delicious food and a female like you for some weak female with no backbone who can't even take care of herself?" The Saurian shook his head and sighed. "You humans sometimes really make no sense. Who wants a mate who's like that? It'll only lead to offspring that can't take care of itself. Sheesh, honestly…"

Makoto chuckled loudly. It definitely wasn't an answer one would expect to get to such a confession, and it definitely was refreshing. Even... Assuring somehow.

"Well, as I told you already, we don't need to take care of survival. Or at least not as much as you Saurians. Nobody really thinks what the offspring will be like, as long as the people are happy and love each other... And I guess spineless cuties are easier to love than girls with an attitude..." She said, putting spoons on the table.

"He's still an idiot." Chameleon said, determined.

Makoto smiled. "Thanks... Now, let me get you some cocoa..." She then went to take the cup with cocoa she prepared for Chameleon in advance to let it cool off.

"I'll take it myself." Chameleon jumped up from his seat and went towards his host, but Makoto has already taken the cup and was turning...

CRASH!

Makoto has bumped into Chameleon, spilling cocoa all over the boy's t-shirt and dropping the cup.

For a moment both stared at the huge brown stain on the t-shirt, but then Mako came to her senses and said:

"Take it off, quickly, I need to wash the stain away while it's still fresh. Otherwise it might not wash off later." She commanded.

"I'm sorry…" Ignika's only brother muttered quietly, hoping he hadn't offended or angered Makoto. He really didn't want to do that, and he hurried to obey her command, seeing no problem in it whatsoever. He pulled the shirt over his head and handed it to the brown-haired Senshi.

"It's okay." Makoto said and took the t-shirt absentmindedly. She then looked up – and realized it was the first time she has seen a guy shirtless in a long while.

And it was certainly a nice sight to behold. Chameleon's skin had a neat shade of tan – it probably had to do with his scales color back when he was a reptile, since other family members were paler and differed in skin tone a bit, too. It was also smooth and perfect – without any traces of pimples normal for his age – which was also logical, as he didn't have to go through human puberty. All his muscles were neatly toned, but not overworked, and Mako couldn't help but let her gaze wander over them. Combined with a nice face and long brown hair, it sure made Chameleon an attractive guy.

Chameleon frowned when Makoto didn't immediately go wash his shirt, but instead seemed to stare at him. He found her gaze a bit unnerving, it was the type of stare he hadn't received before in his life. Deciding he had had enough, the Saurian of Chameleon waved a hand before Makoto's eyes.

"Ehm, Makoto, didn't you have to wash the stain?"

"Huh? Wha?" Makoto blinked several times. "Oh, yeah, right." She shook her head and hurried out of the kitchen.

Chameleon watched her go, rolled his eyes and asked himself: "What was that all about?"

Mako, meanwhile, turned the water in the bathroom sink on, and started washing the t-shirt. Cocoa washed away easily, since it hasn't yet even begun to dry. "Jeez... Why did I have to space out like that?" Mako thought and frowned. It wasn't like she hadn't seen bare-chested guys, after all, she and her old sempai had been together for a couple of years, and it wasn't all dates and postcards and presents. Besides, what person doesn't go to a beach from time to time, especially in an island country like Japan? Yet there she was, blushing like a schoolgirl, spacing out for no reason.

"Stupid..." Mako sighed. Then lifted the t-shirt to see if the stain's gone. It was, and Mako nodded approvingly to herself.

Wringing the t-shirt out, she thought: "Good thing it happened while I was here, otherwise..." Mako didn't finish her thought and put the t-shirt in the dryer, then looked at the machine thoughtfully.

"Hmm... Come to think of it, Chameleon doesn't have any spare clothes..." Makoto frowned. Of course, all of them were busy and had no time to buy clothes – but keeping a guy wearing the same t-shirt, socks and underwear for several days was... Definitely not good.

"Well, it's decided." Makoto said out loud. "A shopping day it is!"

Then she went back to the kitchen to tell Chameleon the news.

* * *

Why in the Great Beings' name did they have to go and get more clothes for him? He didn't understand it at all. On Voya, he had his tunic and accessories, and that was it. He had the clothes Setsuna had gotten for him, why did he have to get more? What good would that do? He knew Makoto had many clothes, yes, but that didn't mean he understood just why that was needed. But complaining was futile, as she had insisted and dragged him along despite his protests.

And so here he and his host were, standing before the glass doors of what Makoto had called a 'shopping centre' for clothes. He had no idea what it meant, or what they were doing here. For Chameleon, getting clothes meant getting the hides of an animal and sew them into a tunic. So what were they doing here? He wished Makoto explained it to him more, but she was quiet, looking confident, happy and even… giddy? Chameleon wasn't sure he liked that last part. Nonetheless, he followed Makoto inside the building when the doors opened by themselves, something that startled the young Saurian.

As soon as he was inside and had taken one look around, Chameleon could feel his jaw drop. What he was seeing just beggared belief. This "shopping centre" was overwhelming him with all kinds of lights and the noises of big crowds, but that was the least of his awe. There were clothes of all kinds of designs and sizes everywhere. Literally everywhere, as far as he could see. Not only clothes, but all kinds of footwear, too. It was amazing, and at the same time very confusing and unnerving for the disguised Saurian. Uncertainly and nervous, he looked at Makoto, hoping for an explanation or some support.

Makoto smiled at him: "Awesome sight, no? Anyway, we shouldn't stand at the entrance like that, we're blocking the way. Let's go get a shopping trolley and then buy you some clothes."

That definitely wasn't an answer Chameleon was expecting. It was as if Mako hasn't noticed his suffering at all. But as they made their way through the crowd, Mako took time to get close to Chameleon and say quietly:

"I can't explain basic things with so many people around. Don't worry; it'll be better once we get to the male clothing section." Makoto glanced wistfully at all the other women and girls present in this section, accompanied by their totally miserable husbands and boyfriends. It wasn't a wonder that they all were crowded here, after all, it was the first day clothes from the new collection were finally released for sale, so of course women were excited.

Mako sighed. She wanted to join them, too, and buy herself a thing or two, and try on at least ten, but she was here for Chameleon, and he wasn't used to female shopping sprees. So she had to overcome herself and lead Chameleon with the trolley away, glancing longingly at the things that were the most 'wow'ed and 'squee'd at.

Finally, the noise from the squeeing females had almost faded into background noise, and the couple reached the male clothing section. To save time when going back, and also to lessen the chance of being overheard, Makoto lead Chameleon further to the other end of the hall, to a section that contained sportswear, and a particularly large collection of t-shirts.

"Whew..." Makoto said, glancing around. As expected, there were few people here. "Now we can talk. Still, try not to make it too loud."

Chameleon opened his mouth to scream, but remembered Makoto's plea, so he whispered, almost pleadingly: "What's up with all these clothes? Where do they all come from? How many animals have been killed for this? Why is it so noisy and crowded in here? What's up with all the lights and noise? Humans are crazy! Let's go home, please!" It wasn't often that Chameleon felt scared or panicky, but this was one of those times. It was like his first time in a car or going through the city: a cultural shock that was too big to handle in a calm, accepting manner. He felt small and vulnerable, and he hated feeling like that. He needed certainty, some sort of support to make him feel that it was all going to be okay. Chameleon shivered and looked around like an animal driven in a corner. "I'm afraid…" he whispered, ashamed.

Seeing Chameleon like this, Makoto did the first thing that came to mind – hugged him.

"Shhhh... It's okay. No need to be afraid..." She whispered into his ear. Then continued to explain in a low, soft voice: "I told you how much people there are in this city. People need clothes. We don't need to kill animals to get material, we grow plants which later are made into yarn and weaved into fabric together with materials that require nothing living at all. And since most clothing nowadays is made by machines and requires little time, we can afford having all types of different fashions and usages for clothes. Lights and noise, well, it's just how these places are. Humans are all different, like different things, require things of different sizes, and, well, such places have all of them. Today is particularly busy because a new fashion collection has arrived, and females especially enjoy dressing up, to try and be beautiful."

Chameleon wasn't sure how to react to Makoto hugging him. He'd been hugged before, of course, but this was still different as she wasn't family. It felt a bit awkward, but not unwelcome, and he did manage to calm down somewhat. The Saurian let out a deep sigh. "I still want to go home."

"Well then, let's get this shopping over with as soon as possible." Makoto smiled assuring, although inwardly she cringed at those words. End clothes shopping as soon as possible? Blasphemy!

She let him go and smiled at him again:

"Okay, so, the list is the following: we need to get you new t-shirts, underwear and socks, and also jeans and possibly a jacket. Since we're here, we'll start with t-shirts." She came over to one of the long stands with t-shirts. "The ones with the size you need are here. Choose whatever you like." Makoto waved her hand invitingly.

Chameleon approached the stand with caution. If Makoto said it was okay, it probably was, but still, this was all new to him, and it was better to be safe than be sorry. He hesitatingly reached out to touch the fabric, as if it might bite him. When it didn't, he got a bit more bold and looked at the shirts as what they were: pieces of clothing he had to choose from to wear. It was strange to do so, he had never had the option to choose from clothing before. It was strange, but he tried to find something that he liked. After skipping through a few of the shirts, he stopped when he found a shirt that had a nice picture on it. It was the figure of a reptile on two legs, with a tail to keep it balanced, almost like a Saurian. And in the picture, it was bathing in the light of a rising sun, making the reptile look black.

"I like this one," he said, tugging at the sleeve to show Makoto which one he meant.

"Okay!" Makoto smiled and took the t-shirt from the stand, holding it at an arm-length to get a good look on it. "I like it, too." Not only it had a nice picture, it had a nice light-brown color that would fit Chameleon very well. "We'll take it."

Chameleon sighed, relieved. "Can we move on now?" He asked hopefully.

Makoto chuckled: "No way, you're not getting away with just one t-shirt. We need to buy at least three."

Chameleon's eyes widened: "Three! Whatever for? I can't wear them all at once – heck, I was just fine with only one, why do I need three more?"

Mako shrugged and started looking through the stand. "To have spare ones, of course. Imagine you've stained your t-shirt, washed it and you suddenly have to go somewhere. Walking around bare-chested isn't something humans appreciate. Besides, things get dirty and smelly after you wear them for a while, and wear out quicker. Having spare ones helps remain clean and have time to wash your clothes neatly and properly."

Mako stopped browsing the t-shirts and raised her eyebrow. There was one that caught her eye. She wasn't sure whether Chameleon would like it, but it sure looked cool.

"Hey... What do you think of this one?" She showed the t-shirt to Chameleon. It was a black t-shirt that had a text wall written in small grey font, and over that – three blood-red claw marks which made the illusion of fabric having been ripped.

Chameleon studied the shirt carefully, unsure of what to make of it. The writing meant nothing to him, but the colour was okay, and the slashes were, what did Makoto call it? Stylish, yes, that was the word.

"It's okay," he said hesitatingly. "Not bad, though a bit odd."

"That's alright." Makoto smiled. "A little bit of oddness won't hurt anyone. Okay, one more, and moving on..."

The couple continued to browse t-shirts in silence. Chameleon marvelled at various designs, wondering how those pictures were painted, but couldn't find anything else he liked. Most of the pictures on the t-shirts made no sense for him, and he couldn't read, so t-shirts with phrases meant nothing to him. Nevertheless, one t-shirt did catch his eye.

He took the t-shirt and stared at it in wonder. It was a white t-shirt with a black-and-white picture framed by a big black frame with white writing on it. What caught Chameleon's attention was that the picture was simplistic and even... crude. A triangle, a few symbols, and then a crude line circling one symbol, and a few words. He didn't get it.

"Makoto? Could you explain what this t-shirt is about?" Chameleon asked innocently, turning it so that Mako could see the picture.

"Hmm?" Mako turned to look at the t-shirt. She looked at it, then at Chameleon, then back at the t-shirt and burst out laughing.

Chameleon frowned. "What's so funny?"

Makoto tried to stop laughing and wiped tears from her eyes. "It's just the picture and words... They fit you so well!" The Senshi of Jupiter took the t-shirt and put it on the stand so it'd be easier to point and explain. "See, this picture is a mathematical problem. You're given the length of two sides of the triangle and need to calculate the length of the third, which is marked as 'x'." She then pointed to the top phrase. "The task here simply says: 'Find x'." She then looked at Chameleon expectantly.

Chameleon, confused, looked at the picture and pointed at the circled symbol. "Uhh... Here it is."

Makoto laughed: "Exactly! That's what this handwritten phrase here says. But the thing that makes it even funnier is these words." Mako pointed at the white words on the black frame. "Simplicity. The simplest solutions are often the cleverest. They are also usually wrong."

Chameleon blinked for a moment, looking from the shirt to Makoto and back to the shirt again. In the end, he simply shook his head and sighed. "Humans are weird."

"Nevertheless, we're taking it, it's awesome." Makoto said, happily placing the t-shirt in the trolley. "Now, all that's left is jeans, jacket, socks and underwear. Let's go." Makoto smiled and happily dragged Chameleon through the shopping centre, effectively handling the trolley with one hand.

"Great Beings, please let me survive this..." thought Chameleon miserably.

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**Next chapter: Of storms and Saurians!**

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**Review replies:**

GateToa: This is a crossover with Bionicle, kind of, at least. It crosses over with an alternate universe of Bionicle where the Great Beings never build Mata Nui or attempted to repair Spherus Magna, and as of such, never created the Toa or the Matoran. If I were to bring in those, too, it would just get too confusing for readers not familiar with the Bionicle fandom. This story is meant to be understood even by people who know nothing of Bionicle, which is why it's in the Sailor Moon section and not in crossovers. Since it's not full-fledged crossover. Still, I'm glad and REALLY grateful that you read and reviewed the story, and enjoyed it! Thank you! I agree with you about Crast, he's incredibly fun to write. I love describing his appearance and the effect he has on his surroundings. Be sure that he'll step into the spotlight again somewhere in the future. Until then! =)

SoulLoss: Oh, I definately agree with you about Nightmare, her social skills are terrible. Which is why it's so fun to pair her up with Minako, her polar opposite. Maybe I'm getting sadistic. Whoops! See you next time! And I don't think any words were left out, but I'm not sure...


	35. Of storms and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**35.**** Of storms of Saurians**

Chameleon sighed as he and Makoto were standing in the 'queue' to pay for the clothes. Chameleon didn't understand what that meant, but Mako explained that it meant to trade 'money' for the clothes. Apparently, money was a good thing, because everybody was willing to trade absolutely everything for it. Though Chameleon was really surprised when he found out money is actually small pieces of paper. What possible worth could they have?

"Humans are weird." He thought to himself for a thousandth time that day. He looked at the pile of clothes in the trolley. "Really, what's the point of all this?"

Makoto insisted on buying him at least ten underpants and even more socks, so he could change them every day and still have spare ones. But okay, he supposed it's indeed good for personal hygiene, whatever that was. Then there were those weird 'jeans'. Oh, they would have been alright and nothing special, if he didn't have to try them on to see if they fit. That was the reason Makoto took five pairs of jeans even though they'd buy only one, and had to sneak into the changing room while nobody was watching to help Chameleon with that weird 'zipper' and stupid 'button'. In the end they settled with plain light-brown jeans which had the easiest button.

The last thing they bought was a light, grey jacket. Chameleon didn't think much of it, but Makoto said its fabric could protect him from wind and rain. He shook his head. Sure, being nice and warm is good, but there isn't much point in making special clothes for that. Rain is just water, what harm could it do? Not to mention the jacket was very awkward in putting on.

But now his torture was finally over, as Makoto had already 'paid' the money and was now putting clothes in bags.

"Can we finally go home now?" Chameleon looked at Makoto pleadingly.

"Yep." Mako smiled, if a bit sadly. She didn't get a chance to look for clothes for herself, knowing it would be too much for Chameleon. He already looked tired and worn out, so as compensation, Makoto offered: "Hey, there's a neat café nearby. How about we go eat some ice cream…" But she didn't get to finish the sentence, as something has happened and people started screaming.

Chameleon picked up a familiar scent, and he let out a low growl. His fingers tingled as he was about to summon his Camouflage Daggers to his hand. "Saurians," he told his host. "I can smell them. A gate must have opened somewhere in this building!"

Makoto frowned. "Just great." She picked up the bags with clothes, as well as her own purse, and said: "Wait here, I'll be right back." With those words, she hurried off towards the exit together with the rest of the crowd.

"Why do these invasions always ruin all the fun?" Makoto thought as she shoved their belongings in one of the many lockers that stood at the wall near the exit. "It's not fair." She closed the locker, took the key and hurried back to Chameleon.

Mako put the key into one of Chameleon's pockets, one that could be closed with a fastener, and said: "Okay, be sure not to lose this key, or else our shopping day will go waste and we'll have to do it all over again. Now, let's go kick some tail!" She determinedly started making her way through the panicking people.

Chameleon grinned and eagerly followed her. This invasion couldn't have come at a better moment. A bit of fighting would be perfect to help him forget the dreadful hours of shopping. He hoped there were at least a handful of Saurians to fight, otherwise, it would all be over too soon. And he didn't want that. The fight had to be good, long, hard and exhilarating, else he would still feel awful because of the shopping once it was done.

As guest and host finally came out of the mass of panicking people, Chameleon immediately summoned his two trusted daggers to his hands, the weapons materializing out of nowhere. Armed and ready, Chameleon sniffed the air again, trying to find the invaders' scent between all these new unfamiliar ones, so he could pinpoint their location. After a small second or two, he smirked.

"They're that way," he said, pointing up the stairs leading to the section of female clothes. The words hadn't even fully left his mouth, or an entire stand of clothes sailed through the air and crashed on the floor below, only narrowly missing some fleeing customers. "Not that you couldn't figure that out yourself," Chameleon noted dryly.

As he and Makoto rushed up the stairs to meet their new foes, the disguised Saurian said sternly to his host: "Now remember Makoto, let me do the fighting up close. I'll be using my powers, so you probably won't see me, but I'll be there keeping them far away from you, okay? You just do your long ranged lightning trick."

"Roger!" Makoto said as she watched Chameleon disappear. "Jupiter Crystal Power, make up!"

Moments later, Sailor Jupiter jumped high and landed on a stand, knocking some mannequins down, and said: "Stop!"

The newly-arrived Saurians looked at her. Makoto started shouting the traditional Senshi speech:

"How dare you to interrupt a peaceful weekend? How dare you to ruin the hard work of many people who made those clothes! I will not allow that! I am the Soldier of Lightning, Sailor Jupiter! And in the name of Jupiter, I'll punish you!"

From where he stood, camouflaged so well he was invisible, Chameleon couldn't help but stare at Makoto as if she had lost her mind. The disguised reptile put his palm to his face and shook his head with a sigh. "That has to be the worst speech I ever heard. Even Gravitas could do better than that."

Judging from the looks on their faces, the five invading Saurians thought the same thing as Chameleon, and they too stared at Sailor Jupiter as if she were mad. This gave Chameleon and Makoto the opportunity to study their opponents and figure out their powers. Chameleon, knowing the Saurian race very well, finished much quicker than Makoto, and he snuck up to her and whispered in her ear.

"Elasticity, Cyclone, Shattering, Hunger and Magnetism, from left to right," he hissed.

Makoto gave a start hearing the voice, but calmed down quickly, knowing it's Chameleon.

"Understood." She whispered back. Looking back at the Saurians, she thought they should deal with Hunger and Shattering first, as their powers seemed the most dangerous to her.

"There are two," the Saurian of Cyclone said. "I can smell it." Slowly, he reached behind his back and pulled two sickles out of their sheaths.

"You're right, Breeze," murmured the Saurian of Elasticity, while caressing the spiked gauntlets on his hands. "As was expected when we were sent here. Chameleon is here."

"Kill them both, as ordered," the Saurian of Magnetism hissed, clutching his magnetic shield tightly in his hands.

"Leave it to me," said the Saurian of Shattering, and he promptly plunged his twinlance in the ground, destructive energy flowing into the floor, and spreading quickly in the form of cracks. One large crack sped straight for the stand Makoto was standing on, and once it was directly under it, the destructive energy of the Saurian exploded , blowing apart the floor the stand was standing on.

Sailor Jupiter reacted swiftly and jumped away from the stand at the moment of the explosion, preventing herself from falling through the floor. But she wasn't safe, as Breeze created mighty whirlwinds and send them forward. The cyclones picked up debris from the shattered floor, as well as clothes and even stands, and headed straight for the Senshi of Lightning.

While this was happening, the other Saurians weren't sitting still, and used their destructive powers on everything in sight, causing great destruction, hoping to hit the invisible Chameleon. The Saurian of Magnetism was hurling stands – which had metal parts in them – away in all directions, while the destructive power of Shattering ran rampant through the walls and floors, making the entire first floor of the building unstable and dangerous. Seeing the panicking crowd that tried to leave the building as fast as possible, the Saurian of Shattering got a wicked idea, and he prepared to fire a blast of his power at the ceiling and wall of the exit.

Just as he was about to release the blast, his twinlance was knocked away by invisible daggers, and the destructive blast missed its intended target. Chameleon had seen the danger and had reacted swiftly, hoping that Makoto could get out of her own deadly situation – being approached by cyclones full of debris – on her own. He just couldn't let all those innocent people get hurt, could he?

Now having an idea of where his invisible foe was, the Saurian of Shattering lashed out with a clawed hand since his twinlance had been knocked away, and his claws sliced through invisible flesh, blood becoming visible on them. Chameleon snarled and became visible for a second, before he got a grip on himself again and lashed out with his daggers, slicing through the stomach of his opponent. If Ignika were here, he would probably find a more merciful solution to this invasion problem, like devolving these Saurians, but Ignika wasn't here and Chameleon couldn't devolve creatures. So he went in for the kill.

The Saurian of Shattering cursed and swore as he staggered back, his hand clutching his stomach. But even wounded, he was still dangerous, maybe more so than ever, and he started to hurl destructive energy in all directions. Chameleon cursed as he darted between the blasts, all his attention focused on dodging. If one of those attacks hit him, he wouldn't look pretty afterwards. His human body was more fragile than his Saurian one, not having the natural defense of tough scales.

Because of this worry, he noticed too late that the Saurian of Magnetism had picked up the sound of his cursing and had guessed where he was. Now a wave of stands were hurled in his direction with the power of magnetism, and one of them hit Chameleon, sending him flying over the edge of the floor and tumbling to the floor below, the stand crashing on top of him.

Meanwhile, Sailor Jupiter clenched her fists and charged her power to the maximum. "Supreme Thunder Dragon!"

The magnificent lightning dragon flew straight through all the debris-filled hurricanes, the sheer power it contained shattering and melting the debris pieces so that they were mere dust. That couldn't save her from the whirlwinds themselves, however. But Makoto found out how to deal with that. "Sparkling Wide Pressure!"

The compressed lightning disk cleaved its way through one of the hurricanes, the pressure around it repelling the air, dispelling the whirlwind. Makoto used her chance to get out of danger just before the rest of the hurricanes collided at the place where she was a moment ago.

The Soldier of Lightning observed the battlefield. Clothes were scattered all around, the stands damaged, and it made her all the more angry. Still, she tried to focus on the task Chameleon gave her – keeping the Saurians as far from herself as possible, but then she heard a loud crash and saw Chameleon being hit by a stand as he fell to the floor below. She gasped and rushed towards him, but her way was blocked by a Saurian.

It was the Saurian of Hunger, and he immediately gave her a harsh blow to the stomach with his staff, knocking the air out of her. A second blow and Jupiter was on the floor, and she felt her strength leaving her, absorbed by the triumphant Saurian standing over her.

Down below, the stand on top of Chameleon was thrown away as the disguised brother of Ignika kicked it off him. Grudgingly, he climbed to his feet. "I HATE SHOPPING CENTERS!" he snarled while dusting himself off. He may lack the natural defense of his scales, but he still had the tough, strong bones of a Saurian, and the muscles required to move those. Sure, his physical strength had diminished somewhat by being transformed in a human, but his strength was still a good deal above average.

Chameleon wanted to rush up the stairs again, but the Saurian of Elasticity, from where he stood, punched the air and, because of his stretching ability, sent his spiked fist flying straight at Chameleon's face. Instead of dodging, as the Saurian of Elasticity had hoped he would do, Chameleon did one small step aside and grabbed the fist firmly by the wrist.

"Enough toying around," Chameleon hissed. "You made me pissed!"

His opponent desperately tried to free his hand, but Chameleon stood his ground, smirking murderously at his annoyed foe. Soon enough, the downside of Elasticity became clear, as everything that stretches has to return to original size eventually. And so, because Chameleon held him firmly and held his ground by holding onto a nearby stand, the Saurian of Elasticity was pulled towards Chameleon.

Growling, the Elasticity user send forth his other fist, but Chameleon made no attempt to dodge. He groaned as the spikes of the gauntlet pierced his shoulder, but that was it. He let go of the stand and summoned his dagger to his hand. The Saurian of Elasticity, unable to stop his flight, flew right onto the blade of Chameleon's dagger when they collided. The collision knocked them both to the floor, but Chameleon quickly shoved his gutted opponent off his dagger and himself, and rushed back to the stairs, not looking back. He knew his opponent was dead. Now he had to make sure Makoto's assailant would be, too.

Makoto growled and staggered to get on her feet. Her strength was fading, yes, but she had to prevent the Saurian from sucking out even more. Hunger still stood close, as his master told him Senshi are no good in close combat, and he was certain the Senshi had no strength to properly aim an attack. What he didn't expect, however, was the Senshi rushing straight at him in one fast move, hitting him in the stomach with her head and pulling his leg at the same time, making the Saurian lose balance and fall flat on his back with Makoto on top of him. Not giving him a chance to recover from shock, Makoto put her hand over his eyes and fired a Sparkling Wide Pressure, effectively frying the Saurian's brain.

"Life or death, huh?" She whispered, and crawled away, then let herself fall on the ground, numb and exhausted. She had to regain her strength, if only a little.

Unfortunately, the other Saurians weren't about to let her do that. Seeing her defenseless and open for attack, Breeze and the Saurian of Magnetism hurled a cyclone and a few stands, respectively, at her fallen form.

"Yeah, right, in your dreams," Chameleon snorted, as he had run up to Makoto, invisible, and picked her up to carry her out of harm's way. He set her down and then immediately rushed back to his foes, jumping over stands and debris with little effort. Breeze reacted by creating a whirlwind around him, to shield himself from enemies coming up close, but the Saurian of Magnetism wasn't so lucky, and he had his throat slit by one of Chameleon's daggers.

Pain exploded in Chameleon's back, all of the sudden, as a blast of Shattering energy struck him from behind. Though wounded, the Saurian of Shattering was still alive and had enough strength to keep attacking. Chameleon kneeled down on the floor, his back burning with pain, but he bit his teeth and tried to ignore it. He had a fight to win, after all. Breeze fired many great cyclones, filled with debris, clothes and stands, at him, weakening the already unstable floor even more. Chameleon snarled as he tried to look for a way out of this mess. The only way out seemed to run right into the waiting claws of the Saurian of Shattering.

Getting an idea, Chameleon managed to camouflage himself to invisibility again, and ran straight at his wounded foe. He grabbed the Saurian of Shattering and tried to lift him up, but at the same time the enemy grabbed him. The two wounded warriors battled for supremacy as the cyclones approached, but eventually the Saurian of Shattering, weakened too much by his wound, had to give in, and Chameleon threw him with all his might into the oncoming whirlwinds. Breeze, having felt that there was something in his attack and assuming it was Chameleon, let the winds rage on for a little while before dispersing them. Only then did he see that the one he had crushed in his winds with debris and stands was his comrade, not his foe.

Letting out a cry of rage and cursing his camouflaged opponent, Breeze summoned a true tornado to himself, ready to smite his foes down with the power of the wind. Only Chameleon noticed what his unfortunate enemy had started by doing so, and he quickly ran to Makoto and helped her up. His back still burned with pain, but he ignored that for now. Their lives came first.

"We have to get out of here," Chameleon groaned. "That tornado will cause the floor to collapse!"

Desperation seemed to give them courage, and the two ran straight to the edge of the floor and jumped, not caring how far below the floor was or how hard a landing it would be. Up above, on the first floor, Breeze saw the flight of his foes and laughed. He raised his hand to send his attack after his enemies, but before he could finish, the floor he was standing on finally gave in to all the pressure and stress applied to it and collapsed. Breeze fell to the floor below and landed in the wrong way, which caused one of his legs to break. Groaning with pain, he tried to get to his feet and in doing so looked up.

The last thing he ever saw was a few tons of stone, concrete, rubble, steel and wood landing right on top of him.

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Makoto and Chameleon stood together, supporting each other, breathing heavily now that the chaos was over. Finally, Chameleon had the strength to speak:

"Well, that was one hell of a shopping trip." He said softly, smiling at his joke. The next moment he sat on the floor, hissing, as the pain from all his injuries finally started kicking in.

Makoto stood on her knees next to him and said, worried: "Are you okay?" She herself hasn't suffered any major wounds, just a lot of bruises and bleeding scratches here and there.

"Of course I'm not, can't you see it?" Chameleon snapped at her.

Mako frowned: "I'm sorry, it's kinda a traditional phrase…" She looked at his wounds and shook her head. With such serious injuries, he'd surely be hospitalized, which they can't allow to happen. Makoto started frantically looking around to see if she could find something useful, and gasped at what she saw.

The lockers where she left her purse and their purchases were laying only a few paces away. She took the key from Chameleon's pocket and hurried to get them. She prayed that the lock wasn't damaged and she could get at least her purse, because inside of it, among other things, were manicure scissors, a small bottle of water and some painkillers. Thankfully, the locker opened without any effort.

Makoto came back to Chameleon, helped him take off his t-shirt, and then gave him a pill and water. "Here. Swallow this, but don't chew, it's bitter, then wash it down with water. It'll ease the pain a bit. I'm gonna bandage your wounds, and then you'll turn invisible and go home, because if the doctors see your condition, they'll take you away to a hospital, and getting you back will be a problem." With those words, she started cutting the t-shirt, which was beyond repair anyway, into bandages.

Chameleon did as instructed and swallowed the pill without protest. He trusted Makoto if she said it would work. Once he had downed it, he looked up at Makoto and smiled. "You did well, by the way. Good job taking down that Saurian of Hunger on your own." He meant what he said. It had been the first time he had seen a Sailor Senshi fight, and to be honest, he had expected worse, especially after how badly they had gotten beaten by Jutlin the Corrupt. But Makoto had surprised him. She was agile and her reflexes were quite good. And she was powerful, having managed to take down a Hunger Saurian while already being weakened, and having held her own against a Cyclone Saurian. Yes, she was quite a capable fighter, focused on long range, sure, but as long as he was there to take of the close range, that was no problem.

Makoto's hands shook as she remembered that. She felt sick all of a sudden. "Don't remind me. It… It was the first time I killed a sentient being… Fighting youma is different, they're mindless creatures made for the sole purpose of wrecking havoc, or transformed humans who should be healed, but this…" Still, she managed to finish cutting the t-shirt and started bandaging the wounds, after washing them with the remaining water.

"It was them or us, Makoto," Chameleon said with a shrug. "That's nature's first law, and one we all must live by. It no longer bothers me, after more than hundred years. I'd say you get used to it, but I don't think that's what you want to hear." The Saurian of Chameleon sighed and shook his head. "Just know that if you hadn't killed him, he would have killed you. And that's the simple, hard truth. I'm sorry."

"I know…" Makoto sighed. "Doesn't make it easier, though."

She continued to bandage the wounds in silence, and finished just as the sirens from police and ambulances could be heard.

"Well, off you go. Wait for me at home." Makoto smiled. Then frowned. "Oh, I forgot… The door is locked, and you don't know how to use keys…"

"It's alright." Chameleon said. "There are iron stairs on the outside wall, I'll just enter through the balcony."

Makoto laughed softly a bit. "Right, totally forgot about the fire exit. Well, good luck."

"Take care." Chameleon replied and vanished.

Makoto took the purchases and went towards the exit. "Chameleon's right. This was one hell of a shopping trip."

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**Next chapter: Of libraries and Saurians!**

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**Attention all readers, I will be taking a break for a week, so next sunday there WON'T be a new chapter of "Mistakes of the Great Beings"! The next chapter will be posted on the 25th of july.**

**Review replies:**

James Birdsong: Well, glad you liked it.


	36. Of libraries and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**36. Of libraries and Saurians.**

"Gravitas… I can't teach you that." Ami said, wide-eyed, staring into the book Gravitas brought her.

The Saurian frowned. "Why not?"

Today was the day Ami promised to spend studying with her, explaining her things that she couldn't understand herself when reading the books. Now Ami says that she can't teach Gravitas what she wanted. Talk about fair.

"It's not that I don't want to or something… It's just too complex for you to learn." Ami looked up at her guest.

"You said I'm talented." Gravitas crossed her arms.

"Yes, but… Learning this requires more than talent. Humans learn it after years and years of studying easier things…" Ami knew she was disappointing her guest, but she couldn't possibly teach a university-level subject a Saurian who had just learned to read. "Why do you want to learn Mathematical Analysis, anyway?"

"Because…" Gravitas paused. "In all the other books I read I could at least understand some words and terms. In this one…" She gestured towards Ami's college textbook. "I don't understand a single thing. Oh, and I like the symbols. They're beautiful." Almost without looking, Gravitas opened a page and pointed at an integral.

What she had said was true. Nothing in this book had made any sense to her whatsoever, and that was what drew her to it so much. These symbols were all pretty, and it was fascinating to think that they actually meant something, that all these pages full of symbols in all kinds of orders and formulas could actually hold some sort of knowledge. Knowledge that would be hers too, if she could but understand them, read them, know how they worked. Gravitas was fascinated by this, because it wasn't exactly the same as reading. Reading was putting symbols together to form words, and those words formed a story. Telling without speaking, so to say. But these symbols… There was more to them than just reading. They were a puzzle. A mystery, a riddle. And Gravitas, mysterious, aloof Saurian of Gravity, liked solving riddles and mysteries, for she disliked secrets.

Ami sighed. "I see you won't change your mind…" She closed the book and put it away. "But what you chose is indeed very complex. It takes humans more than ten years of prerequisite studies to even get to it…"

Gravitas' expression turned grim. Was it really that complex?

Seeing her like this, Ami suddenly smiled and stood up from the living room couch she was sitting on. "Well then, let's start with the basics. I'm curious as to how fast you can learn the school Mathematics program."

Gravitas frowned in confusion. "Mathematics?"

"Yes, that's what the science of numbers and calculating is called." Ami smiled kindly again. "It's a vast and useful subject. This book is about a part of it."

Gravitas looked up at her host, still frowning. "But I haven't come across any books with that word anywhere near the title at all… Aside from that one." She pointed towards the huge mathematical encyclopedia standing on the shelf.

"And that's why, Gravitas…" Ami's smile became even wider as she imagined Gravitas' reaction towards the place she was going to take her. "We are going to a library."

* * *

Ami could barely contain her excitement as she and Gravitas walked together. Since the day was hot, they took a route through the park, giving the younger girl a chance to be around natural things for at least a while. Ami looked at Gravitas, who seemed lost in thought. To Ami, the Saurian was amazing. After Gravitas had shocked Ami with her reading and learning speed, Ami couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to actually witness the learning process itself.

That wasn't the only reason, however. After the symbiosis, Ami somehow knew that Gravitas wasn't much unlike herself, with her sharp mind and a thirst for knowledge. But while Ami needed knowledge because she was going to be a doctor and liked studying in general, Gravitas seemed to have a different reason.

"Say, Gravitas… Why do you thirst for knowledge so much?" Ami asked.

The Saurian of Gravity glanced at her host sideways for a moment. "I don't know," she finally said, in her usual aloof, emotionless manner. "I simply want it. Ever since I was born, I was curious. Every Saurian is curious. But I was curious in a different way. I wanted to know 'why'…" She trailed of there, and seemed to get lost in her own thoughts. She opened her mouth again as if to say something, but then closed it again and shook her head.

Why indeed? She had never wondered about it before. She just wanted to learn. It was a feeling inside of her that craved for it, a feeling she couldn't ignore. Just like how she could feel something was wrong the night Jutlin arrived. She had felt it, but hadn't known why or how. She had just acted on it as she always did. It was much the same with her learning. She felt that she had to find knowledge. Why, she had no idea. But she liked it. She liked these feelings, because they were always right, and never let her down. And she liked knowledge. Yes, knowledge was good. It was power. It could help you survive, in and out of battle. She was the tactician of her family, she needed the knowledge.

"I suppose… I need it for my family," Gravitas said slowly, hesitatingly, her face carrying a doubtful frown, as if she was unsure about the answer herself.

Ami smiled and shook her head. "Seems to me that's not the reason. Your family certainly doesn't need to know anything about integrals." Ami looked up at the sky, then back at Gravitas. "You said… To know 'why'… That's a great question, you know. We humans have so much knowledge about the world around us because of scientists who had the same thirst. They studied, made experiments, wrote formulas… And explained the laws of the world we live in. Well, most of them." Ami grinned as she got an idea. "After you've learned enough Maths, I'll teach you Physics. Would be strange if a Saurian of Gravity knew how to use it, but not how it works, no?" Ami laughed softly at that. "Remind me to get a book on that, too."

Gravitas smiled a bit. "That would be interesting, to study gravity like humans see it…" She paused for a moment and bit her lip. Then the aloof girl spoke again, slowly, as if afraid to offend Ami. "But when I said I needed it for my family… I meant it as needing it… to protect them."

"Oh." Ami said, looking at the ground. She didn't like misunderstandings, especially when she was the one to misunderstand. "I see…" She looked back at her guest. "That's an honorable reason, in my opinion. Knowledge is power, as we humans say. Although not all the things I can offer you will be useful in a practical sense… You might actually think of them as pretty useless." Ami sighed.

"It is just… fun… to know things…" Gravitas replied quietly. "Why do you yearn for knowledge?" It wasn't like the Saurian of Gravity at all to be so inquisitive about somebody else's personal life, or so open about her own, but ever since the symbiosis between herself and Ami, Gravitas had changed. Or at least, had changed towards Ami. They shared a special bond, Gravitas was aware of this, and she knew she could fully trust this girl, she could open herself up to her and leave herself vulnerable, because Ami wouldn't abuse that trust or make use of her weakness. Ever. Of this, Gravitas was certain.

Ami laughed softly. "Well… It's not that I really yearn to… I just like studying. Reading books, making projects, writing essays, solving problems…" Seeing Gravitas' confusion, Ami explained: "That's the things humans do at school and college. It might be not the best way of studying the subject, but I like it just the way it is. As for the reason I need so much knowledge in the first place…" Ami looked at the sky again. "I want to be a doctor, like my mother. Humans don't possess healing powers like Ignika or some other Saurians, they have to cure sicknesses and injuries in a different way. And to define the problem, to understand what sickness you're dealing with and prescribe the right medicine when all you have is symptoms and some test results… That requires a lot of knowledge about the human body. Because a mistake could make the condition only worse, or lead to the death of the patient." Ami shrugged. "But anyway, places where you study that do not teach those subjects alone, so I get plenty of other knowledge on my way. Like the Mathematical Analysis you're so fond of."

Gravitas listened and nodded, though she wasn't entirely sure if she understood it all correctly. From the sound of it, though, it seemed to her that Ami was trying to become a healer, like some Saurians in villages where there was nobody with the power to heal, or from the time before the Great Beings. Trying to help the sick with knowledge of herbs and plants. The Saurian almost scoffed as that thought crossed her mind. She looked around, at the park in the middle of the city. There never could be enough healing plants here in this little spot of green for all those humans in the 'city'.

Ami raised an eyebrow as she watched Gravitas' reaction. Although she looked emotionless as usual, something told Ami she wasn't entirely content with the idea. But as Gravitas looked around, her gaze resting at plants, Ami guessed what was wrong and chuckled.

"The plants we use for healing grow elsewhere, and then are modified and converted so that their healing properties increase. They're also given a different form, so that it's easier and more effective to use them." Once she made that more or less clear, Ami looked ahead. "Oh, we're almost there! We just need to exit the park through that exit, cross the road, go down the street, and then we can get to studying." Ami smiled widely at Gravitas.

The Saurian of Gravity frowned again, but said nothing. She continued to follow her host through the park and down the street, all the while wondering what this 'library' building Ami had spoken of would be like and why the blue-haired Senshi was so excited about it.

* * *

Gravitas could only stare. Her jaw was lost somewhere far below her on the floor from where she had dropped it. Not a single muscle would respond to her will. She couldn't even think straight. The only thing she was aware of, was her surroundings. And her brain threatened to go into overdrive because of what she was seeing. Never, in her wildest dreams, had she imagined that there would be a place like that. It was unreal. It was amazing. It was breathtaking. And it threatened to overwhelm her.

Books.

There were books everywhere. Hundreds, thousands even, all lined up neatly in bookcases, as far as the eye could see. And this was only a part of the building. There were more rooms, and all of them, Ami had said, all of them full of books. For a moment Gravitas feared that she had died and been sent to the afterlife. It was amazing. She could barely grasp the fact that she was surrounded by so much knowledge, by so many books, and the desire to go and read them all was strongly tugging at her mind.

Ami looked at the Saurian. She seemed completely taken away by the sight before her. So much Ami could even sense her disbelief and shock. Nodding to herself, Ami cautiously took Gravitas' hand and said:

"Let's go, no need to block the passageway." With those words, Ami led her stunned guest to the section of primary and secondary school books. There, she knew, was a perfect spot for studying. Not only because of having all the required books close, but also due to a small table standing in a corner between three bookcases, for those students who liked studying alone and had especially low tolerance to human presence. Luckily, when they arrived, the boy sitting there was already leaving, so they had the cozy spot all to themselves.

Ami sat her still shocked guest at the table, sat at it herself and asked:

"Well? What do you think? Lovely place, no?"

Gravitas slowly nodded, trying to recover from shock. "I-it's… It's… I don't know how to describe it. How can so much knowledge even exist?"

Ami smiled. "You haven't seen even a fraction of it. Now, let's get to the basics of Maths." Ami took a notebook and a pen from her purse. "Can you count?"

Gravitas, who managed to overcome her shock and now was looking attentively at Ami, ready to absorb new knowledge, frowned in confusion. "Count?"

"Yes. Tell how many things you see." Ami smiled. To her, the question meant Gravitas didn't know how to, so she asked her another simple question: "How much fingers you have on one hand?"

Gravitas, raising her eyebrow at the question and the tone Ami said it in (which, due to simplicity of the question, was one used when talking to toddlers), replied:

"Oh, like that. Five." She paused. "I can... 'count'... One, two, three, four... up to nine hundred ninety nine million nine hundred ninety nine thousand nine hundred ninety nine... Then it gets too long to say..." She finished nonchalantly.

Ami nearly fell off her chair. So much for teaching a primitive uneducated Saurian to count… "Whoa. Amazing, Gravitas." She said, wide-eyed. "How do you even know such big numbers?"

Gravitas shrugged. "Me and Ignika were keeping watch for a village we were staying at. The night was calm, and I was bored, so I counted stars. All Ignika had to do was tell me what numbers go after 'nine'-something." She then furrowed her eyebrows. "Is that bad?"

Ami quickly shook her head. "No-no-no, on the contrary, it's very good. We can move straight to mathematical operations then. Addition, substraction, multiplication, division... And since you know such big numbers already, we're skipping at least two years. And once you learn how to operate with them, even more."

Gravitas nodded, even though she hadn't understood a word Ami had said. From what she could get of all the strange terms Ami had used, the aloof Saurian concluded that what she already knew about numbers was good and impressive, and that it meant they could skip some of the basics of these 'mathematics'. Gravitas didn't mind that in the slightest. She wanted to understand these more complex symbols as soon as possible, after all.

"But nevertheless, you need to learn something else first." Ami opened the notebook.

"And what would that be?" Gravitas inquired.

"Writing." Ami answered. "Mathematics is unexplainable without it. If you don't write, you'll never learn Maths."

Gravitas frowned at that prospect. That certainly won't do. She wanted to learn 'maths', and as soon as possible. She nodded at her host and asked: "So what exactly is writing?"

Ami moved her chair closer to Gravitas and put the notebook between them. "Basically, it's learning to draw the needed symbols. And the symbols themselves, too. Now…" Ami took the pen and wrote numbers at the beginning of each line: "This symbol stands for 'one'… This is 'two'… 'Three'…" Ami wrote numbers up to nine. "And this is 'zero'."

Gravitas looked at the symbols Ami wrote down, and tried to understand why they each represented that number. There had to be some logic to it, right? But try as she might, she couldn't see it. The one was easy enough, and she could guess the zero, but the rest seemed so random. She did recognize them, from the books she had read, of course, and it was nice to finally know what they stood for. That was one step. The object Ami wrote with puzzled her, however. Ignika told her that the Great Beings taught him to write by dipping the tip of a feather in the colored sap of a plant and use that to leave markings on the parchment or paper. This tool was nothing like that. Was it magic?

"I recognize those… They were in the books you had… But why do they stand for numbers? They're just flourishes."

Ami chuckled. "Well, it's just for saving space and time, as well as simplifying the process of writing and counting. If we wrote numbers, say, as sticks, it'd be hard to write, for example, four hundred thirty-two thousands seven hundred and ninety-eight." Ami smiled. "While with these symbols, it's easy as a pie." Ami wrote: '432 798'.

Gravitas studied it for a moment. When Ami explained it like that, it made sense, and the Saurian told her teacher so. She still had a question to ask, though.

"Ami… How does this thing draw?" Gravitas pointed at the pen.

Ami looked at her silver-haired student. "Ah. Well, I guess you wouldn't know." She unscrewed the pen and showed her its core. "The liquid that leaves a blue line on the paper, called 'ink', is placed inside this tube. At the tip there is a tiny ball which lets the ink flow out only upon touch with paper." Ami smiled and put the pen back together. "Once the ink runs out, the core is replaced."

Gravitas took the pen from Ami and studied it for a while, looking at it from every angle. So it wasn't magic at all, in fact it was quite a simple tool. And it seemed far more convenient than to constantly dip your feather in the liquid to write. Here, you always had 'ink' until the little tube was empty. Simple and effective. Gravitas liked that.

"Now that we have it out of the way…" Ami moved the notebook towards Gravitas. "You should practice writing these symbols. Write them until the end of each line."

Gravitas frowned and tensed. She took the pen in her right hand…

"No-no, not like that, Gravitas." Ami quickly corrected her student. "Don't hold it in your fist. Here, let me help." The blue-haired girl put the pen between Gravitas' fingers and closed them in the correct position. "It might seem a bit tricky, but that's how we humans do it. Also, keep your arm on the table, it makes writing more even and easy."

The Saurian of Gravity frowned, the position of her hand feeling alien and not entirely comfortable. But if Ami said it had to be done this way, than so be it, she trusted her judgment. Ami was the expert here, after all. Gravitas was only beginning to learn. So she held the pen and hesitatingly began to write the symbols. It went very slow at first, and the result was a very crude-looking symbol, but as she continued, her movements soon became more fluid, to her great delight. Her numbers still looked far less elegant than those written by Ami, but at least there was no mistaking in what they were supposed to be.

Ami stood behind Gravitas, looking at the notebook over her shoulder, and found herself smiling. The Saurian's learning speed indeed was incredible, and she felt pleased with what the last number of each line looked like.

"Very good, Gravitas." She praised her guest. "Now, one more line of each number, to make sure you've learned them, and then we can move on towards operations."

Gravitas looked up at Ami, gave her a small smile, and continued to patiently scribble the numbers.

"I'm the happiest teacher in the world…" Thought Ami. "Nobody else had ever had such an eager and talented student."

* * *

**Next chapter: Of knowledge and Saurians**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Glad you liked the fight! As for the body count and what Ignika will think of it, it's nothing he hasn't seen before. He tries to be merciful as much as he can, but even Ignika isn't averse to killing if there is no other option left. So he won't think much of it, just perhaps regret that there was no other way.


	37. Of knowledge and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**37.**** Of knowledge and Saurians**

Ami and Gravitas had spent the next two hours in the library, teaching the Saurian of Gravity to do mathematical operations. At the beginning, it wasn't hard. Much to Ami's delight, once Gravitas learned to add and subtract two-digit numbers, she easily expanded that knowledge up to five-digit ones. Ami decided not to test that knowledge further, since it was pretty obvious Gravitas could do that with practically any number, especially since humans write the intermediate results of their calculations, not do them all in their heads.

Multiplication went a bit harder. In a way, it was the same as addition, but Gravitas couldn't possibly add all those numbers without making a mistake. That could work with one-digit numbers, but with two-digit it was already hard, and nearly impossible with three-digit. But nevertheless, Gravitas managed to catch the drift, and soon mastered multiplication.

Division struck her as hard, however.

Gravitas knew it was just turning multiplying around, but for some reason, it was just harder. Adding, subtracting and multiplying, she could couple those to situations in her past life. If you had one prey and another prey, you got two preys, for example. But if you have one prey and divide it in five, how much prey do you have? That was hard. Of course they had to divide food before. But not like this. If the pieces weren't all equally sized, that was no problem. Here, it had to be exact. Precise. There was one outcome and one outcome only. Gravitas didn't mind simplicity like this, not usually at least. Certainty was good. But here, it was more than simplicity. It was an iron hard rule that could never be broken, or else the solution was simply wrong. And she felt this limitation far more than with the other operations.

The Saurian girl let out a low hiss. "Just why is it so hard?"

Ami put a hand on her guest's shoulder and said in a calming and soothing voice: "It's alright, Gravitas. You can't expect yourself to immediately understand everything. That's simply impossible. And you have already made incredibly good progress today."

"But from what you told me, I understand that this is basic!" Ami's student replied, looking frustrated and a bit sad. "If I have this much trouble with the basics… It will take so long before I can understand those more complex, prettier symbols…" The Saurian of Gravity sighed and looked positively unhappy. She was happy that she had learned so much already today, but she wanted to be able to do more, felt that she should be able to do more.

Ami smiled at her student again. "It's alright, really. Even if it takes long, I'm sure you'll master everything in the end. You've learned to do three operations within just two hours, and that's a lot for someone who hasn't even heard of Maths, believe me." Ami stood up from her chair. "Maybe you just need to rest and let the knowledge sink in a bit. You know, sometimes when you constantly think about a problem, then think of something completely different, you're later struck with a sudden solution. Happens to humans all the time." Ami looked at her watch. "Hmm, it's almost dinner time. Let's pick some books for you to study at home, and go eat something."

Gravitas looked up from her mathematical problem and studied Ami's face. It had a friendly and inviting smile. Ami wasn't angry at her for not getting this dividing at all. The Saurian of Gravity took a deep breath and closed the book and notebook, and gave her host a curt nod.

"Very well," she said. "Show me what books I should take with me, and let's go."

Ami put the notebook and pen back into her purse, and replied: "Before taking the books home, we need to check them in at the counter near the exit." She paused, and then continued explaining: "We can't borrow books without permission just like that, you see. People working here keep track of who borrowed which book and for how long. That way, if someone doesn't return it on time, they can remind him or her that the term is near, or even make them pay money for each day of delay." While saying so, Ami moved along the stands, picked a couple more Maths textbooks and a small book on calligraphy. Gravitas needed to learn normal writing as well. "Hmm, these should be enough for a while, at least, for Maths and writing." Ami turned to her guest. "Any other subject you'd like to study? Biology? History? Geography?"

"Is there nothing about… Gravity in nature?" Gravitas asked quietly.

Ami smiled. "That would be Physics. But, well… To learn that as we humans do you need to understand at least one more field of Maths – equations. Exact sciences don't stand alone, they're connected to each other through Mathematics. So studying gravity will have to wait, I'm afraid."

Gravitas looked disappointed, but caught herself quickly and nodded once more. "If you say so. Then I would like to read about history."

"Alright." Ami picked two more books from one of the shelves. "These contain a short retelling of human history. If you find yourself interested in a particular time period, we can later get more detailed books on that." She turned to her guest again. "Now, let's go."

The silver-haired girl prepared to follow her host, albeit with some reluctance, out of the magnificent library, when she suddenly stopped dead in her tracks and tensed visibly. A low growl escaped her throat and she glanced around, sniffing the air.

"Ami," she began urgently and seriously. "I think there's…"

Before she could finish her sentence, a sound of something shattering followed by screams could be heard from behind the bookshelves in the distance, near the entrance of the library. Gravitas snarled and fury welled up inside of her. With a quick move of her hand, she summoned her new shield – which Ignika had made for her when they were waiting for Crast in the park – to it and readied herself for battle.

"An invasion…" she growled. "I can smell at least five different Saurians."

"Damn it…" Ami cursed quietly. Normally she wasn't the one for cussing, but in this situation it was all she could say. They had spent a great time studying, got the best textbooks to teach Gravitas further, and now the invaders ruin everything. Ami, with a doomed expression on her face, put her purse on the floor and text books above it. If luck was on her side, she'd get those back by the end of it. Which, considering her previous battles, might not be the case. She sighed and nodded at Gravitas.

"Mercury Crystal Power! Make up!"

A flash of light later and Sailor Mercury stood besides her symbiosis partner. Gravitas gave her an approving look, and began to make her way stealthily to the invaders, using the many bookshelves as cover. As she did so, she whispered to Mercury besides her:

"Just do it like we did with Jutlin. I handle close range, you back me up. And please, promise me to not make a speech. Let's just shred them for ruining my day and be done with it."

Mercury looked at Gravitas with mixed feelings. "But… But it's a tradition… I don't know for sure, but it's been a part of our battles as Senshi... Well, forever!" She said, her voice a bit shaky.

Gravitas just gave her a long, hard stare.

The Senshi frowned and looked at the ground as she realized how stupid and pathetic this phrase sounded, even to a primitive, albeit a very smart Saurian. She sighed and said:

"You're right… I'll try to keep silent. Let's go."

Satisfied with that, Gravitas continued on until they arrived in the entrance hall, where five Saurians were wreaking havoc. Windows had already been shattered, stands with folders knocked over and people were screaming and trying to get away in panic and terror. Gravitas gave the group of invaders that had ruined her day a quick look so she could figure out her powers, and once she had done so she informed her ally of them.

"From left to right, we have Lightning, Fire, Power Scream, Plasma and Vacuum to deal with…" the Saurian of Gravity whispered. "All of them destructive. We need to get them out of the library, or else they could damage the books."

Ami bit her lip and nodded. "Lead the way then. In the Senshi group I'm the tactician, but you know them better and think faster. Who should I beware the most? Who should I try to take out first?"

"They're all dangerous in their own way," Gravitas replied, thinking quickly. "But Power Scream has the ability to bring down this entire building with one usage of his powers. He needs to go down first. And fast."

"Understood." Ami nodded, and was just about to go, when… She frowned and looked her guest. "You go first, otherwise I'm in speech-mode."

Gravitas wanted to say something, but her keen senses picked up something and she threw herself and Ami to the floor just in time, for a stream of lightning shot through the air where they had stood just a moment before and destroyed a bookshelf instead, blasting it to pieces and setting it on fire. The two warriors climbed to their feet to face the source of the attack: the Saurian of Lightning, holding his lance firmly in his hands, its tip aimed at them.

"I thought I heard and smelled something…" he hissed slowly. A look of disdain appeared on his face. "It's the sister of the accursed child and one of those Sailor Senshi we were warned about."

"The orders were clear: kill them on sight," said the Saurian of Plasma, as he crossed his two short swords and fired a beam of plasma at Sailor Mercury and Gravitas. The Saurians of Lightning, Fire and Vacuum quickly joined in with blasts of their own powers. Ami and Gravitas evaded the attacks easily enough, and the powerful beams just did material damage, burning books and shelves and reducing them to smoking pieces.

Gravitas saw the damage done to the books, and she slowly turned to look from the destroyed treasure of knowledge to the ignorant members of her species that had destroyed them. The look on her face was all the more frightening by the complete lack of emotion in it. She merely stared at them, and for a moment the attackers halted, unnerved by the stare they were getting.

"You. Destroyed. The. Books," Gravitas said quietly, her voice so chilling and dangerously soft that it made the Saurians' and Ami's blood freeze. Uncontrolled fury suddenly exploded in Gravitas chest and her face was a demonic visage of terror and wrath. "You. Destroyed. The. BOOKS!"

The Saurian of Gravity triggered her powers then, and lifted up destroyed shelves, pieces of glass and debris until they formed a massive, impenetrable wall, which she threw at her opponents with uncontrolled strength and rage. Though they tried to destroy the attack with their powers, the invaders were blown back, some through the already broken windows and some through solid wall, to the outside. Gravitas, still seething, merely tightened her grip on her razor-edged shield and followed them without a word to the outside.

Ami was shocked no less than her enemies to see Gravitas explode like that. All those emotions… Just how long has she kept those bottled up? But the Senshi had to quickly come to her senses, because the sooner she did it, the more advantage over her opponents they would have. She hurried through the huge hole that was once the wall, activating her visor in process, and pausing to glance at Gravitas. Despite the clear order not to rush into combat, Ami run ahead of Gravitas and quickly scanned the area. Her enemies still haven't quite recovered from the blow dealt by the Saurian of Gravity, so Ami proceeded to carry out the first task given to her:

"Shine Aqua Illusion!" She sent the attack towards the Saurian of Power Scream in order to freeze him.

The attack hit and began to freeze its target, but the sudden cold made the Saurian of Power scream snap back to attention, and without wasting a second he tipped back his head and let out an ear-splitting scream that shattered the ice and cracked much of the road and walls of the library.

Ami, while clutching her ears because of the Saurian's attack, thought: "Damn it! Too slow, too much distance, too much power loss…" She clutched her temples, trying to lessen the headache and think straight. "If I were closer, it would have worked. But close combat… To get that close I need…"

The Senshi of Mercury got an idea. "That's it. I need to tell Gravitas. If she can detect the Saurians by their gravity fields, I'll Sharbon Spray everything and use the mist to sneak up to them…"

She started frantically looking around to see what Gravitas was doing, as well as an opportunity to get close to her and talk.

Gravitas was still in a state of unstoppable fury, and she struck out mercilessly. She, too, had set her eyes on the Saurian of Power Scream. He had damaged the sacred Library again. He'd have to go first. Dodging a few blasts of plasma and fire, she increased the gravity around the Saurian of Plasma and Fire, crushing them into the concrete, before rushing towards the Power Scream one. She was on him in an instant, her razor-edged shield lashing out to slice him to death. He blocked her strike with his broadsword and prepared to unleash another scream, but Gravitas wouldn't have any of it.

"Shut. Up," she growled, after which she send him crashing down to the ground with her powers. The silver-haired girl's weapon came next, and with one strike ended her opponent's life. She turned to seek her next target, when suddenly she had trouble breathing. The air around her head was being sucked away quickly, and she knew instantly that the Vacuum Saurian was attacking her. Worse, as the air vanished, so did its pressure and her head threatened to explode because of the lack of said pressure.

Gravitas struggled to keep her body together by increasing gravitational pull on herself, and a struggle for superiority began that she wasn't sure she could win. The lack of air was getting to her. She frantically looked out for Ami, her friend and partner, hoping to get help from her, but to her great dismay the Saurians of Electricity and Fire had engaged her in combat, and were blasting her with their powers. Even worse, Gravitas noticed the Saurian of Plasma she had crushed into the ground a moments before getting to his feet and aiming his weapon at her, ready to melt her to a puddle of gory filth.

Ami dodged the blast of Lightning and effectively countered the Fire Saurian with her Mercury Aqua Rhapsody, all while trying to increase the distance between them as much as possible. As she saw what position Gravitas was in, however, she realized that she had to take action. The plan was already formed in her head, and even though it was very risky and could fail almost at any point, it was worth a shot.

"Sharbon Spray Freezing!" Ami attacked with all the might she could summon.

Immediately the battlefield was covered with fog so thick that one barely could see further than one's arm length. Moreover, the fog had small crystals of ice floating in the air among the water droplets, and since ice doesn't have a smell, Ami hoped it would obscure the Saurians' sense of smell as well as their vision. But Mercury didn't stop to investigate the matter. She had to stop Vacuum from killing Gravitas. Ami, thanks to her visor, had no trouble seeing through the fog and rushed towards the stunned opponent.

"Shine Aqua Illusion!" Ami attacked at the maximally close distance she dared to come.

The attack struck home, and the Saurian of Vacuum couldn't react in time because of the fog. Mercury's Shine Aqua Illusion froze him solid, resulting in Gravitas getting air again. The Saurian of Gravity fell to her knees, gasping for breath and coughing, but she quickly regained herself and climbed back to her feet. Her first course of action was to smash the frozen Saurian into many pieces, after which she gave her host a grateful look.

"Thank you."

Sailor Mercury smiled. "Don't mention it. I know you would've done the same for me." She looked around. "This icy fog gives us advantages, such as stealth, and should block some of the Saurian senses… Not to mention they have lower endurance to cold 'cause they're reptiles. However, can you orientate yourself in this fog?" She tapped her visor. "I can see through it."

Gravitas looked around. Her vision was useless, as was her sense of smell, but she had her powers. The silver-haired, aloof girl reached out with her senses to feel where the forces of Gravity impacted on solid matter. Then it was only a case of picking up the places where the field of collision moved. Movement in the gravitational field meant something was moving in it. Something alive. Something like a Saurian.

"I can feel them," she said. Gravitas raised her shield and increased gravity all throughout the fog until it was many times that of earth's normal gravity. Groans could be heard as the three remaining Saurians were crushed to the ground and pinned there by Gravitas' powers. "And I can hear them. But you will have to be my eyes."

"Alright," Ami nodded. From what it seemed, Gravitas had some kind of a plan. "Tell me what to do."

"I cannot destroy them with just my powers. Saurians have great resistance to the powers of our race. I would have to increase gravity far beyond what I can tolerate to end this fight…" Gravitas explained hurriedly. She had to be quick, because blasts of fire, plasma and electricity seared through the fog. Even when pinned down and in pain, the invaders could still use their powers, making them dangerous still. "So I need to get in close. You fire a blast of your powers in the direction of our foes, and I'll follow it."

"Understood." Ami observed the battle area. The closest one to them was the Saurian of Plasma. And since she was required just to direct Gravitas, she didn't go for the freezing.

"Mercury Aqua Mirage!" The water blast flew towards the intended target.

Gravitas reacted instantly, decreasing the pull of gravity on herself so she could move faster. When she was close enough to see her target, Gravitas jumped high in the air thanks to decreased gravity, then increased it to the highest point she could stand to speed up her fall. She fell, shield first, on the Saurian's back, crushing his spine and ending his life. She felt no pity or sadness. They had destroyed the thing she loved most besides her family and Ami. They deserved no mercy.

"Mercury, next, now!" she barked, knowing their was no time to lose before the Saurians had adapted enough to the gravity pinning them down to get up again. Sailor Mercury quickly obeyed and repeated the process from before, and Gravitas once again sped after the water blast. This time, her foe was indeed already getting up, but the sudden appearance of the Saurian of Gravity through the fog startled him long enough for Gravitas to lash out with the edge of her shield and cut through his life.

Gravitas turned to head for her next opponent, only to discover to her horror that the final Saurian, the Saurian of Fire, had already shaken off the gravity she had crushed him with, and had now leapt at sailor Mercury, his clawed hands ablaze. All Gravitas could do was shout a warning.

"Shine Aqua Illusion!" Ami used the spell to freeze some of the fog around her into a solid barrier, which was seconds later shattered by the Saurian, but it still gave Ami a chance to dodge. As she tried to increase the distance between the Fire Saurian and herself, she just kept creating ice walls, all while rapidly trying to think up a strategy.

"Fire and Water are elements that cancel each other out… Competing in sheer power will lead to nothing… But this fog, this cold – this is my realm. How to use it to my advantage? How?"

If only she had better control over her powers… Sharbon Spray was an area-effect spell, it couldn't be controlled or focused… Or could it?

"I've got to try…"

Just then, the Fire Saurian broke through the last wall and charged straight at her, his hands ablaze. Ami conjured up the most powerful Shine Aqua Illusion she could possibly get, encasing the Saurian in a sphere of ice. But she knew it won't be enough, and the Saurian would break free. So she tried her best to carry out the plan that formed in her mind.

"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!"

As the beautiful notes filled the battlefield and powerful torrents of water started forming, Ami directed them in seemingly random directions. In reality, she was cleaning the battlefield of the fog, gathering it with her only fully controllable spell. The ice particles in the air, the tiny droplets of water – she made all of those gather within her torrents, making them more powerful, as well as more deadly. If water and sand can cut metal, then water and ice can definitely cut some Saurian flesh. And a small wound was all Ami needed.

The ice sphere exploded, the Fire Saurian looking ready for murder, but Mercury gave him no time to carry out the intent. She immediately sent all the torrents with all her might at the Saurian, washing him back several meters and leaving a lot of deep cuts and wounds on his body. With the final chord of the Rhapsody, Sailor Mercury leaped right next to her foe, dug her fingers into one of the chest wounds, and with a Shining Aqua Illusion, froze his blood.

The Saurian fell to the ground without a sound.

The battle was over, and Sailor Mercury had killed her first sentient being. The fog had vanished when she had collected it in her attack, and only now the damage became fully visible. Saurian bodies and blood littered the street before the library, cracks and tears in the surface of the road. The library's front wall looked ready to collapse, and all its windows were broken and shattered. But Gravitas and Sailor Mercury were victorious, and that was all that mattered.

The Saurian of Gravity walked over to her host and friend, dismissing her shield as she did so. She had a hint of pride in her eyes. "Well done," she said simply, indicating at the Saurian of Fire.

Mercury looked at her hand, still covered in blood, and felt her knees suddenly grow weak. She fell down on her knees and would have collapsed completely if it weren't for Gravitas catching her. The Saurian of Gravity sat down and held the Senshi in her arms, a confused look evident on her face. A flash of light, and Ami Mizuno was back.

Ami buried her face in Gravitas' chest and cried.

"Why do you cry?" Gravitas wondered, not understanding it at all. "You have defeated your foe. We avenged the books. You did not get hurt this time. Why are you crying?"

"I-I-I… Gravitas…" Ami sobbed. "I-it was the first t-time I killed a sentient living being… I've only killed mindless youma before…" Her next words were like screams, only said in a low, quiet tone. "I didn't have time to think! All I could do was act on an impulse! And… That I killed it… That I'm capable of murder… It's…" Ami couldn't finish her sentence and continued crying.

Gravitas shook her head, uncertain of what to do or say. She knew Ami needed some comfort, that was obvious, but the Saurian of Gravity knew she wasn't really the right person for that. So she simply tried to say the truth and hoped that Ami, rational as she was, would feel better because of that. "It was them or us," the Saurian of Gravity explained. "Either you killed him or he killed you. I know it may be painful to hear this and accept it, but it is the truth. He wouldn't have wept had he killed you. He would have been satisfied."

Ami sobbed: "I know that. It doesn't make things easier one bit…"

Gravitas hissed softly in frustration. The centuries old Saurian couldn't, after all those years of battle, understand this, to her great regret. She hated seeing Ami sad, because she liked the girl and ever since the symbiosis was extremely connected to her. But she didn't know what to do or say. It was in that moment that fate intervened. She didn't have to say anything, because the sound of sirens coming closer could be heard, and Gravitas snarled.

"What is that awful noise?" she spat.

Ami gasped and quickly came to her senses, her guilt and shame temporary pushed back by the new danger. She sat up and said: "Oh no… The police… And ambulances…"

Gravitas frowned. "What are those?"

Ami got to her feet and replied: "Doesn't matter. What matters now is that we must not be caught or seen by the humans who will arrive now." She looked in the direction of the library.

"I wonder if my purse and the books we picked survived…" Ami thought.

As if she had guessed Ami's thoughts, Gravitas took her hand and said: "Let's go. I don't want to lose all we studied either."

Thankfully, the books and the purse were safe, hidden from destruction by a fallen bookcase. Just as they gathered their possessions, Gravitas could smell more humans coming their way. Not to attract any attention, the Saurian girl just grabbed Ami and used her power of Gravity to exit through a hole in the roof left by one on the enemies' attacks.

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**Next chapter: Of childhood and Saurians!**

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	38. Of childhood and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**38. Of childhood and Saurians**

Ignika was sitting in the garden of the Outer Senshi's house, observing and studying the many flowers that were there. All of them were alien to him, though some resembled flowers from Voya somewhat. Flowers were forms of life, too, so as the Child of Life, Ignika took as much interest in hem as he did with any other living thing. Whenever he came across a new living thing, it was his duty as the wielder of Life to observe it and understand how it lived. That, and he was just naturally curious about such things.

The flowers in this garden were all pretty, and had nice colours, though they grew in an unusual strict and set pattern, and not all over the place like flowers normally would. Michiru had explained that that was precisely what made a garden a garden: it was manmade, everything planted in a humanly, orderly fashion. Ignika shook his head at the silliness of it all. Humans and their order, they were kind of like the Great Beings that way. Always trying to get a grasp of things and put themselves above it so they could oversee it all, instead of just simply letting it go.

As Ignika moved on from one flower to the next, he was aware that he was being watched. His oldest sister, Traveller, sat in the shadow of a tree, humming a soft tune while her gaze never left her younger brother. She was as protective as ever, though the Saurian of Teleportation realized that they were as safe as they could hope to be here in this world. Still, old habits die hard, and Traveller was living proof of that. Besides, if she stayed inside she'd soon go insane. Playing the piano, or at least trying to, was wonderful, and she loved every moment of it, but it was still inside the house, between four walls. And Traveller didn't like that. She felt trapped if she stayed inside too long. During the night it wasn't much of a problem, but when it was day, she wanted to be outside, feel the wind, breath the fresh air and be amongst the green. It gave her a feeling of familiarity and safety, and that's how she liked it.

Hotaru was also watching Ignika from a window of her room. He seemed to enjoy studying the flowers, even though he has spent nearly all his time in the garden studying plants... She guessed that he enjoyed it, probably because of his element, but... Watching the same flowers over and over? She didn't think it could be that interesting.

Hotaru also remembered Nightmare's outburst about getting little attention and not being taught anything. Though neither was the case with Ignika, and he didn't complain at all, Hotaru felt a bit guilty that Ignika still didn't know anything about the human world outside the garden. She sighed, got up from her desk, and went downstairs.

Setsuna was sitting in the living room, where she was reading the latest fashion magazine. She frowned as she saw some models. Those, following the latest fashion trend, were suspiciously similar to the designs Setsuna had already included in her yearly project for the art university. She shook her head. Of course neither the magazine nor Setsuna were plagiarising each other, but the professors might not think so. She needed a new idea, a new trend; otherwise what kind of designer is she?

Seeing Hotaru come downstairs, Setsuna closed the magazine. "Something the matter, hime?" She asked.

"Well..." Hotaru replied. "I'm thinking of showing Ignika some of the outside world... I mean, he's a kid, yet the last several hundred years... Didn't give him any chance to play." She explained shyly.

Setsuna looked at her daughter attentively, and said: "So you want to take him to the park, right?"

Hotaru smiled shyly. Somehow, Setsuna-mama always managed to guess her thoughts. "Yeah... The playgrounds there are nice."

Setsuna stood up and said: "Alright. I don't have any inspiration for designing now, anyway... I'll take you to the park." She smiled.

Hotaru nodded. "I'll go tell Ignika then." With those words, she hurried to the garden.

The Saurian boy was carefully watching a particular flower. A caterpillar was making its way up the stem towards one of its leaves, and Ignika was curious about that. Just as the caterpillar started its meal, however, Ignika felt someone coming towards him. The boy got up from his knees, dusted himself and found that the person who approached him was Hotaru.

"Hi, Hotaru, is something the matter?" the being forever trapped in a child's mind and body asked.

Hotaru smiled shyly at him. "Well... I know you like it here in the garden, but... Don't you find it a bit boring to see and do the same things again and again every day?" She asked, deciding not to rush straight to the subject.

Ignika raised an eyebrow and tilted his head sideways somewhat, giving Hotaru a curious look. "No, not at all. Figuring out new forms of life takes time, it'll take me a few months before I'm done with studying this… garden." The word felt strange and alien on his tongue, but Ignika tried not to let it show. "Why do you ask?"

"Ehm, well..." Hotaru continued shyly, looking at the ground. "Just, I thought that you'd be interested in doing something else for a change... I mean, we're still kids, we're supposed to play and have fun... I know the last several hundred years gave you no chance to do that, so... I thought I should try to make up for it." She looked into Ignika's eyes and smiled, waiting for an answer.

"Why would children have to play, Hotaru?" Ignika asked, more confused than ever. "Children have to come out of their egg and start surviving as quickly as possible."

Hotaru didn't expect such an answer. Tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear, she said: "Well... Human children are weak when born, and can't survive on their own at all... They become more or less independent at... Seven, I think... Yet even so, the law obliges parents to take care of children at least until they're eighteen..." Hotaru sighed. "Thing is, while children are still innocent and don't need to worry about food or anything else, they grow and develop through games they play. It's fun, and childhood is the only time you can do that, the rest is survival."

Ignika scratched his head, his face twisted in a frown. "I suppose that is logical, somewhat… Seeing as mammals take good care of their offspring, most of the time… And humans are mammals." The white-haired child let out a sigh and shrugged. "But I don't have to develop and grow anymore, Hotaru, I did that eons ago!"

"Yes, but you missed out on all the fun you can have as a child." Hotaru replied. "Humans consider childhood the happiest period in life, you know, and with good reason. Having fun is important for mental development as well." Hotaru tilted her head and glanced at the Saurian boy curiously. "When was the last time you had fun?"

Ignika thought about that question for a moment. "Every moment I spend with my family is fun, Hotaru," he replied after a few minutes of silence.

Hotaru sighed and shook her head. "I'm talking about different kind of fun, Ignika. Yes, I do love my parents, as well as friends, but it's not the same as playing games with friends of your age..." Hotaru looked up at the boy. "Hmm... You know, since you like to study life, you should definitely go to the playground with me. That way you can see how human children are, and observe the other life forms in the park as well. What say you?"

"Well… You seem to be pretty insistent about this…" Ignika said, looking thoughtfully at his human friend. Then he just shrugged again. "I don't see why not."

Hotaru smiled and took his hand. "Great! Let's go. Setsuna-mama told me she'll take us there."

The two children were about to run back into the house when a stern voice halted them in their tracks. "And just where do you think you're taking my little brother without telling me, Hotaru?" Traveller asked, having heard everything from her spot under the tree. Now the Saurian of Teleportation was standing right behind the Senshi of Saturn, her arms crossed and looking slightly offended.

Hotaru gave a start and turned around. "Oh, Traveller..." She said. "Sorry, I... I just wanted to take Ignika to the park so we can have fun like all the other normal human children." She quickly said. "Setsuna-mama is coming with us. Is that alright?"

Traveller look at Hotaru, then at her little brother and then at Hotaru again, before she shook her head. "Not a chance. I'm not letting you take him to some place I know nothing about."

"Sister…" Ignika began, on a whiney and pleading tone.

Traveller didn't let him finish, however. "Either I'm going with you to keep an eye on my little brother, or you're not going at all."

Hotaru smiled: "Alright. You can come, too. Setsuna-mama won't mind, I'm sure of it. Let's go to the car." After all, if a relative is in an overprotective mode, it's better let them have their way than deal with the consequences. Besides, Traveller was nice when it didn't come to Ignika's safety.

Traveller nodded, and together with the young Senshi the two Saurians walked to the car where Setsuna was already waiting. All the while, Traveller and Ignika were thinking the same thing: what did Hotaru want to show them so badly, what was the big deal? But they didn't say those words aloud, afraid of offending the young girl, who had been nothing but kind to the both of them. And so they simply got in the car – Traveller in the front seat next to Setsuna, much to the Saurian's discomfort – and drove off.

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The park was full of people – parents, children, elderly people, youngsters, all of it – and it unsettled both Ignika and Traveller. When they had been here before, this place had been mostly empty, in the former's case that was because of his barrier, however. But now there were humans everywhere. Not that it was as busy as on those 'streets'. But as they were walking on the path, they couldn't turn a corner around some bushes and not immediately see some humans. Every bench had at least one occupant, on every field of grass there was at least one group of children playing or students sitting together comparing notes.

The two disguised Saurians felt nervous. This was the first time they had been exposed to such a big crowd. What if they didn't act human enough? What if they did something that was very unlike a human, and everyone stared at them? What if somebody found out the truth? Ignika began to doubt that coming here at Hotaru's request was such a good idea, after all.

Hotaru felt nervous, too. She didn't expect so much people to be in the park, either... Hotaru looked at her watch... And nearly slapped herself. "Twelve o'clock! People have lunch or dinner at this time... And walk with their kids... Goddamn it, why didn't I think of it earlier?" She thought almost panicking.

Suddenly, Hotaru felt her mama's hand on her shoulder. "Relax, Hotaru. Things are not as bad as they seem. Now let's go to the playground." Setsuna said calmly.

The playground Setsuna was talking about was located deeper in the park. Hotaru liked it the most because it was usually a bit less crowded than the rest, since many parents didn't want to have to walk for long when the time runs out. It was a nice big playground with four swings, two seesaws, a sandbox, and three slides of different heights, one of those being spiral-shaped. There were many ladders standing there for kids to climb, and several benches for parents to sit on and chat to each other while watching their kids at play.

Plenty of children were occupying the structures, and Ignika and Traveller observed them from afar in silence. Both the structures and what the children were doing with them made little sense to the Saurians. What was the point of them? How did it help to develop them, how did it help them grow and survive? Humans were weird, sure, but this was another step further. Ignika looked from Hotaru to the playground and back again.

"What are they doing?" he asked his human friend.

"Playing," Hotaru simply said, grinning from ear to ear.

"Does 'playing' mean 'make no sense', here, Hotaru?" Traveller replied in wonder. The oldest sister of the Saurian family looked just as confused as her little brother. "I see no purpose or reason in their actions, aside from wasting energy that would be better when conserved for later use."

Hotaru chuckled. "That's because the reason and purpose is exactly to, as you say, waste energy and make no sense." Hotaru smiled, looking at the adult clueless Saurian.

Setsuna nodded, and continued her daughters thought: "Kids get little activities these days, they need to use their energy away, otherwise it'll still find a way out, but the means will be more... Destructive." Setsuna shrugged. "Better let them have fun doing whatever they want in the right place in the right time with the right things than have fun in the wrong time and place and with wrong things."

Traveller shrugged. "Right… I keep forgetting you don't have to hunt for yourself…"

Ignika nodded in agreement. "Yeah, on Voya, energy is spent on and conserved for hunting. Even the children do that."

Hotaru felt pity for the kids of Voya, but didn't let it bother her much. "But you don't need to do that anymore, either! For now, at least. And that's exactly why I brought you here. Here, we can have fun and do whatever we want, as long as we don't harm ourselves or others. Come on, let's go." Hotaru tugged Ignika along.

Ignika frowned but let himself get pulled along with Hotaru. She obviously was excited about this and wanted him to be, too, so he could at least try and see what this was all about by experiencing it himself. But still, the concept of purposefully wasting energy was strange and alien to him. All forms of life he had come across so far just didn't do that. It was unnatural.

Traveller saw her brother get pulled along to somewhere she didn't know, and so she made to follow the two children.

Setsuna took Traveller's hand and stopped the Saurian gently but firmly. "Leave them be. Playground is a place for kids, parents and older siblings only need to interfere to prevent harm from happening... or to join the game." Setsuna then motioned to an unoccupied bench a bit further into the playground. "The bench over there gives a nice overview of the playground, let's go sit there and watch the kids at play like proper parents should." She purposely worded the last sentence so that Traveller would understand what's expected of her.

"I'm not Ignika's parent. I'm his sister," Traveller said, tensed. She didn't like the idea of being so far from Ignika, even if she could see him.

"Doesn't matter, you're still his guardian. And I see you take your duties seriously and personally." Setsuna sighed. "But for now, leave them be. Really, the worst thing that can happen on a playground is a nasty fall, a couple of bruises and scratches, or maybe a small fight. You aren't afraid of those things, are you?"

"Not personally, no, I'm afraid of Ignika being afraid, and what would happen in such a case," the Saurian of Teleportation replied, giving Setsuna a long, hard look. "As long as I am close, I can be certain that he sees me and knows he's not alone. But once he can't see me, he won't rely on me. And if something happens, it will be him that will react, and not me. And in such a case, it can lead to a sheer catastrophe. And Ignika will feel terrible afterwards, and then I'll have to live with the knowledge that it could have been prevented if I had been there, if he had known that I was there and would take care of it."

"But he _can_ see you, and he _does_ know you are here." Setsuna replied, easily coping with the look the Saurian was giving her. "And he isn't alone, Hotaru is with him. And we will be only several paces away, sitting on the bench, watching them and being ready to jump into action should the need occur. Calm down, it's safe."

Traveller didn't look convinced. "There are much more people around than he… we, are used to. He could still panic, and Hotaru's presence would matter little. I know my little brother. I know how he thinks, and how he acts. It's never safe. It never will be. It stopped being safe the day he became the Child of Life."

Setsuna quickly glanced around, checking if any grownup has heard the Saurian's last words. It didn't seem that anybody could hear them from this spot because of all the noise the kids were making, and Setsuna replied: "In case of panic, I allow you to teleport to him, no matter how many people see it. Most will think it's just a figment of their imagination, if you do it right." Setsuna sighed. "Yes, it stopped being safe on that day. But that is exactly the reason why you have to let go for now and let him relax and have fun with Hotaru and the human children. To relieve at least some of the stress caused by so much responsibility and powers."

Setsuna frowned and looked at Hotaru and Ignika by the sandbox, with Hotaru squatting next to a toddler. She continued in a low voice: "Hotaru wants to show him at least a bit of a normal human childhood, the childhood she herself was deprived of the first time she was born, because she was always sick and too weak to go outside and play with the kids. Now she has a second chance, and wants him to have it, too. If not as Ignika, then as Eiju Genkai." She glanced at her guest. "You should remember that, Amane."

Traveller hesitated, but finally relented, though obviously she didn't like it one bit. Letting out a very deep, defeated sigh, she sat down next to Setsuna on the bench and shook her head. "Fine. But I wouldn't call this," she gestured to the scene of the playground. "A normal childhood. When I was young, and when I wanted to have some fun, I went hunting. To be honest, I kind of miss doing just that. And I know Ignika does, too."

Setsuna shrugged. "Hunting was considered fun here for quite a long while, too, but almost never an activity for kids. Even in primitive times, being allowed to participate in the hunt meant that you're a grownup already. A predominately male activity, mind you." The Senshi of Time paused and leaned back on the bench. "Here, childhood is the most carefree and happy time. Parents are there to take care of your food, your clothes, are there to comfort you, teach you, even if they have to punish you sometimes..." The last phrase was spoken with a softness that could only mean affection and love Setsuna had for Hotaru, the shared daughter of the Outer Senshi. Then she snapped out of it somewhat, and said: "And please call him Eiju when we're in public. You never know we might be overheard."

"Eiju…" Traveller repeated, the name sounding strange and alien to her, and she somehow had difficulties pronouncing it. It felt unnatural to call Ignika by anything but his given name, similar to how she felt strange when addressed as 'Amane'.

"You'll have to get used to it." Setsuna said, understanding why Traveller felt uncomfortable. "We also had to get used to call each other by the name of our planets, not our given names." With those words, Setsuna fell silent and looked at the little kids who, unbeknownst to everyone else, each held enough power to destroy the planet.

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**Next chapter: Of playgrounds and Saurians!**

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BookLover.A.F.: I enjoy the pairing of Ami and Gravitas, too. But then again, I like every one of my Saurian x Senshi pairings, each has their own situations or happenings that makes them fun to write about. Thanks for reading and reviewing!


	39. Of playgrounds and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**39. Of playgrounds and Saurians**

As Hotaru dragged Ignika through the playground, she couldn't help but feel excited to show Ignika all the fun they could have as kids. She couldn't wait to see how Ignika would like the swing, the slides, she couldn't wait to introduce him to some kids she was familiar with, and maybe play some tag or hide-and-seek, or maybe borrow that ball someone brought and play some football, or just toss it around, or… She interrupted her trace of thoughts and looked at Ignika, who didn't seem as excited as he should be… They stopped by the sandbox, where a few three or four years old kids were playing, and Hotaru asked:

"Something wrong?" She looked at Ignika, waiting for an answer.

The Saurian child didn't immediately reply, looking decidedly uncomfortable. To be honest, Ignika was feeling a bit overwhelmed and in general confused. He didn't know what to make of everything happening around him. Never before in his life had the Child of Life seen a place or behaviour like this. That's not to say that Saurians didn't play, but it was a totally different concept and idea, apparently. For a Saurian, a hunt without using powers, but just instincts and senses, that could be seen as fun. Seeing who could catch the biggest prey was a form of a game. Or they could engage in some friendly sparring or sharing funny stories. That was fun, that was playing in Ignika's mind. Not anything like this. He didn't know how or even if he should tell Hotaru this. His human friend was obviously excited about all of this, and he just wasn't. Ignika didn't want to insult or offend her either.

The boy let out a deep sigh. What did he have to do?

"I'm just confused," he admitted finally, not looking at Hotaru as he did so. "I don't know what to do, and, well…" He let out a deep sigh and didn't finish that sentence. He merely heaved his shoulders and left it at that, suddenly finding the toddlers in the pile of sand very interesting.

Hotaru looked at him in wonder. Perhaps she got a bit too carried away by her plans... But then she got an idea and smiled:

"It's okay, we'll start slow." She gestured towards the sandbox. "This is a sandbox, it's mostly the place for the youngest kids, although some older kids can find it fun, too." She came over to a little boy busy making sand pies, and squatted next to him. "Hi, what's your name?"

The boy looked at her and smiled: "Mi-ki."

Hotaru smiled back: "How old are you?"

Miki raised three fingers. Hotaru said: "You're so cute..." and patted the boy on the head. Then she motioned for Ignika to come over. "Eiju-kun, come here."

Ignika did as she requested, cautiously approaching Hotaru and the little human. It was obviously still in a very early stage of its life, and a quick scan of the boy's mind only served to confirm that. The child's thoughts and mind weren't very complex yet, clearly not fully developed. In fact Ignika was amazed that after living for three years a human was only this far in its growth yet. With most mammals Ignika was familiar with it didn't even take a year. Humans really were strange and fragile beings, the reptile disguised as a human thought.

"What are you doing?" Ignika asked the child, tilting his head to one side while observing Miki from head to toe.

"Miki make cake." The toddler grinned widely and turned the bucket he was filling with sand over, hitting it with his scoop.

"Cake?" Ignika raised his eyebrow, confused. How can one make cake out of sand? The cake he had tried definitely didn't have any sand in it. Sand isn't even edible... He looked at Hotaru, hoping for an explanation.

Hotaru laughed quietly as she saw his confused expression. "It's a matter of imagination, Eiju-kun. Most games have to do with imagination one way or another." Hotaru looked back at the now-finished sand pie, and said: "Wow, what a nice tasty-looking cake. Needs more sugar, though." Hotaru scooped some dry, light-colored sand and sprinkled it over the 'cake'. "There, now it's good."

"Yep! And I's be eating!" Said Miki happily and destroyed the cake with his scoop. Then proceeded to make a new one.

Hotaru giggled. "Little kids are so cute and fun, don't you think?" She looked at Ignika.

That wasn't quite the wording Ignika had had in mind, truth to be told. He looked from the sandbox to Miki, and then from Miki to Hotaru, before backing away very slowly. Once he was a few feet away, he turned around and ran back, straight to his sister. He tugged insistently on her arm.

"Let's go home, sister, they're all mad!" Ignika said, practically begging.

Traveller's face twisted into a confused frown. She gently caressed her brother's cheek, seeing he was clearly upset about something. "Call down Ig… I mean, Eiju. Tell me what's wrong." What followed was a flood of words spilling forth from Ignika's mouth, all describing in a great amount of detail what he had just witnessed. Once the storm of words had passed her, Traveller found herself being just as confused, shocked and even somewhat disturbed as her brother. She glanced at Setsuna, who was sitting silently besides her, and gave the woman a long, harsh stare. "Explain. Now."

Setsuna chuckled. "Don't worry, Amane, nothing bad and unusual happened. I guess Eiju is just a bit unused to this kind of games." She looked at both of them. "Some human games are all about imagination and pretending. The kid pretended he was making a cake, and Hotaru played along. Pretending helps to develop imagination, creativity, abstract thinking, as well as allows, in later and more complex games, to act out some social situations. Look at those girls, for example." She gestured at a couple of girls holding baby dolls. "They pretend they are mothers, and those dolls are their children. Just a game, nothing more."

"It's just insane," Ignika muttered, not at all convinced. "Look at me, I never did any of those things and I'm a fully developed… well, not adult, but you get the point!"

"Your people develop much faster in general, and learn things at an incomparable speed." Setsuna shrugged. "Humans have to go through these stages and learn to do absolutely everything, develop absolutely every sense they can." She pointed to a bench at the opposite side of the playground, where a young mother was reading a book and rocking the pram with her baby at the same time. "The baby in the pram over there, for example, can't even sit on his own yet, being only a few months old, let alone stand and walk..."

Ignika and Traveller's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. The idea of a creature taking months before it could even sit went beyond their understanding. Sure, mammals took their time with everything, but this was just ridiculous, and Ignika was quick to say so. A Saurian crawled out of its egg and could sit and walk immediately. It was fully developed when it hatched, and had to be in order to survive. Sure, with the advent of small communities and little settlements on Voya, life for hatchlings could become easier because parents began to care for their eggs, but not every nest was so lucky, as Traveller well knew.

Setsuna just shrugged. "Ridiculous or not, it is the way it is. Some of our scientists say there is a connection between intelligence level and the time it takes a mammal to become an independent specimen. Humans are the most intelligent species, so they take the most time to develop. Babies are born not ready for life, and have to fully rely on their parents for their every need for the first few years of their life. That's how our species is."

Traveller raised an eyebrow. "We are born on this world fully developed. Are you saying we're not intelligent?"

"You're reptiles and hatch from eggs." Setsuna simply said. "Reptilian species here are also born fully developed, but none of those species are intelligent, so we didn't have any opportunity to study and see if there is any connection of that sort in this case. There might as well be none. But with mammals, it is so."

"Eiju-kun!" Hotaru called and waved to him to call him over. She didn't follow the boy to his sister, figuring that Setsuna-mama could explain things well enough, probably better than Hotaru herself could. So she spent her time thinking what to show Ignika next. Clearly, games that involved imagination were not his thing, so she had to figure out other games to show him. Just as she was wondering about that, a girl on the swing nearby stopped swinging and ran along to her friends. So Hotaru quickly seized control of the vacant swing, thinking it was a perfect thing to introduce Ignika to.

The Saurian of Life looked in the direction of Hotaru's call, unsure of what to do or say. She obviously wanted him to come over to her, to another strange contraption, but he had to admit he was a bit hesitant. He wasn't sure how much more human madness he'd be able to handle. On the other hand, she was still his friend, and one bad thing didn't make everything bad. And so Ignika, reluctantly, went over to Hotaru.

"Hey, Eiju-kun." Hotaru greeted him again. "Well, since imagination games are not your thing, I thought we could do something different. Sit over here and hold onto these chains." Hotaru had no idea at all about how Ignika would like swinging, it was quite possible he won't like it at all, but she wouldn't know that unless they tried.

Ignika looked puzzled, but he did as Hotaru requested. Once he sat down and held onto the chains like she had asked him to, however, he simply remained so and watched her expectantly. "Now what?"

Hotaru giggled. "Now hold on tight!" She took the two chains a bit lower than Ignika was holding them, walked back making the swing rise, and then gave it a strong push.

Ignika was startled at first, but that quickly subsided. He swung back and forth a few times before the swing stopped by itself, and the boy didn't look particularly impressed or amused. He still just watched Hotaru expectantly. "What the point of this?" he asked her curiously, feeling a bit guilty that he probably wasn't reacting in the way she wanted him to.

Hotaru just shrugged. "Dunno, it's just fun... Kids like the feeling you have while swinging like this. The higher, the better. Especially if you look at the sky while doing so. Somehow, when you're little, makes you feel like you're flying. Or at least you can pretend you are..." Hotaru did feel a little disappointed, but started swinging Ignika again, hoping he'll enjoy it at least a bit. She tried to get him as high as possible, while making sure no younger kids were running in front of the swing.

Ignika did like the idea of flying, and he did like the sky. So when the swing was as high as he liked it, he jumped off, soared through the air for a little while, then did a perfect somersault before landing on his feet.

Everybody who had been even somewhat looking in the direction of the swing stopped whatever they were doing and stared at the albino boy who had just pulled off such a complex trick. It wasn't as if they had never seen a child jump from the swing, boys did it quite often, even though it was dangerous, but a somersault? Not to mention he jumped much higher than kids do...

"That was kind of fun," he said while he climbed back to his feet and dusted himself off. Doing something like that was child's play, literally. When he turned to ask Hotaru what she thought, he noticed people staring at him, and he wondered why. He hadn't done anything wrong, had he? It was just a simple somersault, nothing more. "Hotaru, why is everybody looking…?"

Before Hotaru could answer or even come over, though, an eight year old girl ran straight to Ignika.

"Wow! That was wicked cool! Where'd you learn that? Do you go to a circus school or something? I know I want to go to one when I'm older. I'm Ritsuko, by the way, Ritsu for short, and you?" The little girl with carrot-red hair looked at Ignika with stars shining in her big innocent green eyes.

"I... uh..." The adults stopped staring once they heard the girl's explanation, but now Ignika found himself having to answer a flow of questions from this little human female, and he didn't understand what the 'circus school' was. "Um... I'm Eiju."

"Sweet! Nice to meet you!" Ritsu exclaimed and smiled widely at him. At that moment, other kids started crowding around to the Saurian boy, clearly eager to make friends with the unusual guy. They flooded him with questions most of which he couldn't even decipher since there were so many, however the most popular ones were 'how do you do that?' and 'will you teach me?'.

Ignika wasn't sure at all how to react or what to do. He desperately looked at Hotaru, begging her with his eyes to help him.

Hotaru came to his rescue and made way through the mob of kids, gently pushing them out of her way. "Everyone, enough. Eiju-kun can't teach you that, it's complex and requires a lot of practice, not to mention physical strength." Once she was next to Ignika, she said: "Let's play tag instead! I'm 'it'! Who's playing?"

"Me!" Most of the kids shouted and started running away in random directions, some of the girls screaming in excitement.

"Tag?" Ignika raised his eyebrow. He was pleased the kids were gone, but now it seemed he was dragged into another game he had no idea about.

"This game is simple." Hotaru quickly explained. "Everybody runs away from the kid who's 'it'. 'It' must catch up with another kid and touch him, then that kid becomes 'it', and everybody runs away from him or her." She then patted Ignika's shoulder once, said: "Tag! You're it!" and ran away.

Ignika smiled. Now this was more like it. Finally something that made sense. Chasing others clearly could help develop your stamina and speed, and it could help teach you how chasing a prey could go. Why did it have to take so long before Hotaru introduced him to something sensible? He didn't get that, but didn't let it bother him either, and he began to give chase, observing his 'prey' while running only a bit at first. There was no point in going full speed if you hadn't picked your target out yet. He noticed one girl who was younger than most of the others, and as of such slower. A feral grin spread across Ignika's face. The hunt was on.

Hotaru turned around to look at Ignika, and noticed the look he had. For some reason, it frightened her. She couldn't be entirely sure Ignika grasped the concept... So, just to be safe, she ran close to him, and said quietly:

"Remember, just touch, don't hurt them or push them on purpose, otherwise we'll be dealing with angry parents..." Then she ran off again.

Ignika raised an eyebrow. Of course he wasn't going to hurt them, he wasn't Nightmare, for the Great Being's sake! He didn't get why Hotaru was so worried. He actually found it fun for a change!

"He seems to be enjoying this." Setsuna said as she watched the game with a content smile on her face. So far, this walk was going much better than she expected. Of course, she too was startled when Ignika did the somersault, but things went well thanks to that little girl. Yes, things were going good, indeed.

"Well, it seems to be some sort of hunting game, something that actually makes sense," Traveller replied as she too observes the game. "As of such, I'm not surprised that he likes it. I would like it too, if I were playing."

Setsuna chuckled. "Making no sense is what makes those games so good." Seeing as the situation got normal and didn't require her attention that much, Setsuna took her sketchbook from her purse, and stared thoughtfully at an unfinished office dress design. Then shook her head, flipped the book to a blank page, took her pencil and eraser, and started sketching a summer dress.

Traveller allowed herself to look away from Ignika for a tiny second to glance at what Setsuna was doing. She was drawing lines on that strange material called 'paper', and those lines slowly began to come together to form the image of some kind of human clothes. The Saurian of Teleportation frowned, not understanding what the guardian of Time was doing. Finally her curiosity won over and she asked for an explanation.

"I'm thinking up a new dress design. If you look around, you can see that all those people wear different clothes of many different designs. I'm currently studying to be one of the people who create those designs, and if I'm good enough at it, then some of my ideas might see the light and be made into actual clothes." Setsuna explained.

"What's the point?" Traveller asked, an eyebrow raised. "Clothes have to be practical, and that's all. They need to cover your dignity, shield you against the cold and be strong so that you don't have to repair them often. Nothing more." The Saurian of Teleportation scoffed and she motioned to the people around them in the park. "When I look around here, I see a lot of things that make me frown. Yes, I have noticed everybody wears something else, and I find it stupid, for many of the things I see seem to be all show and no substance. Why must the human species be so… vain? Is this desire to be prettier and prettier, perhaps, a display of one of your mating habits? Trying to be pretty in the hopes of attracting a suitable mate? Even that seems weird to me. In nature, males have to attract us females, and we choose, not the other way around."

Setsuna raised her eyebrow in return and shrugged. "I guess it's a combination of all you said. Yes, partially it is to attract a mate, but not only that. For many centuries clothes also reflected social status, hierarchy and your position in it. Those who have the most power, respect and money can afford to have the most expensive, beautiful and complex clothes. And sometimes people try to use that concept the other way around: if one has expensive clothes, he must have a lot of money. It doesn't work more often than not, though."

"Money…" Traveller repeated, the word feeling strange on her tongue. "I don't understand it. Ignika tried, but even he doesn't. It is just a bit of parchment with symbols on it. It has no value. I understand from what you said that having a lot apparently means something to you humans, and that it attracts mates, but…" The oldest sister of Ignika scoffed again and shook her head. "You know what Ignika said to me about it? It's stupid, he said. Having money requires nothing of the person. In nature, the strongest males get the best mates and thus the best offspring. Here it is the one with the most money. But one can have a lot of money and still be a wimp, resulting in weak offspring. Money is a ridiculous thing to choose mates by. Who wants weak offspring?"

"Slow down a bit, Traveller. I'll try to explain." Setsuna replied. "Each piece of paper actually stands for an amount of gold worth the sum written on the paper. Money is a universal good you can trade anything for, be it goods or your own time, skills and knowledge. Humans have simply agreed on that to make trade easier. However, as history went on and civilization progressed, money turned from a convenience into a necessity." She motioned to the city outside the park. "Now, in towns and cities, you simply won't survive without money. You won't be able to get any food unless you steal, but that could get you to be put in jail together with the other criminals. But a mate with much money can not only afford a place to live, food and clothes, but also luxuries unattainable to those who don't have money." Setsuna sighed. "You're right, it's vain. As for weak offspring... Our medical care, education institutes and all that are developed enough for that not to be a problem."

Traveller shook her head again and sighed. "It's unnatural, like Ignika said. It's not good for a species to place itself above nature and mess around in places where it has no business in. I know the Great Beings did the same to our race, but it's different… The Great Beings are immortal gods. Humans are just… humans. Your lifespan is so short, your natural defences laughable. I suppose your intelligence was nature's gift, but I doubt nature wanted this to happen…" Once more Traveller gestured at the world around it. "Humans dominate nature. It's not right. Nature should dominate humans. If Ignika had to carry out his duty here in this world as he has to on Voya, he'd erase the human race…"

Setsuna fell silent and leaned back on the bench, her arms crossed. "There are many argues about that subject in our society. Some condemn it, some worship the idea of humans being kings of nature, some try to give it a higher meaning or a purpose, some care only about their own profit and ambitions, some don't care at all. No matter what views they have, however, they can't change anything. The process is too vast and too relevant to human lifestyle to stop." Setsuna sighed. "All that I can tell you... Is that ten centuries from now, after an Ice Age, the planet will know balance and natural beauty again. As well as peace."

"Ten centuries… The lifespan of an average Saurian," Traveller muttered. "Can a planet so lost like this truly change in but one lifetime? I find that hard to believe. It would take Great Beings to do it."

"I cannot tell you how exactly the change will occur. In some aspects, it is a mystery even to me." Setsuna confessed. "I, and the other Sailor Senshi, know that it will happen. Chibiusa is the living proof of that, and it is because of her that I can so freely tell you about this."

"Yes, Ignika told me of Chibiusa's strange story… I remember my little brother once telling me that the Great Beings wished to create a Saurian of Time, but that they didn't find a suitable host for such power," Traveller said to the Senshi of Time. "Regardless, I don't need a Saurian of Time to know that messing with Time is as dangerous as playing with Life is."

Traveller chuckled for a moment before continuing: "Ignika tried to teach us, his family, a bit of the knowledge the Great Beings taught him. Of course, we're just simple, ordinary Saurians, so we couldn't understand… But now that I see you, a Senshi of Time, I think I understand it a bit better… Or maybe you will understand if I tell you what he told us. Life, Time and Creation, apparently the Great Beings discovered that those are the three fundamental forces the universe is build on… Disturb or destroy but one force and it all comes crashing down. That something so fundamental can house in Ignika, is amazing indeed. He is tied to Life, as Life is tied to him. Destroying him, would mean unleashing all the Life stored in him, and the results would be disastrous… Is it the same with you, Setsuna-san?"

Setsuna shook her head. "Thank God, no. For the power of Time is sealed within the Time Gates, not my body. I am merely its Guardian." Setsuna sighed. "Should I die, I, like the other Sailor Senshi, will sooner or later be reincarnated, reborn in another body. Whether I will have my memories back depends on the time that passes between them." Setsuna sighed. "Hotaru had undergone a reincarnation only two years ago. She remembered everything once she got her powers back..." Setsuna paused and put a finger to her chin in thought. "I am very limited in how much of my power I can use, though. Most manipulations with time are forbidden for me. I must not stop time, nor make it flow backwards, even though I can do it. I cannot interfere with the timeline, even to prevent wars or deaths of those dear to me. Chibiusa... It was my mistake that she came here, I simply failed to notice when she stole the time key and sneaked past the Gates..." Setsuna shook her head. "That led to a much more serious invasion, and the consequences were so big I had to leave it as it is, and not try to fix it. That's why Chibiusa now travels freely between her home and present time."

"How strange… A mistake that remains uncorrected? How similar to what happened to the Great Beings in the past…" Traveller muttered thoughtfully, her eyes once again focussed on Ignika, who had just tagged the girl he'd been chasing all the time. "Will this one have the same consequences as the Great Beings' mistake, I wonder?" The Saurian of Teleportation let out a rueful laugh. "Listen to me going on about matters that are far beyond my capability to understand. I am but a simple Saurian, and should only see myself as such. I cannot hope to understand something so complex as the Great Beings' lives."

"My mistake had a happy ending." Setsuna answered the Saurian's question. "The invaders from the future were defeated in the past, or should I say the present?" She chuckled and shook her head. "Let us hope we get a happy ending this time, too." She then looked at her guest. "And do not belittle yourself. Simple or not, you should wonder about such things. Thinking about complex matters and problems makes you higher." The Senshi of Time fell silent and continued watching the kids.

"There is no shame in admitting something is beyond your reach," Traveller replied quietly.

"Depends on where you set your borders. Singing also was beyond your reach, but now you're getting good at it. Of course, those things can't really be compared, but you should never stop wondering, never stop learning and developing yourself, even if you think you'll never understand it. Who knows, maybe one day you will." Setsuna shrugged.

Traveller chuckled. "Unlike you, I accept the limits of my species, and there's nothing wrong with that."

"Perhaps." Setsuna smiled. "Humans just don't know their limits, I think. So they try to find them out, and expand as much as possible. But no field of knowledge has yet reached the final limit. There's always some kind of a breakthrough."

"All things end, eventually. That is the fate of the universe, of all of existence… That's what I believe," the reptile disguised as a human replied.

"An end is a new beginning. When something old dies, there's always something new that takes its place. This cycle is eternal. That's what I believe." The Guardian of Time replied back.

Traveller was about to say something when she visibly tensed. Not far away from her, Ignika did the same at the exact same moment as his sister. Traveller's right hand twitched as she held her Trident ready for summoning, and a low growl escaped her throat.

"By the Great Beings," she hissed. "Why now?"

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**Next chapter: Of children and Saurians!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: I'm just glad to get reviews, it doesn't really matter when I get them. =) You're right that Ignika takes it all seriously, but to his credit, that's partly because of the world he was raised in, which differs greatly from our own. It's a world where children grow up differently than here, and he sees that as to how children should be. The fact that he has such a tremendous power and heavy duty doesn't help much, either. But he's still cute. =p


	40. Of children and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**40.**** Of children and Saurians**

Seeing Traveller and Ignika tense like that, Setsuna wasted no time and quickly hid behind some trees to transform. When she came back, chaos was already unleashed. A dimensional gate opened, and several Saurians came out, causing panic to everybody in the playground. Many kids cried or were frozen with fear, adults picked up their kids and ran for their lives, although some seemed just as lost and hysterical as their children. Having quickly scanned the battlefield, Setsuna turned to Traveller and said:

"Me and Saturn will evacuate the humans while you and Ignika fend them off. Then we join you." With those words Setsuna rushed into action.

Traveller merely nodded, though she doubted Pluto had seen it as the Senshi had already run off. With a flick of her wrist the Saurian of Teleportation summoned her dual-headed trident to her hand and then immediately triggered her power, teleporting away from her spot at the bench only to reappear at Ignka's side. The Child of Life was already waiting, his Death Scythe clutched tightly in his human hands.

"Sonics, hunger, shattering, cyclone, weather control, water, stone and insect control," Ignika said to his sister without taking his eyes off the Saurian invaders rushing across the grass towards them. "Eight of them is a lot. And I can't use my powers full-force until every human has gotten away."

"Setsuna and Hotaru are taking the humans to safety," Ignika's oldest sister replied. "I will teleport myself and four of them to some other spot, so their forces will be divided."

"Good plan," the Saurian of Life said with a curt nod. "Can you take weather control, insect control, shattering and stone? I'll deal with the others."

"Ah, I see," Traveller muttered as she readied herself and her powers. "Group the powers that form a hindrance for each other together, huh? Very well. Be careful, my brother."

"Same goes for you, sister."

Hotaru had already transformed herself and was now busy looking for kids who tried to find safety by hiding somewhere around the playground. Sailor Pluto and some of the more level-headed adults were leading the evacuation, and it wouldn't be very long until they were at a safe distance and could be left unguarded. Yet about five or six adults stayed behind, clearly missing their kids.

"Where are those little buggers…" Hotaru muttered as she ran through the playground, frantically looking for hiding places. Then she suddenly noticed a kid who was not hidden at all.

"Miki?" Hotaru exclaimed. The little boy was still in the sandbox, creating yet another cake, blissfully oblivious to the chaos around him.

Not so very far away, Ignika and the invaders finally clashed. Traveller had, just a moment before, suddenly appeared in their midst and touched four of them before vanishing once more, halving the strength of the force Ignika had to face. Confident that his sister could handle herself, and seeing nobody in sight that could get hurt, the Child of Life went on the offensive.

His Death Scythe blocked the sword of the Saurian of Hunger, and Ignika began to increase the amount of life energy in his opponent to staggering heights. Before the power could rise to a level where the Saurian would pass out, though, Ignika had to break of his attack in order to dodge a high-pressure stream of water being blasted in his direction. The Saurian of Hunger felt the building Life energy in him drop back to normal, and he immediately triggered his power to start sapping away Ignika's strength.

Acting quickly, Ignika made a nearby bench come to live with his powers, and the piece of furniture quickly tackled the Saurian to the ground. This gave Ignika the time needed to dodge a blast of sonic powers and a cyclone. Growling, Ignika gave life to more inanimate objects around him, prompting the living swings to attempt to capture and strangle the Saurians while the living slides tried to crush them. Though the unfortunate objects quickly fell to the destructive might of the Saurians, it gave Ignika the opportunity to run up to the Saurian of hunger and fell him with a deadly slash across the chest, courtesy of the Death Scythe. The Saurian was fatally wounded, but still alive, and if he was lucky he would survive until the end of the fight, when Ignika would devolve him into a common lizard.

He couldn't do that now, because the remaining three Saurians were too busy trying to kill him. The Saurian of Cyclone created a couple of five powerful whirlwinds, and the other invaders soon joined in with blasts of sound and water. Though Ignika managed to shield himself by bringing more objects to life to serve as walls against the onslaught, many of the attacks weren't aimed at him at all, but were simply performed to cause destruction. One such mixture of sound, cyclone and water was headed straight for the bush the sandbox was located behind.

Sailor Saturn, who was already close to the sandbox, ran even faster as she saw the attack. She jumped high and landed in front of Miki just in time to cast Silence Wall and shield them both. Though it took some strength, the dark barrier shattered the attack, and the Senshi knelt down to the boy.

"You hurt, Miki?" She asked.

"Miki not hurt." The boy said, a bit surprised. He looked around. "Where Miki's mama?" The boy asked, his lip quivering.

"Over there." Hotaru motioned towards the remaining group of adults. "I'm going to take you to mama." With those words she picked the boy up and sped off towards the adults.

Ignika was unaware of what was going on behind him, too busy deflecting and parrying blows of the Water Saurian's trident with his scythe. The Saurian of Sonics, however, did notice the running Hotaru, and saw her fitting the description given to them of these 'Sailor Senshi'. They had to be eliminated, they were ordered, if possible. Not wasting another moment, the Saurian gave chase, firing destructive sound waves from his crossed short swords. He had seen that the Senshi was carrying a child, and that only served to make her an easier target, since she couldn't run as fast as he could. And for sure, she could never outrun sound.

And she didn't. The wave hit her in the back, and she fell on the ground with a cry. Thankfully, she held Miki so that he wasn't hurt upon impact with the ground. Saturn let go of him and turned around just in time to block the Saurian's twin swords.

"Miki! Run!" She cried. "Or he'll hurt you!"

The toddler looked at her wide-eyed and didn't move.

"Go!" The Senshi shouted. The kid still didn't move, but the situation was suddenly saved by Miki's mother who saw her child close enough for her to reach and in grave danger. She picked up her kid and ran for her life.

"Thank goodness…" Hotaru thought, then continued struggling against the Saurian. While protecting the kid the Senshi had found unknown strength that allowed her to hold against the Saurian who dwarfed her in physical strength, but now that strength was fading. Knowing that, Saturn cast Silence Wall to aid herself, and by pushing with both physical strength and dark magic that formed the Wall, got to her feet. She then suddenly dispelled the Wall and jumped back, successfully increasing the distance. She readied her glaive, looking ready for battle. It was pure bluff, however. She knew she couldn't use any of the attacks more powerful than Silence Wall, else the playground and the remaining kids will be razed to the ground. So her plan was to evade the Saurian as much as possible and try to find the kids while doing so.

The Saurian of Sonics studied his opponent for a while, searching for any sign of weakness. Despite her fearsome weapon, this female creature wasn't attacking him, and previously she had only defended and tried to get away from him. Even now she was just standing there, visibly tensed, waiting for him to make a move. He had been told that these female creatures were weak in physical combat, but their other powers were a force to be reckoned with. So what was she waiting for? Could it perhaps be that this creature had no powers, or was in a situation where she could not use them? The Saurian hit very near the mark though he little knew it. Regardless, he made his decision. Sound waves would only get blocked by that barrier of hers, but up close she was his. With a snarl, the Saurian of Sound charged and struck out with his two swords.

"Silence Wall!" Saturn cried. The dark barrier would be useless against a direct physical attack, but at the same time as she casted it, she moved to evade the Saurian's attack, making the blades slide upon the barrier's surface at a tangent. As the Saurian went past her, the Soldier of Ruin dispelled the barrier and struck the Saurian with her glaive, making him fall on the ground. Having dealt with that, the Senshi rushed towards the slides. There were no kids who were as obviously present as Miki, and the slides were one of the few places of the playground where one could hide. At the same time Hotaru kept an eye on the Saurian, ready to deflect another blow should it come.

Fuming, the Saurian of Sound climbed back to his feet, studying the wound he received from the glaive. It was bleeding, but not too deep. He could still fight. But apparently, this female creature had a bit more wit and tactical mind in her than he had expected. Taking no risks, he unleashed another wave of destructive sound, which struck Saturn in the back and made her scream in agony as her ears were nearly shredded.

Saturn fell to the ground and clutched her head. The pain was so great her vision got blurry. Yet she thought her screaming voice wasn't the only one she heard… Was it just a hallucination, or…? Hotaru shook the blurriness off and dived under the slides. There she found three crying kids.

"Sailor Moon?" One of them asked as his eyes widened.

"No, Sailor Saturn." The Senshi replied. "Listen, you three, get out of here now and run past the ladders towards your parents. I'll go out first and cover you. Got it?"

"Y… Yes." The kids nodded.

"Good. Now!" Saturn got out of her cover and immediately cast Silence wall between her and the Saurian, leaving an opening for the children to get out. "Go, Go, GO!" She shouted at them.

The Saurian let out a roar that was amplified by his powers, then proceeded to make a giant leap at the children. However, something collided with him in midair and both that something and the Saurian fell to the ground. When the dust settled Hotaru could see Ignika's Death Scythe locked with the two swords of the invader, as the Child of Life did his best to push his Scythe in the Saurian's chest. Sparing a moment to glance over his shoulder at Saturn, Ignika shouted:

"Hotaru, the children! Quickly, the other two are right behind me!"

Not wasting time, Saturn ran behind Ignika and shielded them with Silence Wall as various attacks from the other Saurians Ignika was battling came their way. Before those attacks subsided, Hotaru managed to tell Ignika quietly:

"I can't use any other attacks, they'll leave the place devastated. After these kids are safe, there's only one child left to find." The barrier coped with the attacks, and Hotaru continued to run along with the children, making sure they reach the safe distance from which they can run to their parents on their own.

Ignika watched Hotaru and the children go, and when the Saurian of Sound moved to follow them, he quickly prevented him from doing so with a swipe of his scythe. Ignika did a back flip to avoid a blast of water that came his way, but was caught in midair by a sudden cyclone and slammed painfully into one of the remaining slides. As he tried to get up, a stream of highly pressured water knocked the wind out of him and made him double over and fall to the ground in pain, gasping for breath. Cursing, Ignika saw the Saurian of Sonics once again giving chase to Hotaru while the remaining two approached him to finish the job. He clenched his fist tightly around the hilt of his Death Scythe and struggled to get to his feet. These Saurians were good, he had to admit. But it just meant that he had to be better.

As the three children ran off to safety with their parents, Hotaru frantically scanned the playground, looking for the last remaining child. Where could he or she possibly hide? Then she saw the Saurian of Sonics coming her way and ran while there still was distance between them, hoping to do better by going along the trees around the playground. She looked back at the Saurian when…

"Ritsu!" Hotaru cried. She had accidentally glanced upwards and saw the red-haired girl up in the tree, holding onto it and shaking like a frightened squirrel. The Saurian was already approaching, and Hotaru knew she couldn't let him use his powers, or else the tree with the girl would be damaged. Charging up her barrier, she ran towards the Saurian of Sonics, hoping to find an opening and strike him down, or at least hold him off long enough for Ignika to figure out something.

But Ignika was far too busy at that moment to come to Hotaru's aid. Trapped between the slide and the attacks of two bloodthirsty Saurians, he had to focus all his attention on his own survival. His human body could not sustain as much damage as his Saurian one, and already he felt that his body had had enough. He had to end it, and fast. Already, his cunning mind was working on a strategy. When the Saurian of Cyclone fired another whirlwind at him, Ignika took his chance. He bought the slide to life and made it jump in front of him to catch the attack. The Child of Life didn't stay behind the safety of his living shield, however.

Summoning whatever strength he still had left in his legs, Ignika leaped and sailed over the slide and the cyclone. Then, in midair he aimed his Scythe at the Saurian that had just attacked him and fire a beam of pure, concentrated life energy at him. The attack hit home, and in but a few seconds it was over. The sudden, explosive increase of Life energy in his body was too much for the Saurian of Cyclone to bear. His bodily functions began to work in overdrive, trying to contain and store all this energy. All too soon his heart burst under the enormous pressure and his brain simply fried itself. He was dead before he hit the ground.

Angered by the sight of his dead comrade, the Saurian of Water tried to shoot Ignika out of the air with a beam of water, but the Child of Life was prepared this time. Before the water could even touch him, he brought it to life and set it on its creator. The water closed itself around the unfortunate Saurian, and he would soon be drowned by his own power. Feeling merciful, however, Ignika waited until his opponent had lost consciousness before taking back the life he had given to the water. It fell in harmless puddles on the ground, together with the unconscious Saurian of Water.

The Saurian of Sonics and Sailor Saturn once again engaged in a stalemate, the Saurian's twin swords blocked by Saturn's Silence Glaive enhanced by the Silence Wall. It lasted for a while, and then Hotaru broke away, running and leading the Saurian as far from the child as possible. A sound wave soon came after her, only to be blocked by a Silence Wall. The Saurian charged at her once again, and Hotaru desperately fought for her life, her brains working in overdrive.

"I can't use my powers… Ritsuko is still up the tree, and blowing up the place just to get rid of him is stupid… What can I do? Why?" She thought frantically during dodging, blocking and evading the Saurian's attacks.

Finally, the Saurian of Sonics had enough of that, and used his powers to knock Saturn away and make her fall to the ground. He let out a savage cry and jumped high in the air, ready to bring his swords down to end Hotaru's life. Hotaru raised her glaive…

And it was over.

The Saurian of Sonics hung lifelessly, his throat pierced through with the Glaive.

Not far away, Ignika was busy cleaning up his mess. He reduced all objects he had brought to life back to their normal, inanimate state, and devolved the Saurians still alive into harmless, common lizards. With that done, he scanned the ruined park. There were no more children or humans in sight, aside from the one in the tree near Saturn, and he could not hear any other sounds of battle either. He was confident that that meant that his sister had handled her opponents like he had handled his. Finally, the Child of Life went over to Hotaru, who was still on the ground, looking with wide eyes at the Saurian impaled on her Silence Glaive. Ignika knew immediately that something was off.

"Hotaru?" he asked cautiously.

The Senshi gave a start and rushed away from the body, letting go of her glaive. Once the body hit the ground she transformed back into Hotaru Tomoe. She still stared at the lifeless body in shock.

"So that's what it's like… Death…" She muttered. Then curled up in a ball and started shaking uncontrollably.

Ignika carefully approached his shaking friend. A fleeting scan of her mind was enough to inform him of the mental pain and shock she was in. He could guess the reason. "You… never killed before?"

Hotaru nodded. "Not in the lifetime I remember… It's one thing destroying worlds with power, but like this…" She then gasped, her eyes even wider than before, then closed her eyes tight and clutched her head. "My God, what am I saying? It's not different… Not different at all… The worlds I can kill… The people in them..." Hotaru let go of her head and looked up, her eyes staring into empty space as a memory from thousands of years ago came back. "I slaughtered the Silver Millenium…"

The Child of Life shook his head and sighed, then sat down next to Hotaru. Ignika looked up to the sky with sadness in his eyes. "That's your fate, Hotaru. It was your duty and destiny to do so back then, and it was your destiny to kill this Saurian today. And no, it's not pleasant. But I never said duty and destiny are. But face it and accept it we all must. I have blood on my claws just like you do, and I don't like it, but I know I had no choice. You're no different."

Hotaru nodded again. "I know, and you're right… But it's hard…" She willed herself to calm down at least somewhat, and sat normally. Then looked at Ignika: "What was your first kill like? Harder than mine?"

Ignika gave her a sad look. "A total accident. An overdose of Life energy. I hadn't even meant to do it, but it couldn't be undone regardless. I didn't even know his name, or if he had willingly hunted me at all."

Hotaru put her legs up to her chest and hugged her knees. "I see… Great power is hard to control." She shook her head. "Sometimes I think I have too much… All my attacks are way too powerful to use, except Silence Wall… Had I used even one, there'd be nothing but a huge crater left here…"

From the corner of her eye Hotaru could see Ritsu getting off the tree right into her mother's arms. Looking at them made her remember why she was a Senshi, what she protected…

Ignika got back on his feet again. "Hotaru, shouldn't we be getting out of sight? Don't you want people to not recognize you?"

Hotaru chuckled. "Don't worry, they won't. Like we told you, there's a spell that conceals identity. Only Ritsu could know me, if she was looking this way." She got up, dusted herself and took Ignika's hand. "But you're right, let's go find Setsuna-mama and Traveller."

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**Next chapter: Of time and Saurians!**

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**Review replies:**

Chaser Warring On Everything: You're right, the plot itself doesn't move very quickly (though all current chapters are building up to the next climax) when compared to the characters. But then again, there's only so much you can rush it along. The Senshi have no choice but to wait for the enemy to strike first, as they have no idea where the enemy is hiding or how to even get there. Even Angonce doesn't know. So they have to wait. And that gives me plenty of room to play around with the characters. I'm a character-focussed writer, I focus mostly on the characters since you've got to be a genius to write an original plot that has never been done before with unexpected twists. The plot here is pretty standard, I admit. But if you've got a solid cast, any plot can still work, no matter how basic. So that's what I'm doing. Yes, plot is not moving as quickly as character development, that's because plot is taking a backseat here to the characters. That's just my style.


	41. Of time and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**41.**** Of time and Saurians**

As the battle on the playground raged on, Sailor Pluto led the evacuated kids and adults towards the exit. She was there to make sure the group makes it to a safe distance and head towards the exit themselves. The Soldier of Time was worried about her daughter no less than some of the adults worried for the kids remaining on the playground. What if she couldn't defend herself well enough? Her powers were too great for her to use in a minor battle like that…

Sailor Pluto was about to leave the group and run back to the battlefield when she suddenly heard sounds of battle coming from her left, from somewhere deeper in the park. She looked at one of the few present men and said:

"Mizuhara-san, you're in charge now. I'll go investigate the battle over there." Sailor Pluto motioned the direction with her Garnet Rod.

The man nodded and replied: "I will ensure their safety. Take care, Sailor Pluto." Then smiled. "And thank you."

The Senshi just smiled back and dashed off towards the battle sounds.

* * *

Traveller let out a low growl as she used her power of teleportation to avoid a blast of shattering energy that was sent in her previous direction. She reappeared behind the Saurian of Shattering and attempted to rig him to her trident, but his reflexes were sharp and quick, and he could dodge the jab. In fact, all of her opponents were quick. She had expected that, these were Saurians, after all. So far, her biggest success had been when she had ripped through the side of the Saurian of Weather Control, but he wouldn't die from that.

As the transformed Saurian teleported all over the battlefield, her thoughts went out to her little brother, hoping that he was alright. Cursing silently, she reminded herself that he could take care of himself and that she had to focus. The sooner she won here, the sooner she could go back to him. Traveller ducked behind another tree and used its cover to teleport away. This was why she had chosen to battle here between the trees. In open field, the potential danger of her power was decreased, because no matter where she teleported, she could be spotted immediately. This was not the case here. She could appear everywhere, covered by trees, and that kept her opponents tensed and on their toes, preventing them from unleashing the full might of their powers. And sooner or later, one of them would break under the tension, or make a mistake, and then she'd move in to finish the job. She had done this countless times before, and though she had a different body now, it didn't change anything. Traveller was still a veteran of thousands of battles.

* * *

The sounds of battle became louder as Sailor Pluto approached the battlefield. She couldn't see Traveller or Ignika nearby, but the presence of Saurians meant that one of them was here, probably Traveller. And if so, she'd use her powers to strike her foes, acting on surprise. Which meant the Saurian of Teleporting couldn't do any major damage.

"Well, it's my cue then." Setsuna muttered to herself. Then cried: "Dead Scream!" and fired the attack at the nearest Saurian.

The attack came as a surprise to the Saurian who was attacked, which happened to be the one with the power of stone, but because of Setsuna crying out her attack before it fired, he got the necessary time needed to attempt to dodge, and the Dead Scream only hit his left arm instead of his entire body. Though said arm now hung limp at his side, the Saurian didn't seem to care. He merely cried to his brethren that one more target had arrived, and then immediately proceeded to make sharp and deadly spires of stone erupt from under Sailor Pluto's feet.

Pluto jumped high in the air, evading the attack. Landing on a tree, she turned around to glare at the Saurians and make a speech:

"Insolent fools! You dared to threaten the most precious thing in all existence – the children! In the name of my planet, I, Sailor Pluto, will not let that go unpunished!" She jumped back on the ground and fired another attack: "Chronos Typhoon!" A powerful whirlwind sped off towards the Saurians.

The Saurian of Weather control merely scoffed, and used his control over weather to create a storm that cancelled out Setsuna's attack. He followed that up with a bolt of lightning from the sky that struck the tree the Senshi of Time had landed in. Though Sailor Pluto dodged that, she was far from safe. As she was still in the air, the Saurian of Stone created a giant, granite fist and clobbered her down to the earth with it. He was about to summon tons of rock to crush Setsuna to death when Traveller, who had seen it all happen, appeared behind him and lashed out with her trident. The Stone Saurian only just managed to knock the weapon off course with a strike of his dagger.

But Traveller could only keep so many Saurians off her Senshi partner all by herself for so long, and while she was struggling with the Saurian of Stone, the Saurian of Insect Control summoned forward an army of ants, billions of them, and they covered Sailor Pluto whole, the little critters biting her all at the same time, again and again.

"GAH!" The Senshi of Time cried. The pain was great, but she had to endure it for now. She jumped to her feet. "Garnet Ball!" The barrier the attack formed prevented any new insects from coming at her, and Setsuna managed to brush off at least some of them off herself. Then she suddenly dispelled the barrier and fired a Chronos Typhoon, letting it come dangerously close to her and making sure it sucked all insects on her body and then anywhere else in sight. She then sent them all to the Saurian of Weather Control. The said Saurian dispelled the whirlwind easily, but wasn't prepared for an army of insects suddenly attacking him. Sailor Pluto, meanwhile, fired a Dead Scream at the Saurian of Insect Control. This time, the attack struck home. The Saurian was blown back and crashed into a tree, but he remained conscious and in the fight.

Traveller was relieved that Setsuna had gotten out of that nasty situation on her own, and the Saurian of Teleportation returned all her attention to the Saurian of Stone. That one was now raising great stone walls all around Traveller, effectively boxing her in. Then he crushed the walls together, hoping to squash Traveller with it, but the oldest sister of Ignika got out unharmed with a little help of her power. She reappeared on top of the stone debris and, touching it, teleported it along with herself above the Saurian of Stone. As the debris began to fall, Traveller once again teleported away to safety, but her opponent had no such luck, and the results of his own power came crashing down on him.

Time to gloat in her victory, Traveller didn't get, as she immediately had to start dodging strikes of lightning. The Saurian of Weather control, having freed himself of the bugs with some help of his insect brother, now focussed all his attention on Traveller. Electricity began to build up in the air as the Saurian summoned more and more storm clouds in the sky above the trees. The high tension in the air put Traveller in serious danger, because Teleporting in such charged space was highly dangerous. She had to dodge the lightning bolts that followed the old fashioned way, and as of such couldn't warn Setsuna about what was about to happen.

The Saurian of Shattering had snuck up to the Senshi of Time and released a fully charged blast of his power from up close, shredding open Pluto's back and colouring her back, and the grass below, red with blood. Setsuna cried from excruciating pain, falling on her fours. But she clenched her teeth, growled and got up, firing a Dead Scream at her foe. Then, driven by blind rage and pain, she engaged in close combat with the Saurian, striking again and again with her key-shaped staff.

Traveller saw it all happen, and she loudly swore, cursing the other woman's foolishness to engage a Saurian in close combat when her entire back was torn open and bleeding like there was no tomorrow. She had to do something, but first she had to deal with that Saurian of Weather Control. As he raised his staff and summoned forth more lightning to rain down on the forest below, Traveller took her chance. She teleported, despite the dangers, appeared before the Saurian of Weather Control, grabbed him and then teleported the both of them back into the zone that was about to be struck by lightning. When the deadly force came crashing down from the clouds, Traveller had already teleported away again, though her mind was protesting loudly at the strain she put on it by teleporting so much in such a short amount of time and in such dangerous condition. The Saurian of Weather Control did not have the luck of quick travel, and he was struck down and fried by the storm he himself had summoned. His smoking corpse fell to the ground soundlessly.

Traveller now finally had the chance to go to Setsuna's aid, and not a moment too soon. Her blind rage had indeed made her do foolish things, and though she had managed to strike the Saurian of Shattering a few times with her sharp, key-shaped staff, he clearly had the upper hand and Sailor Pluto was weakening rapidly. When she swung her staff again, her opponent seized the opportunity. He ducked and avoided the swipe, then slashed open Setsuna's chest and stomach with his two sickles. Even as the Sailor Senshi cried out in pain and coughed up blood, the Saurian sent another blast of shattering energy at her, which exploded in Pluto's chest and knocked her to the ground in a bloody heap. Worse, the Saurian of Insect Control was back in the fight, and once more summoned an army of deadly little buggers, who were all too happy to feast on the exposed, bloody flesh.

Setsuna struggled to breath, trying to get as much air in her ruined body as possible. Her mind was numb from excruciating pain, yet thoughts still were present in it:

"Why... Why...? Why am I so weak? Despite reincarnations... Despite power... I'm a fragile human... I can just as well die... I'm weak... I'm not powerful..."

The world began to fade as unconsciousness began to take over her mind.

"No... No... Not here... Not now..."

Summoning the last of her strength, Sailor Pluto put her hands on the ground and opened a portal straight below her, immediately falling into the timeless zone where the Gate was located. The insects covering her body died as only beings of great power could stand the absence of the time flow.

Looking up at the already closing portal, she thought: "Safe... Here, I won't die... Here, there's no time... No death..."

Setsuna collided painfully with the platform the Time Gate stood on. Her wounds soon stopped bleeding, but they wouldn't heal themselves. She could only hope that Chibiusa would remember the Time Key she had.

"Traveller... I'm sorry..." The Senshi of Time thought and slipped into painful unconsciousness.

* * *

Traveller saw Setsuna disappear and cursed, not knowing where the woman had disappeared to or if she even would survive. There was really no choice anymore now, she had to finish this and extremely fast, there was no doubt Setsuna's life depended on it. If she could find the woman on time and teleport her brother over to the Senshi of Pluto, she'd make it… But to do that she had to get rid of these invading pests first.

Placing her furious gaze on the Saurian of Shattering, Ignika's oldest sister decided that he would be the one who had to go first. He had brutally wounded her friend, and now he'd pay for that. She teleported over to him, knowing full well that he'd expect that. She lashed out with her trident, and he did the same with his sickles. Their weapons locked, a contest of pure physical strength seemed to have begun, but Traveller was smarter than that. She knew that in her current body, she couldn't match the physical strength of a healthy Saurian. But as their weapons were locked, she was in direct contact with him, and thus she could teleport him along with herself.

And that was exactly what she did. She willed their molecules to part and reform elsewhere, and the two of them vanished, only to reappear at the side of the Saurian of Insect Control. The unfortunate Saurian was now caught between the two struggling opponents, and as they reappeared, so did their locked weapons. The head of Traveller's trident and the two sickles of the Saurian of Shattering materialized inside the chest of the Saurian of Insect Control, who didn't even get time to scream or feel pain. Just like that, he was dead.

But Traveller didn't stop there, not even a second had passed or she teleported the two of them again. The Saurian of Shattering, too shocked by the sudden death of his only remaining comrade and too disoriented by all the teleporting, did not disconnect his weapons from Traveller's, and allowed himself to be warped away once more. This time they reappeared in midair, high above the trees. Before they could even begin to fall, however, Traveller disappeared again, and reformed herself behind her opponent. Unbalanced, disoriented and falling, the Saurian of Shattering could do nothing to prevent Traveller from ramming her trident straight through him, ending his life.

The Saurian woman didn't slow down for even a second, though. Yes, she had won and defeated her opponents, but she felt no joy of victory. Setsuna was out there somewhere, bleeding to death. There was no time for rejoicing. And so, before the dead Saurian of Shattering had even hit the ground again, Traveller had already gone off to search for her little brother.

Finding him wasn't difficult, she remembered the spot where she had left him behind, and so she simply warped herself to that place, hoping he'd still be there. She materialized in the open field, which bore the scars of a furious battle, and looked around for Ignika and Hotaru. She found them standing not far away, near one of those constructions called a 'slide', and Traveller teleported over to them, placing herself right before her younger sibling.

"Ignika, we have no time. Setsuna got brutally wounded, she's bleeding to death. You have to heal her! But she made herself vanish, and I don't know where she is now! I can't detect her scent anywhere!"

Hotaru gasped and clasped her hands on her mouth. "Setsuna-mama? Wounded?" she thought, shocked.

"What do you mean, can't detect her scent?" Ignika asked, puzzled.

"Vanish?" Hotaru whispered. Then cried out loud: "Traveller! How did she vanish?"

The Saurian frowned. "She just kind of fell through the ground. As if there was a hole or a portal or something."

Hotaru sighed, relieved. Answering the Saurians' confused gazes, she explained: "Setsuna-mama went to the Time Gates. Time doesn't exist there, she won't die." Hotaru frowned again. "But the wounds won't heal, either..."

"Hotaru, have you been at that place, or do you know how it looks?" Traveller asked urgently, grabbing the purple-eyed girl's shoulders and slightly shaking her. Normally, Traveller wouldn't do this, but she was filled with worry, and she felt responsible for the fate that had befallen the Senshi of Time. She was supposed to have handled the close combat so that Setsuna could stay at a safe distance and attack with her long ranged abilities.

"Y… yes," Hotaru replied meekly, not at all used to this side of Traveller.

The Saurian of Teleportation let go of the younger girl and turned to her brother. "Ignika, transfer the images of that Time Gate from Hotaru's mind to mine, so I can teleport to it and bring Setsuna back!"

"Are you certain, Traveller?" Ignika asked cautiously. He was worried for Setsuna, certainly, but he was still calm enough to know that this might not be safe for his sister. If these Time Gates were in another dimension, it was possible Traveller couldn't reach them. Or worse, that the teleportation failed or went wild, endangering Traveller's life. Ignika knew that worry could cause his sister to do rash things. Usually they had Gravitas to be the voice of reason in such situations, but the Saurian of Gravity was not here for the moment.

"Yes, I'm certain," Traveller replied. Before Ignika could say anything again, she interrupted him, because she understood that he was worried for her own safety. "I know the risks, little brother. But for Setsuna's sake, I have to try. I owe it to her, because I was responsible for her… I should have guarded her better…"

Ignika, knowing it was futile to convince his sister that it was not her fault or to try and change her mind, merely let out a resigned sigh and nodded. The Child of Life quickly went to work, and used his mental powers to dive into Hotaru's mind. The Senshi of Ruin helped the process go more quickly by thinking as hard as she could about the Time Gates, making the memory easy for Ignika to find. The Child of Life used her guidance and reached the image of the realm Setsuna had fled to. He grabbed it with his mind, and then merged the knowledge of it with his own memory. With that done, he retreated from Hotaru's mind and delved into Traveller's, linking her memory to his. Then he delicately transferred the image of the Time Gates from his memory to hers and broke the mental link.

Traveller smiled gratefully at her beloved brother. Then she did a few steps back to give herself space, for her own safety and that of the two children. She began to focus intensely on the memory Ignika had given her, trying to picture the Time Gates as clearly before her eyes as if she was really there. And then she triggered her powers. Before the eyes of Ignika and Hotaru, Traveller vanished, and the two beings with power over Life and Death could only wait and pray for the older Saurian's success.

* * *

Traveller felt her mind and essence float between space and time as her powers attempted to take her beyond the borders of Earth's dimension. The Time Gates were not truly another dimension, they were tied to the dimension in which planet earth was situated, but it was still another plane of existence. And Traveller had never attempted to teleport herself beyond a dimension's borders before. But now she did, because she had to, a friend of her was in danger. Setsuna had helped and guarded Ignika just as much as Hotaru had when her brother had been here all on his own. For that, Setsuna had Traveller's gratitude. The woman had also helped her, in her own way, to adapt to this strange dimension and world. While Michiru and Haruka taught her music and art, Setsuna brought reason and wisdom. Traveller didn't want to loose that.

Suddenly, the thousand year old woman felt herself materialize again. The teleportation had not killed her, at least, but had it brought her where she needed to be? A quick look around confirmed that answer to be yes. She was standing right before a tall gate that she recognized from the memory she had received. If these had been different, less urgent times, Traveller might have stopped to take a good look around and marvel at the beauty of this place and the gates. But she didn't, because she had to find and save Setsuna.

Not that finding the Senshi of Time proved to be any trouble. Sailor Pluto laid in a pool of her own blood before the gates she used to guard for so many eons. Though the pool didn't grow because time didn't flow, the Senshi was still in obvious pain and danger. Traveller kneeled down besides the wounded Setsuna, and gently grabbed her hand.

"Don't worry, Setsuna," she said. "We're going home, and we're going to heal you."

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**Next chapter: Bad news!**

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	42. Bad news

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**42.**** Bad news**

Setsuna inhaled sharply and her eyes flew open. Pain. Excruciating pain was all she could feel. Her vision was blurry and her mind dazed, but the light she could see meant she wasn't in the timeless realm anymore. She couldn't think whether she was safe or not, it didn't matter. All that mattered is that she was breathing, no matter how hard and painful that was.

What Setsuna didn't know was that she was home, lying on the couch in the living room of the Outer Senshi mansion. Next to her was Ignika, healing her wounds with all his skill, and Hotaru, who aided with her own healing powers, no matter how weak they were in comparison. Hotaru was holding her mother's head so that she could breathe better, and tried to ease her mind more than actually heal the body. She hoped her healing energy could calm Setsuna-mama and ease the pain at least somewhat.

A bit further from them stood Haruka and Michiru. Saying that they were shocked to see their friend, comrade and family member so gravely wounded would be the greatest understatement in the universe. The first few minutes they were simply frozen with shock, their brain refusing to move their body or grasp the fact that it was real and not a nightmare they dreamed. As the grave reality finally hit them, they began to shower the Saurians with questions, which Ignika simply brushed off, needing to heal Setsuna, and Traveller only told a very short version of what has happened. Now Haruka and Michiru were standing together, with Michiru crying quietly on her lover's chest. Haruka tried to offer her the best comfort she could, but her own inner turmoil didn't allow it to work as she intended. Still the Senshi of Uranus held her lover close, stroking her hair, but her own eyes never left Setsuna.

Healing Setsuna was no easy task, Ignika experienced. The power of shattering had destroyed and blown away great pieces of skin, especially on the back, and reforming all that was a slow and painstaking process. First he had had to heal the slash wounds on the stomach and chest, however, since those were the most dangerous, having missed vital organs only by a hair. Hotaru was a bigger help than she suspected she was, because her healing powers eased Setsuna's pain while Ignika worked on the rest of the body. His patient was still in her Senshi form, having not had the time or the will to transform back. And perhaps it was for the better, for Ignika had no doubt that it had been the power of her planet that had allowed Setsuna to hang on for as long as she did.

"Will she make it, brother?" Traveller asked, quietly.

"Yes, yes, don't worry," Ignika snapped back, irritated at being interrupted. He knew they were all worried, but he had to concentrate here, damn it! "It'll just take a while before I'm done."

His sister nodded, then turned to Michiru and Haruka. "Let's go to the kitchen so they can work on Setsuna in quiet."

Haruka was barely able to tear her gaze off Setsuna, but managed to look at Traveller and nod. She then gently beckoned her lover to follow her to the kitchen. Once Haruka and Traveller sat down, Michiru began fixing tea with calming herbs. The Saurian didn't seem too shaken by the event, but she and Haruka definitely were. There was no alcohol at home, and the time wasn't right to drink, either, so they had to settle for tea.

As they waited for the tea to be done, Traveller was lost in thoughts. In her mind's eye, she saw again and again how Setsuna was utterly and brutally attacked and defeated. She saw the Senshi falling, her back torn into bloody pieces, she saw Pluto's stomach and chest being slashed open, again and again and again. The Saurian of Teleportation shook her head and tried to push the images away. They were too horrible. It was her fault, she should have guarded Setsuna better. Well, it was not totally true, it wasn't entirely her fault. Sailor Pluto could have done a number of things better herself. It felt wrong to be angry at a wounded person who had nearly died, and to blame her for her stupid actions, but Traveller couldn't help it. She had been shaken, afraid that she would loose Setsuna. The woman had scared her, Great Beings' be damned! She was worried and angry. And especially that last part began to surface now. Her mood darkened.

"It's awful, what happened to Setsuna," the oldest of Ignika's family muttered quietly, causing Haruka and Michiru to look at her and nod. "I should have guarded her better, but… She should have been wiser herself, too!" The mistakes that Setsuna had made, in Traveller's eye, now replayed themselves in her head. "She had the advantage of surprise, why did she have to reveal herself like that and make that ridiculous speech! Why didn't she simply fall back when her back had been destroyed instead of blindly charging at her attacker like she did? Why didn't she, for the Great Beings' sake, seek cover behind me more? Why did she never call for help? I can teleport, damn it, I could have gone to her at any time!"

"Because she couldn't…" Haruka replied quietly. "She couldn't think of calling for help. For thousands of years… She had nobody to call upon."

Michiru nodded and continued explaining: "When Silver Millennium ended, Queen Selena bound Setsuna to the Time Gates. She had three rules to obey: to never leave the Gates, to never travel through time and to never stop time." Michiru shook her head. "She broke them all for us and the other Senshi when we were reborn in this time."

"But she still went through thousands of years of loneliness…" Haruka finished. "Thousands of timeless years by the Gates, protecting them, killing everyone who dared to trespass… Soldier of Loneliness…"

"It's no excuse," Traveller hissed. "Does she not have you now? Does she not have a daughter, Hotaru, to take care of and stay alive for? Can't she just get herself over her pride, if only for Hotaru's sake?"

The only answer she got was silence. Haruka and Michiru were avoiding Traveller's gaze, because the truth was hard to admit. All the Outer Senshi were proud warriors, and sacrificing themselves or others in battle had never been a question… Even Hotaru, the youngest one of them, would gladly throw her life away for greater good… But Setsuna's sacrifice was meaningless…

Traveller saw it, and a hiss escaped her throat. "So that is it?" she snarled. "Curse her pride! Curse the pride of all of you! Pride in battle is meaningless! It is kill or be killed! Victory should be the only goal, the means by which it is reached meaningless! What matters is the outcome! Nobody cares about a loser who died with his or her pride intact! Dead is dead! I care not for your pride, for the confidence you have in your own individual strength! If I am not alone on the battlefield, then I will not try to achieve victory on my own! It is not a contest! Nobody has anything to prove! All that matters is surviving, and killing your enemy before he can kill you!"

"Setsuna did what she could, what she thought was right and appropriate. She misjudged her strength, and it nearly cost her her life…" Haruka said. Then shook her head. "That's how we Outer Senshi are. We work alone, enduring the battle with our own strength, our own powers, and if those are not enough…" Haruka didn't finish her sentence. The only logical end that came to mind was 'we die'.

"That's just stupid!" Traveller snapped back. "This is an enemy that you clearly can't handle on your own! So why throw your lives away out of _pride_? What good will that do? Who can you save, who can you protect that way, huh? Wake up, for goodness sake! This enemy fights hard and fight dirty and will do whatever it takes to win! So isn't it about time you Sailor Senshi got your act together, grow some guts and start doing the same? You've got us, you've got each other, so act like it! Next time, we stand as one, and crush our foes! That way, nothing and nobody has to be sacrificed. No innocents, no comrades, and not yourself. What else are we here for, cheering you on as you rush to your deaths like total idiots?"

There was a long silence, as neither Michiru nor Haruka replied. They just kept staring at their empty teacups, and Traveller found herself doing the same. Finally, the Saurian of Teleportation let out a deep sigh and shrugged. "I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I shouldn't have attacked you like this… It's just… I… I'm worried and I feel guilty, I suppose…"

"It's alright." Haruka stood up and came to Traveller, putting a hand on her shoulder like a typical man would. "All of us are having a hard time now."

Michiru stood up as well, and went to check if the tea was ready. It was, and Michiru poured everyone a cup, then took some biscuits from the cupboard and put them on the table as well.

The three women drank their tea in silence, and soon all of them felt a bit better. The herbs the tea contained couldn't heal the wounds in their soul, but they did calm them down somewhat and made the waiting more bearable.

Finally, after what seemed like hours, Hotaru came to the kitchen, almost drained of her strength, holding on the walls for support, and said with a weak smile:

"Done. She's sleeping now."

The three women sighed, relieved, the mood lightening up immediately. Michiru sat her poor daughter at the table and poured her tea.

"Thank goodness…" Haruka said.

Michiru nodded. "Haruka, could you please bring Ignika here?" She then opened the fridge and found that they still had some cake, since the Saurians liked it so much. She took it out and put it on the table. "He probably needs to restore his energy as well."

Traveller felt a weight being shoved off her heart. Setsuna would be okay now. Great Beings bless her little brother. What would she ever do without him? She made herself swear to give her piece of cake, if she was going to get one, to Ignika once he got here. He deserved it far more than she did.

* * *

Setsuna had slept through the rest of the day, and when she finally woke up, it was already evening. The setting sun shining through the windows colored everything orange, and seeing that color in a familiar room of her house was calming for the Senshi of Time.

Setsuna looked at herself and was relieved that her wounds were gone, even though she was still in pain. To her surprise, she was still in her Senshi form, and she willed herself to dispel it. It worked, and Setsuna relaxed on the couch. She looked around the room, to see if anyone else was there.

Just as she did that, Hotaru came in the room holding a glass of water, and nearly dropped it as she saw her mother conscious. She quickly called out:

"Everyone! Setsuna-mama is awake!" Then came over to Setsuna, knelt down to her and put the glass to her lips. The Senshi of Time eagerly drank the water, feeling the cool liquid wash down her throat.

Ignika came to stand besides Hotaru, and he studied Setsuna's face and expression carefully. It was its usual stoic mask, which slightly angered the Child of Life. He wanted to know how she was feeling, but Setsuna refused to show any physical signs, so he had to ask her. "How are you feeling, Setsuna-san?"

Setsuna chuckled grimly. "Alive." Then shook her head. "Thank you all. I'm sorry for being so weak…" She then glanced at her daughter worriedly. "How did you get me from the Time Gates? Did Small Lady…?"

Hotaru quickly shook her head: "No. Traveller teleported herself to you, we didn't have to get Chibiusa."

Setsuna sighed, relieved. "Good. She didn't see me like this…" She looked at Ignika: "I wouldn't have survived without you."

"Consider it repayment for all you did for me, Setsuna-san," the Child of Life replied with a big, happy smile. Then his expression turned serious, and he said sternly: "But I need to know: how are you really? Me and Hotaru have healed your wounds, but are you in any pain? Can you still feel and move all your body parts?"

Setsuna frowned and carefully studied herself. She moved her arms and legs, trying to see if they malfunctioned. They didn't, but she decided not to sit up yet just in case.

"I'm fine." She said. "A bit numb, perhaps, and my stomach and chest still hurt where the wounds were, but not so bad. I'm alright."

Ignika nodded, visibly relieved. "That's good, it means we succeeded, Hotaru." The white-haired boy gave his human friend a bright, happy smile. He was about to say something else to Setsuna, namely that she had to take it easy for the rest of the evening, as well as rest a lot tomorrow, but he couldn't because Traveller suddenly appeared at Setsuna's side and kneeled down, her head bowed in shame.

"I'm sorry," the Saurian of Teleportation whispered. "I did a bad job of drawing close combat away from you…"

Setsuna smiled and took the other woman's hand. "Hey… It's okay. This time I had troubles with ranged combat as well. That Saurian of Insect Control was a real pest…" She shook her head. "It's my fault… I was weak and couldn't defend myself properly…"

"I suppose we're both at fault here," Traveller admitted, and she let out another sigh of sadness. "Next time, we need to work together better, and coordinate our actions on those of our partner… And before I forget, you Senshi really have to drop a certain habit of yours."

"And what habit would that be, Traveller-san?" Hotaru asked, her purple eyes filled with curiosity.

"The one of making cringe worthy speeches every time you start a fight."

Hearing that, all the present Senshi laughed, even Setsuna. Haruka shook her head. "I'm sorry. It's a centuries old tradition among us, isn't it, Setsuna?"

Setsuna nodded. "Yes, as far as I remember myself, we always started a fight with a speech. Mostly because in the Silver Millennium, we were elite fighters, royalty, and our enemies needed to know who they are facing."

Michiru nodded and said thoughtfully. "Though the Senshi from other planet systems also share the same trait. Some of our former enemies did as well."

"But they're terrible!" Ignika said, backing his sister up, as expected. "I mean, I don't want to offend you, but the only effect they could possibly have on your enemies is make them die either of laughter or by feeling embarrassed in your place!"

Haruka raised her eyebrow. "None did any of that yet, though."

Michiru put a finger to her cheek in thought. "Hmm… Come to think of it, all of them acted like they never heard it at all."

Traveller smirked: "Ignoring them is a good way to deal with such stupidity."

Hotaru had enough of their argue, and said: "Quiet, all of you, the news are about to start, and I don't think the accident in the park will go unnoticed." With those words, she turned the TV on.

The sound on the TV was quiet, and since the news hasn't started yet, Hotaru decided not to turn the volume up yet. She took the remote and sat on the floor, leaning on the couch where Setsuna was lying. The older woman patted her daughter. Hotaru took her mama's hand and rubbed her cheek against it, then continued to hold it affectionately. Setsuna couldn't help but smile.

"I'm glad you didn't die, Setsuna-mama…" Hotaru said.

Setsuna replied: "Me too. But even if I did, you know I'd come back."

Hotaru shook her head. "Maybe you would, maybe you wouldn't. And despite that, you decided not to die now, no?"

Setsuna sighed and nodded: "Yes. I felt I mustn't. Besides, it would be too painful to part for all of us, no?"

Hotaru just kept holding her hand.

Meanwhile, the rest of the family had also got ready to watch the news. Haruka and Michiru were sitting cozily in an armchair, with Michiru leaning on her lover's chest. The armchair was a bit small for them both to sit on, but neither minded. It gave an excuse to be even closer than usual, and it was pleasant to sit together like that.

Ignika and Traveller had taken place next to each other on the second couch. Ignika snuggled against Traveller, like little brothers do sometimes, and tried to not feel a bit uneasy at the display of affection between Haruka and Michiru. Though he and Traveller were getting used to it by now, it was still strange to see two women so obviously in love. Ignika shrugged and turned his attention to the television, and his sister did the same. Television was a peculiar thing, they both knew, but since they had been introduced to it before, it didn't scare them anymore now, especially since they had seen the useful side of the machine.

"Oh, here is the news." Hotaru said and turned the volume up.

"… newsreader Harumi Tokugawa." The host finished her introduction, then the camera switched to another position, and she started reading the news itself:

"The mysterious accidents throughout Tokyo continue to happen. As you remember, the first accident happened on Sunday in one of Tokyo's biggest clothes shopping centers, followed by the destruction of a public library the next day. Today's victim of the unknown force was a children's playground. Report by Keiko Nakamura."

The scene changed to the playground, and the reporter immediately started talking of the damage done:

"The mysterious accident happened early in the afternoon, around one o'clock, and nobody knows what exactly has caused it. The eyewitness' accounts vary, although many indicate the presence of dinosaur-like aliens and Sailor Senshi." The screen changed to scenes of the damage itself. "The most distinctive feature of the damaged playground is that many objects on it changed their positions, now standing in an illogical pattern. Some of the objects are twisted weirdly, as if they were alive and then suddenly frozen. The trees and bushes of the playground seem to be damaged by a hurricane or some other type of strong wind, but there's no evidence of that anywhere outside the park."

The scene changed again. Now the reporter was standing at the place where Setsuna and Traveller had battled their opponents. "The place which suffered from the unknown force was this small clearing to the east of the playground." The camera started showing the damage. "As you can see, the trees are burnt and charred, some of them split as if struck by lightning, and there are marks of explosions all over the place. One can also notice the strange heaps of stone that seemingly appeared from nowhere, since there wasn't any possibility of bringing them to the park. Lastly, some people also noticed an unusually big accumulation of insects."

The camera switched to the reporter again. "Even though most eyewitnesses tell of aliens, the possibility of their presence is highly unlikely, and the cause of destruction remains unknown. The government and police officials refuse to give any commentary on these accidents. Whether the accidents will continue also remains unknown. Keiko Nakamura, Evening News, Channel 5."

The scene changed back to the studio with Harumi Tokugawa. "Now to other news..."

Hotaru turned the TV off. There was no point in watching further, and they needed to discuss the information.

Ignika looked at the dark TV screen for a moment before saying: "The reporter spoke of other incidents in other places. Apparently we haven't been the only ones who were attacked… I'm worried about the others."

Traveller frowned. "That is true, although I wonder…" She looked at the Sailor Senshi. "Why hasn't the reporter mentioned blood? Surely there were a lot of trails there."

Haruka shrugged. "Either the police disguised the changes or the press was forbidden to mention or show them." She and Michiru got out of their chair. "As for others, we can phone them now, and perhaps call a meeting again."

"That would be a wise thing to do," Ignika agreed. The Child of Life had a serious expression on his face, and a dark look in his eyes. "All these attacks following so shortly after each other, it doesn't sit well with me. Our enemies are up to something, I just know it… It is as if they specifically targeted each of us, like they wanted to observe us."

"That might not be too far from the truth," Traveller said with a nod, her face having the same expression as her little brother's. She crossed her arms and bit her lip for a moment. "Back when Jutlin attacked, he was defeated by surprise. All was new to him. You Senshi, the disguises of our family, this world… Perhaps they want to avoid making such a mistake in the future, and are they indeed observing us all before sending another great foe like Jutlin the Corrupt."

"Another Immoral One," Ignika finished ominously.

* * *

**Next chapter: An awkward subject!**

**

* * *

Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Looking back on the chapter, you're right, I am getting more brutal with my Saurian battles! I should be ashamed of myself to do so much damage to Setsuna. ^^" But as for the reason to these attacks and their brutality, without giving any spoilers away, you'll find out in chapter 45!


	43. An awkward subject

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

Author's note: *sigh* I'm growing a bit tired here. In response to the two reviews of this chapter who told me that homosexuality is not a genetic defect:** I KNOW THAT**. Let's get that out of the way, shall we? I know it's not a genetic defect. I know you're not born either way, homosexual or heterosexual. I know all that. So before anybody else feels the need to post a review to inform me of me being homophobe, wrong and insulting to homosexuals, save yourself the trouble for you're barking up the wrong tree. I don't have anything against such people. I know they're not genetic defects. If I didn't know that, or if I did have something against such people, I wouldn't read Sailor Moon. But I do, because in fact I _like_ the pairing of Michiru and Haruka.

As stated at the end of the chapter, none of the views or what is said during a chapter are my views or my thoughts. They're there only for the story. So why did I write this chapter the way I did? Frankly I didn't. This is a co-written project, as I've stated more than enough. And I don't write the Senshi, my co-writer does. I take care of my OC's, she takes care of the Senshi because she is better at writing them in character than I am. So why did I still let that line "genetic defect" slip by? Because it makes sense from a story point of view. I cannot stress this point enough, since aparently it's not as obvious as I thought, but _Ignika and his family are NOT human_. They're sentient, intelligent beings, yes, but coming from a whole different world than the human one. The concept of same-gender love, or even love in general, is - as this chapter shows - alien and unheard of to them. Certainly for them, members of a race who sees sexuality as a way for offspring only, homosexualty would stump, baffle and frighten them. This is not being homophobe, this is what I consider a realistic reaction and line of thought of an alien race to a subject that is no less alien to them as they are alien to the Senshi.

Couple their fear and non-understanding of concepts such as love and homosexuality with the fact that their species has a mating season like animals do, I don't find it unreasonable that they are afraid of attracting same-gender individuals during their period of being in heat. Certainly this particular family, who doesn't even wish to attract members of the other gender.

So in that light, it's obvious that our reptilian friends need to be comforted and assured that nothing will happen. Tricking them into believing that same-gender love is uncommon and maybe even some kind of mistake can do that. It puts them at ease and soothes their worries. **BUT IT IS A LIE**. I know that, okay? Homosexuality is not a genetic defect. I am aware, okies? Haruka merely said this because she knows, from first-hand experience (see chapter 12), that the Saurians are scared of homosexuality. So, she _lied_ to comfort them, trick them into calming down. And it worked. But in no way does Haruka herself believe it to be genetic defect, nor do I believe that. She merely made the Saurians believe it to put them at ease. A lie for the best, get it? I've even editted the dialogue in the chapter to make this absolutely clear, alright?

With that out of the way, let me say that **I wrote this chapter because it was fun to write Nightmare freak out**. Yes, you read that right, I wrote it because it was funny, to me. Not because I wanted to spread around false facts and get the entire homosexuality-defence on my neck. Next time I'll stop myself from amusing myself by writing these chapters if only to avoid reviews like these. Perhaps my message that, and I quote myself: "Again, none of the views shown here are my views on things, they're here for the sole purpose of the story only." (posted at the end of the chapter), wasn't clear enough to point this out. My apologies.

Oh, and I know I could avoid issues like these by simply not writing chapters that deal with this matter. But fact is, I won't do that. I'm writing a story where cultures clash, and homosexuality is as much part of this culture clash as everything else is. It wouldn't be fair if I made it myself easy and singled it out as the only matter I didn't touch in this story. So I'm not doing that, and I'm going over all differences in cultures between the characters, this one included.

Author's note over, here's the chapter:

**43.**** An awkward subject**

"Alright, glad to see you all assembled." Ignika said, eyeing the Senshi before him. "Now, let us begin the meeting."

The meeting took place in the living room in the Outers' residence, because it still wasn't safe for Setsuna to move actively, her wounds healed only the day before. The Sailor Senshi had to abandon whatever plans they had for that evening, for possibility of an Immoral One coming to this dimension was hardly a matter to be ignored.

"As we know…" Ignika continued. "There have been three attacks in a row, one attack per day. The last attack was aimed at the playground where Hotaru, Setsuna, Traveller and me were. So, were any of you at the places where attacks took place?"

Chameleon spoke first. "Me and Makoto were at the shopping center when the invasion took place and we drove them back," Ignika's only brother reported. "A Shattering Saurian gave me a rough time, but thanks to Makoto's good care and my Saurian healing rate I'm all fine now. Same can't be said of the Saurians we beat."

"Ami and I were at the library when the attack began," Gravitas said quietly, her expression hard and cold. "They dared to harm the books… I didn't give them the opportunity to regret that."

Usagi raised her hand. "I have a question. Am I the only one who has heard this for the first time today?"

Rei shrugged. "Apparently, you're the only one who didn't watch the news."

Usagi leaned back in her armchair and replied: "News are boring. And besides, Ikuko-mama's favorite cooking show was on another channel, I couldn't possibly watch it yesterday."

"And the two days before that?" Rei sweatdropped.

Usagi just glared at Chibiusa, who often took control of the TV to watch an anime movie like Howl's Castle.

Chibiusa pretended she didn't know what that was about, and stared at Usagi with her most innocent cute bright eyes: "What?"

"Anyway." Traveller interrupted the unnecessary off-topic talk. "Why didn't any of you report to Ignika? Concealing such information isn't something that is going to help us protect ourselves and the Senshi, not to mention the rest of the city."

Chameleon scratched the back of his head. "Me and Makoto handled it just fine on our own, even though I got hurt a bit. I just didn't want to make Ignika worry over one invasion. How could I know others would follow?"

Gravitas merely shrugged. "Ami needed consoling after our battle, and I do not know how to operate that thing called a telephone."

"You could have asked…" Ami murmured. She wasn't that shocked or pained anymore, but the high emotions of the past two days have taken their toll on her. Gravitas wasn't that good at consoling people, but Ami could see she tries hard to do so for her, and she tried her best to recover as fast as she could, no matter how hard that was.

Gravitas merely put her hand on her host's shoulder and squeezed it slightly. Ami put her hand over the Saurian's. It didn't seem that they needed words to understand each other at that moment.

"What's with all the sulkiness?" Nightmare asked in her normal rude manner.

"First kill." Gravitas simply said.

Makoto's eyes widened. "You, too?" Her own personality and character didn't allow her to give into emotions right away, not until the danger was over and everything was alright and safe. So she gave in and cried her pain out only when Chameleon fell asleep, recovering from his injuries. Her pillow had known many secret tears, but this time Makoto had to get a different one to sleep on once she stopped crying.

"And me…" Hotaru stared at her hands. She had it the easiest, Death was her element, after all, and she had Ignika by her side. And Setsuna's wounds and her condition didn't allow the Senshi of Ruin to dwell on it for too long.

Nightmare glanced at her ever sunny and cheery host. "Glad I was spared that disaster."

"You might have to sometime… In the near future." Setsuna said. Her wounds were healed well, and the pain almost vanished, but she still didn't dare to strain her body too much, and, unlike everybody else, was lying on the couch.

"She has the right to be glad." Traveller looked sadly at Setsuna. "Minako should be happy too that they weren't attacked. She can't vanish to a timeless realm, unlike you."

Setsuna shook her head. "That's true. But Minako isn't a loner, unlike me, either. Inner Senshi value teamwork."

"But Nightmare doesn't," Traveller replied with a shrug.

"Me, work together with love dove?" Nightmare snarled, the hairs on her neck standing up. "Not in a million lifetimes! She'd only get in my way and slow me down!"

"See what I mean?" the Saurian of Teleportation noted dryly to the Senshi of Time.

Minako raised her eyebrow at Nightmare. "Don't you think it's a bit impolite not to protect the one who houses you, feeds you, and tries to make your time worthwhile?"

"If I keep you out of a fight I won't have to worry about protecting you, love twit, and I won't have you in my way, either. It's a win-win situation," the Saurian of Fear growled back.

Minako put her hands on her hips and glared back. "And just what kind of a Senshi would I be if I flee from the battlefield? Besides, I don't think a Saurian would let me go easily. I'm not Traveller, I can't teleport far away, and any Saurian could catch up and kill me if I run. At least at the battlefield I can fight for my life, not hide and wait for death to come like a cowardly rabbit."

"Weaklings have no place on the battlefield, love dove!" Ignika's youngest sister spat. "You couldn't even last a minute against me in this filthy human shape, how could you possibly hold out against a true Saurian? You're even more useless than useless over there!" She mentioned at Chameleon as she said that, causing her brother to glare at her, much to Nightmare's delight.

"I'm not a weakling!" Minako shouted.

Nightmare just smirked. "Yeah, right. And Artemis is a human. Face it, you're no good even against me."

Minako growled and started to come closer to the Saurian of Fear, but they were interrupted by Haruka who came in between them.

"No fighting in my house!" She glared at the two girls. "We have enough enemies on our hands, so stop making things even more complicated."

"I've had enough of you calling Chameleon useless. Don't do so in my presence…" Makoto smirked and cracked her knuckles. "Else you'd be up in a fight with me."

Nightmare smiled that terrifying smile of hers, one that could give people chills. "Anytime, anyplace, sparky. You'll be a cowering heap of nothing when I'm done with you." A low hiss escaped Nightmare's throat , one that didn't bother her family one bit, but unsettled the Senshi. They could not tell if Nightmare was serious or not, looking as devilish as she did.

Chameleon gently tugged on Makoto's arm and shook his head. "Don't provoke her, Makoto, trust me. You can't handle her, and I mean it."

The Saurian of Chameleon's terrifying sister smirked. "Well for once he says something useful. Better listen to your mate, sparky."

"M-Mate?" Makoto's eyes widened, and she stared at Chameleon as if it was the first time she saw him. She was preparing a proper response to all the things Nightmare told, but that word caught her totally off guard. She wasn't even angry at her or anything, just very confused and shocked by the prospect.

Chameleon merely gave Nightmare a bored look. "Mating Season hasn't even begun yet, dimwit, what makes you think I claimed her as my mate?"

Makoto's eyes widened even more. "W-wha? Season? Claimed? Why… you…" She didn't have any words to express her surprise, embarrassment, confusion and shock at how calmly Chameleon said that, so she simply murmured: "I'm outta here…" and went to the kitchen.

All Saurians shared a confused look, except for Nightmare who was breaking down in laughter. All others looked at their host for an explanation, except for Chameleon because his host had just left. "What did I do?" he asked aloud, confusion evident on his face.

Haruka sighed. "Here we go again…" She shook her head. "To put it shortly…"

Michiru put her hand on her lover's chest, preventing her from continuing. "Chibiusa, Hotaru, out of the room, now."

"Aww, come on, I'm 902 years old." Chibiusa pouted.

"And I was fourteen until not too long ago, I know such things." Hotaru calmly said.

Haruka sighed again. "Fine." Then continued her thought: "To put things shortly, to you Saurians mating is as simple and natural as drinking a glass of water. But we humans take mating deeper and much more personal, and a girl like Makoto, or any other girl in this room, would allow anybody to mate her only if she has deep feelings for him. Or her." She fondly glanced at her lover.

Ignika slowly nodded. "Yes, I remember you saying something like that before to me. It's completely unpractical and illogical, but then again, you're humans, so I guess that's how it works. What I don't get is why Makoto ran away instead of just saying she had no interest in mating Chameleon because of the reasons you stated."

Ami murmured something, blushing so much that her glasses got misted over. Gravitas leaned to her, trying to make out the sounds she made. Ami repeated herself, and Gravitas, with a raised eyebrow, translated:

"We don't talk about it so openly." Gravitas shook her head. "Why not?"

Rei sighed, annoyed. "'Cause who wants to mate whom is their own private business not meant to be heard by everybody. Talking so simply about that is rude and offending. Besides, didn't you just imply you could claim her?"

Ignika shook his head. "Mating is above all meant to ensure a species' future. There is nothing private about that, the future is the business of the entire species. To keep things neat and orderly our race has developed a season for it like many other species, so that we don't have to worry about such important matters throughout the entire year. It's logical and simple, and completely natural, too. Nothing offending."

"Plus," Traveller added, "It's not as if the mating itself happens in plain public, we're not animals as some of you seem to think. But when it comes to choosing your partner, I don't see the problem in talking about it. If you don't talk, how can you know he or she is a good candidate to be the father or mother of your eggs?"

"And about 'claiming', it's not as if I meant I would claim Makoto as mine when mating season comes, jeez," Chameleon scoffed, crossing his arms and glaring at Rei with an offended look on his face. "But mates 'claim' each other when mating, that's the term used for it. When I said I haven't claimed Makoto, I meant that we haven't mated. Great Beings, you humans can be really…" He didn't finish that sentence, but it sounded a lot like he was going to say 'stupid'.

"Oh for God's sake…" Ami buried her face in her hands, but at least raised her voice so that it was actually audible. "It's just a cultural conflict."

"We humans…" Minako said. "We humans don't have a mating season because we usually pick a lifetime mate, and raise kids together. Mating is all about two people sharing their love for each other, but before you have children, you gotta make sure he's the one who can support them and love them until they grow up."

Usagi nodded. "Yes, he gotta be handsome, romantic, strong, caring, smart, have a good job, his own place to live, preferably…" Then sighed dreamily. "Just like my Mamo-chan…"

"Jeez, I'm ashamed you're my mom, Usagi." Chibiusa frowned. Then shook her head. "The most important thing is love. Material things, they come and go. They don't matter."

Usagi glared at her. "Uh-huh, says a little princess who lives in a crystal palace."

"Either way," Setsuna interrupted. "Being able to choose and perhaps try a few candidates became an option only recently, about 200 years ago, give or take. Before that, females had no right to choose. Their husband, their lifetime mate, was chosen by their parents for whatever the reason they deem worthy – for money, for social position, for power… Few were lucky to find love." Setsuna shook her head.

Haruka summed things up: "What it comes down to is that mating is a subject for the two to discuss, not for everybody else to hear. Except for perhaps a few friends if you need advice."

"And how do you know you found the 'one' as you so put it?" Nightmare sneered. All this talk about love was turning her visibly ill. "All this mushy, disgusting shit about true love and all that. It's just ill-making! You pick the mate that fought over you the most and overcame all others, proving he's the strongest, you mate, ditch him as soon as you can and you have strong, healthy eggs. And THAT'S IT. I wouldn't be able to bear having a lusty Saurian male hanging around me all of my life who wants to grow eggs in you!"

"It's true that letting the entire future of your race depend on something so unpredictable as love is just plain silly, from a natural standpoint," Ignika said, agreeing with Nightmare. "I've told you that before. I suppose it is indeed a cultural difference, but still, it's just not logical."

"I can understand love between siblings, the bonds of family," Gravitas conceded. "But love as you say it, no. It sounds unnecessary. Mating season is bothersome enough as it is, making your entire life a mating season is just ridiculous."

"I wouldn't know, I'm too young to mate," Ignika said with a shrug.

"Ironic seeing as you're the oldest of us," Chameleon replied with a grin. "But on the other hand, it's not as if any of us really has experience with it. None of us have mated yet, we found our family more important than something so trivial."

"I just hope no human will start to make advances on me once the season kicks in," Traveller growled. "Even if they don't have it, who knows how your strange species will react to us in heat."

"Especially since you probably won't allow us to forcibly chase away pesky 'candidates'!" Nightmare snarled, absolutely livid. The idea of mating and love had never appealed to her, in fact she downright loathed it.

"OH FOR THE LOVE OF EVERYTHING THAT'S HOLY!" Ami finally snapped and jumped to her feet. "ONE. We DON'T have a mating season. TWO. Nobody rushes for mating right away, males gotta earn your love or at least respect before you allow him to mate you. THREE. Mating doesn't always equal offspring. FOUR. If you decide to have a child, you can't dump the male, else you'll have nobody to feed you AND the child. Baby can't live without mother's constant care for at least three years, and needs to be at least seven to be left completely unwatched." She gasped for breath a few times. "And one last thing. We don't lay eggs. We're viviparous." She sat back in her armchair, tired from the outburst.

"I like you better when you remain quiet, brainy," Nightmare immediately snapped back, as she was the only one not stunned into silence by Ami's outburst. "ONE. You may not have it but WE DO. So regardless, you'll have to deal with it if it comes while we're here! TWO. YOU may not rush to mating BUT WE rather have it over with AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. The idea of letting a male in my vicinity longer than necessary makes me ill! THREE. Maybe for YOU it may not equal offspring, BUT WE DON'T MATE unless there is offspring. FOUR. YOU may be so weak that you can't raise your child on your own, BUT SAURIAN WOMEN ARE STRONG. We can take care of our eggs just fine, and OUR children aren't as pitiful as yours. They crawl out of their egg ready for the world!"

Nightmare send Ami an absolutely incinerating glare. "I don't know HOW THE HECK we came to talk about mating anyway, but now that we are, I might as well ram this in your brain-filled head. WE are stuck here on this world. YOU take care of us. WE try to adapt to YOUR absolutely ridiculous world. BUT we CAN NOT change how our bodies work. We LOOK human but ARE Saurian! So sooner or later, we WILL GET IN HEAT. And then it's up to YOU to be ready to DEAL WITH THAT! GOT IT, SMARTASS?"

"Now that's enough." Gravitas said coldly and glared at her sister. "I think the important points were made, heard, and taken into consideration. Now let's all calm down and get back to the matter at hand. Nightmare, sit down. Chameleon, go fetch Makoto from the kitchen."

To everybody's surprise, even Gravitas', Nightmare didn't back down. "I'm sorry sis, but I don't feel like calming down! Now that this silly subject has come on the table, I might as well express my worries! Maybe you won't find it so bad that your new human friend starts hitting on you once the season kicks in, but I personally will scream bloody murder if love twit starts coming after me once I'm in heat!"

"W-w-what?" Ami squeaked, wide-eyed, scared of the two Saurians bickering next to her. "Why would I do that?"

"Ask that manwoman and her mate." Nightmare glared at Ami.

"But… They do find women sexually attractive… I don't…" Ami frowned.

Haruka nodded: "Ami's right. We were born that way. Finding females attractive instead of males is a genetic defect, not a norm. I don't think they'll want to mate you." It was a lie, of course, but the blonde woman thought it was better this way, to convince the Saurian family that everything was alright and to put them at ease with the whole idea. Haruka also wisely decided to stay silent about girls who do it just for curiosity or those who are bisexual.

Gravitas was silent for a moment, seemingly lost in thought. "What my sister says isn't entirely stupid. Indeed we do not know how humans will react to us once the season begins."

"We will think about that once the moment is there, but as it is, mating season is months away, so can we now please finally get to the point of this gathering instead of going on and on about mating and mating habits?" Ignika growled, finally losing his patience. "There is an Immoral One coming and we're sitting here squabbling about mating and offspring, of all things!"

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**Next chapter: Strategy meeting!**

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Yes, I know, this chapter may come across as a bit random, but I just couldn't help myself. I had way too much fun writing this chapter. =p Again, none of the views shown here are my views on things, they're here for the sole purpose of the story only.

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	44. Strategy meeting

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

Author's note: because of the 'uproar' caused by a tiny sentence in last chapter, I'm going to repeat the author's note from last week here to make absolutely sure that this misunderstanding is cleared up. So here's the AN from last chapter, open quote:

"In response to the two reviews of this chapter who told me that homosexuality is not a genetic defect:** I KNOW THAT**. Let's get that out of the way, shall we? I know it's not a genetic defect. I know you're not born either way, homosexual or heterosexual. I know all that. So before anybody else feels the need to post a review to inform me of me being homophobe, wrong and insulting to homosexuals, save yourself the trouble for you're barking up the wrong tree. I don't have anything against such people. I know they're not genetic defects. If I didn't know that, or if I did have something against such people, I wouldn't read Sailor Moon. But I do, because in fact I _like_ the pairing of Michiru and Haruka.

As stated at the end of the chapter, none of the views or what is said during a chapter are my views or my thoughts. They're there only for the story. So why did I write this chapter the way I did? Frankly I didn't. This is a co-written project, as I've stated more than enough. And I don't write the Senshi, my co-writer does. I take care of my OC's, she takes care of the Senshi because she is better at writing them in character than I am. So why did I still let that line "genetic defect" slip by? Because it makes sense from a story point of view. I cannot stress this point enough, since aparently it's not as obvious as I thought, but _Ignika and his family are NOT human_. They're sentient, intelligent beings, yes, but coming from a whole different world than the human one. The concept of same-gender love, or even love in general, is - as this chapter shows - alien and unheard of to them. Certainly for them, members of a race who sees sexuality as a way for offspring only, homosexualty would stump, baffle and frighten them. This is not being homophobe, this is what I consider a realistic reaction and line of thought of an alien race to a subject that is no less alien to them as they are alien to the Senshi.

Couple their fear and non-understanding of concepts such as love and homosexuality with the fact that their species has a mating season like animals do, I don't find it unreasonable that they are afraid of attracting same-gender individuals during their period of being in heat. Certainly this particular family, who doesn't even wish to attract members of the other gender.

So in that light, it's obvious that our reptilian friends need to be comforted and assured that nothing will happen. Tricking them into believing that same-gender love is uncommon and maybe even some kind of mistake can do that. It puts them at ease and soothes their worries. **BUT IT IS A LIE**. I know that, okay? Homosexuality is not a genetic defect. I am aware, okies? Haruka merely said this because she knows, from first-hand experience (see chapter 12), that the Saurians are scared of homosexuality. So, she _lied_ to comfort them, trick them into calming down. And it worked. But in no way does Haruka herself believe it to be genetic defect, nor do I believe that. She merely made the Saurians believe it to put them at ease. A lie for the best, get it? I've even editted the dialogue in the chapter to make this absolutely clear, alright?

With that out of the way, let me say that **I wrote this chapter because it was fun to write Nightmare freak out**. Yes, you read that right, I wrote it because it was funny, to me. Not because I wanted to spread around false facts and get the entire homosexuality-defence on my neck. Next time I'll stop myself from amusing myself by writing these chapters if only to avoid reviews like these. Perhaps my message that, and I quote myself: "Again, none of the views shown here are my views on things, they're here for the sole purpose of the story only." (posted at the end of the chapter), wasn't clear enough to point this out. My apologies.

Oh, and I know I could avoid issues like these by simply not writing chapters that deal with this matter. But fact is, I won't do that. I'm writing a story where cultures clash, and homosexuality is as much part of this culture clash as everything else is. It wouldn't be fair if I made it myself easy and singled it out as the only matter I didn't touch in this story. So I'm not doing that, and I'm going over all differences in cultures between the characters, this one included."

And close quote. With that said, here is the chapter:

**44. Strategy meeting**

"We will think about that once the moment is there, but as it is, mating season is months away, so can we now please finally get to the point of this gathering instead of going on and on about mating and mating habits?" Ignika growled, finally losing his patience. "There is an Immoral One coming and we're sitting here squabbling about mating and offspring, of all things!"

Those words took effect, as everybody remembered the seriousness of the situation and their battle with Jutlin.

"Another Immoral One?" Usagi asked. "Why do you think there'll be one?"

"All signs point to it," Ignika replied on a serious tone. "Let us think back to the battle with Jutlin. How did you defeat him? Frankly, by mere luck. Jutlin was unprepared and unfamiliar with you Senshi and your powers, as well as this world. He met more resistance than he had expected when Gravitas joined in, and nobody could have predicted the symbiosis between Gravitas and Ami. And now suddenly each of us, aside from Nightmare and Minako, are attacked in quick succession. But the amount of Saurians was nothing we hadn't dealt with before, and we defeated them. But to me, it almost seems as if the one who sent them wanted that to happen. Our enemy isn't stupid, and he won't repeat the same mistake as before. They want to be prepared before they sent in another warrior as powerful as Jutlin. So they attack us with minor threats, to observe our powers and fighting styles, our human disguises, all of it… Maybe they'll attack Minako and Nightmare before they make their big move, or maybe an Immoral One is already on his way, I don't know… But something big is coming, that much is a given."

The Senshi turned serious and grim at this point. On one hand, they will have Saurians by their side this time around. But then again, now the enemy most likely knew their powers and strategies, strong points and downsides, and if it took them all they had to defeat Jutlin, this new foe might be undefeatable for them. Not to forget they wouldn't have dealt with the minions Jutlin brought along if it weren't for Crast, and it was unlikely that the next Immoral One will come at them alone.

"It means we need to prepare for battle." Makoto said, standing in the doorway between the kitchen and the living room. She came back to the room when the awkward subject was over, and heard Ignika's last words. She didn't look at Chameleon, even though she knew it was stupid to be offended by something that's a deep cultural difference.

"Yeah." Minako sighed. She turned to Nightmare: "I hate to say it and probably gonna regret it, but will you train me?" Of course she didn't want the utter defeat she got last time to happen again, but it was inevitable, anyway.

Nightmare brightened immediately at the idea of 'training' Minako again and she eagerly nodded. "Sure, love twit, I'll gladly pound some more experience in you."

"Gravitas…" Ami said and looked at the aloof Saurian. "Maybe we should somehow contact Master Angonce and research symbiosis a bit further? It might come in handy. I mean, Traveller could teleport us, right?"

Gravitas pondered this for a moment. "It would be an asset, I agree. But I do not know if it is right to barge into a Great Being's home uninvited."

"And to be fully honest," Traveller added, looking slightly ashamed. "I'm not certain if I can teleport us there. Last time, Crast did it, and the amount of power he used to do it was far greater than a normal teleportation, leading me to believe master Angonce has wisely shielded his house from intruders. I lack the pure power to break through a Great Being's defense…"

"Depends on what type of defense it is…" Rei said thoughtfully. "I think he might let you in if he feels it is your power, but if it is a 'let nobody inside' type of barrier, then it's best not to risk it."

Traveller remained hesitant. "I already took a great risk by teleporting to the Time Gates. I'd rather avoid taking a similar dangerous risk for the time being."

"I understand, really." Ami said. "It was just a suggestion. It's useless to train me in close combat, and by studying symbiosis we could do something useful, not sit around and wait for battle."

"Speaking of which, I need training, too." Haruka said. She knew she had next to no skills in wielding her sword, and it had already almost killed her. She just hoped she won't be stuck with Nightmare as her teacher, but should situation require it, the Senshi of Wind would bear even that.

"I wouldn't mind having another 'student'," Nightmare said with a devious grin. "And I am best suited for the task of trying to make you not suck, manwoman. I am the sword-wielder of my family, after all."

"But I'm the dagger user of our ragtag group!" Chameleon interjected. "And Ha… ehm, something, her sword is actually more of a dagger from what Makoto told me. So I'm best suited for the task!"

"Oh please, if you train her she might as well run up to the enemy next time saying 'I suck, just kill me now'!" the Saurian of Fear snapped back.

"I'm Haruka." The said Senshi glanced at Chameleon, then turned to Nightmare: "And frankly, if you teach me, I'm afraid I won't live to see the battle."

Gravitas nodded. "The Senshi must be taught how not to die in close combat, not how to rush head on and deal as much damage as possible."

Traveller muttered: "They know how to rush head on, alright."

Michiru agreed with the two Saurians: "Haruka needs to learn some evading techniques, she indeed tends to rush into combat right away."

"You heard them, Nightmare!" Chameleon said with a triumphant grin. "I'm the one who is going to do this. Your 'technique', if you can call it that, is far too dangerous for these Senshi to use."

"At least I'm not a wimp who needs to sneak up to her enemies!" the Saurian of Fear snarled. She glared at Haruka. "Well, fine, if you want useless there to 'train' you so much, go ahead. Don't come crying to me later when you find out that you would have been far better off with me!"

"Okay, it's decided then." Haruka simply replied. "Any other important points we need to cover today?"

"Yes," Ignika replied right away. "How will we all gather once an Immoral One shows up? We can't all immediately go there and arrive at the same time, can we? And confronting an Immoral One without our full force is dangerous. Yet, at the same time, waiting to confront him until we are all gathered could be disastrous for your… 'city'."

"Actually, if we Senshi all gather together and combine powers, we can teleport." Setsuna said. "Problem is that we still need to gather."

"Well, Traveller can teleport us, no?" Chibiusa asked. "We Inner Senshi can gather at somebody's house every day until the invasion happens."

Rei shook her head. "Don't you think it'll be suspicious?"

Makoto smiled. "Actually, I think it's not that bad of an idea. Usagi and Rei could say there's an important test coming up and we all need to prepare, Chibiusa can just tag along, and the rest don't have anybody to report to."

"I don't get the words but I get the idea," Traveller muttered. "Yes, I could come and teleport you all as long as you're in physical contact with me and if I know where you are and have been there before."

"Well, you have been in most houses already, except for Usagi's." Haruka said.

Chibiusa grinned widely as she got an idea. "Hey, we could make Traveller and Ignika visit us together! I'll introduce Eiju-kun as my friend!"

Usagi looked at her warily: "You sure it'll work out?"

Ignika raised an eyebrow. "You think we would not act human enough, Usagi-san?" He shared a glance with Traveller, who looked a bit offended. Though there was still a lot to learn and still a lot the Saurian family didn't know, they personally were of the opinion that they pulled off acting human in public well enough lately.

"Umm… I didn't mean that, but…" Usagi blushed.

Hotaru looked at her and said: "Usagi-chan is just a bit nervous, because she doesn't know you as well as we do." She then smiled at the Tsukino girls. "But hey, that can easily be fixed if I come along."

Usagi smiled gratefully at her. "Thanks! I'm sorry if I offended you guys, it's just that I've never had aliens as visitors before."

Nightmare growled darkly. "You act as if we're five-headed monsters with nineteen tentacles and a private part on our tails underneath these stupid human disguises."

Everybody sweatdropped, Ami and Usagi blushed crimson red at the mention of the private part, and Haruka groaned.

"She didn't mean it like that!" The Senshi of Uranus said.

Nightmare merely snarled viciously at the woman, a fierce, menacing hiss coming from Ignika's youngest sister's throat. "Don't blame me, manwoman. It was an example picked from love twit's silly books with pictures."

Everybody's jaw dropped and they looked at Minako. The Senshi of Love was ready to sink through the ground from shame, and was blushing so hard one could light a cigarette from her flaming cheeks.

"I thought I got rid of them…" Minako whimpered in a tiny voice.

Gravitas looked intrigued at the mention of books. She turned to Ami. "What kind of books is my sister talking about?"

Ami, stuttering because of all the embarrassment, replied: "Um… They're called manga… It's a type of book which mostly consists of pictures with little text... There are very many styles for all age groups and interests… Some even include…" Ami blushed furiously again. "What your sister said."

Gravitas nodded, satisfied with the answer.

Ignika frowned. "That sounds like a really weird creature, Nightmare." The Child of Life thought for a moment, his curiosity piqued. Then, having reached a decision, he turned to Minako: "Can you lend me that book, Minako? I'd like to see it myself."

"No way!" Minako quickly replied. "I don't care where your sister found that manga issue I lost three months ago, but I'm not gonna spoil your young innocent mind with that!"

Ignika looked confused. "Why not? What's so bad about it?"

"Kids are supposed to stay innocent until… until… Until puberty at least!" Minako replied.

Haruka nodded: "Look, it's a cultural issue again, and you yourself said we have much more important matters than mating to discuss."

Ignika sweatdropped. "Minako-san, I'll never hit that, you know that. And how innocent am I really when there's the blood of countless of Saurians and others on my claws?" Then, to Haruka he said: "And what does that weird sounding creature have to do with mating, anyway? I'm confused."

Chameleon dropped his head on the table. "You're not the only one, little brother. Humans are so confusing. They can't stand talking about mating but have books about weird ugly creatures that apparently have to do with mating. Great Beings, I'll never get it."

Nightmare merely shrugged. "No worries, Ignika, I know where that book is, I'll give it to you next time we meet."

Minako glared furiously at her: "Oh no you won't! I'll find it first and burn it! Heck, you weren't supposed to see it either!"

Nightmare smirked, looking absolutely delightfully evil as she did so. "Why don't you try and stop me, then?" A chilling hiss came from the Saurian of Fear's lips, but then she turned away and dropped the subject altogether.

Minako growled and thought that she should pay more attention to what could be found in her room.

Haruka again looked at the gathering. Usagi and Ami stopped blushing, which was good, the Saurians looked clueless but curious, which was bad, and the rest seemed only mildly interested in the scene which had just happened.

"Okay then, any other important matters left to discuss?" Haruka asked.

Nobody said anything, leading to Haruka concluding that nothing was left to discuss. Just as she was about to call the meeting over with, however, Ignika broke the silence by breaking into a fit of laughter. He almost literally fell over. When he noticed the others looking at him with raised eyebrows and looks of confusion, he tried to calm down, but only managed to tone down his laughs to a fit of giggles.

"I just took the images of that book from Nightmare's memory, seeing as Minako-san didn't want to lend it to me and I don't want Nightmare to hurt her," the Child of Life explained, before giggling again. "It's the most ridiculous thing I've ever seen! Minako-san, I'm surprised, really! Why have such a retarded thing? Why do humans even waste precious parchment on it?" Then he giggled again, despite trying his utter best not to do so.

Minako blushed even deeper than before, and looked ready to burst from all the blood pressure in her face and head. "I… I…" She couldn't find any words to at least somewhat justify having such a book, and simply kept blushing.

Haruka facepalmed. "Just great. Now we have to explain hentai."

Setsuna, who had enough of this, said: "I think it's Minako's personal business what she wastes her brains and money on. Since we don't have any questions left, I declare this meeting over."

Ami, who was blushing, but not as bright as Minako, asked in a tiny voice: "Yes… Traveller, could you take us home?"

Traveller sighed, a bit annoyed her brother was denied an explanation, but nonetheless nodded and stood up. "Very well." Everybody said their goodbyes and then Traveller began her task of taking everybody home. While his sister was busy, Ignika turned to Hotaru and whispered in her ear:

"Can you explain to me what that was all about? I'm really curious and confused now."

Hotaru whispered back: "That was about adults being ashamed of the perverted imagination of some people."

"Oh," Ignika replied quietly. "So that creature doesn't really exist?"

Hotaru replied: "Of course not. It's way too ridiculous to be true, and you know that."

The Saurian of Life looked disappointed. "I knew it was too good to be true."

Hotaru shook her head. "Many adults think the same. Only, for some reason, are ashamed to admit it."

Ignika raised an eyebrow. "Oh, not for that reason, Hotaru-chan. Like I said before, I'm much too young to mate or have mating feelings, and that'll never change. No, I'm just sad because that sure would have been a fascinating specimen to study. What sort of evolution could have happened to result in such a thing, and why does it mate with other species, humans at that? It would have been a fascinating case of Life. I'm sure even master Angonce would be very intrigued had it existed." The white-haired boy gave his friend a bright smile.

Hotaru looked kind of bewildered by such an approach, but it was logical. "Um… Just don't tell him about it, okay? I don't want my friends to be embarrassed even further…"

Ignika giggled again. "I'd be very surprised if he didn't know all about human society and things by now, Hotaru-chan. He's been here for five hundred years already, as you know. But okay, I won't tell Minako-san that."

Still giggling, the Child of Life took Hotaru's hand and dragged her to the garden to take a chance and study life some more while his sister was busy delivering everybody home.

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**Next chapter: Servants of Evil!**

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**Next chapter, we'll be introducing the other Immoral Ones! So if you've been wondering what Jutlin's brothers are like, be sure to read next week's chapter!

**Review replies:**

ringroad25: I have already replied to you by PM and with the author's note, so I am not going to repeat myself again here. As far as I am concerned, case closed.

Leo Loves His Cookies: For your first sentence about ringroad26's review, see above. I've said all that has to be said on that matter. On to the rest of your review. I think you've got the right idea, or that you understood perfectly where I was going with the Saurian's mating season. It's indeed precisely like a cat or other animals in heat. We would consider that animalistic, they consider it logical and orderly, go figure. ;) It's true that Nightmare would never find any human (male or female) attractive, but then again, she never found a Saurian attractive either. Because of her personality, the idea alone makes her sick. She was, however, afraid because there is no telling how humans (male or female) react to the pheromons given off by her during heat, and she feared being hit on, which she would despise. You're also correct that Ignika's famil has no idea about laws or legal systems, the only law they know is nature's law. Let me also assure you that I have no plans whatsoever to pair a Senshi/Saurian because of mating season. In fact I'm not going to have anyone mate. That does not mean I won't possibly do a _romantic_ pairing, though, I'm still debating that one with my co-writer.


	45. Servants of Evil

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**45. Servants of Evil**

"The others are late," a harsh voice, laced with anger and annoyance, said. It belonged to a dark figure, his form unmistakably Saurian, tapping his clawed fingers on the table made of an unknown, cold black substance in impatience. He was not an ordinary member of his race. His skin was as dark as the night, and his scales and hair had a sickeningly green colour, like poison. From his shoulders grew large, mighty wings, covered in black feathers, and his body was protected by plates of green armour, light but strong. His overall appearance was that of a menacing dark bird, cloaked in shadow, ready to strike at any moment. He was an Immoral One.

"Have some patience, Felnas," another voice replied. This one was female, and did not contain either the anger or the impatience of the first Immoral One. In fact, the woman sounded quite the opposite, calm and collected, almost gentle even. She too, was a Saurian, and she too was as Immoral as the other was. Just like with Felnas, her skin was black, but her scales and hair were a shade of dark blue, like the colour of the frightening depths of the sea. She too had wings, but they were those of a bat, covered in short but warm black fur.

"Patience, Avsa?" Felnas sneered. "How can I have that, when our master has none himself? Yes, he is becoming quite impatient with our lack of progress, and the failure of our last three invasions surely didn't help."

The female Immoral One crossed her arms and scoffed, leaning back against the black wall of the dark room. "Failure is what I expected when I dispatched them, Felnas," Avsa replied. "I had hoped that much would have been obvious. It was part of my plan, a plan that, let me remind you, the leader of us Phantoka agreed on."

"It still seems like a waste of Saurians," the other occupant of the room rebuffed, annoyed. "Just because there are enough of our brethren doesn't mean we should set them all up to be killed. Honestly, I didn't expect such cold behaviour of you, Avsa."

"It can't be helped," the female replied with a deep sigh. "I value my own safety more than I do theirs, so sacrifices had to be made. I'd rather have the anger of dead Saurians on my back than the anger of master Zyglak."

"Don't we all?" a new voice replied, coming from outside the room. Not even a second later, a gate opened in the darkness and a red light flooded in, and out of that light stepped none other than Jutlin the Corrupt, his draconic wings folded close and his armour repaired and as strong as ever. He nodded to his two fellow Immoral Ones and took a seat at the table.

"Ah, Jutlin, good of you to join us, brother," Avsa said with an approving smile. "Any word on our other brother?"

"Knowing that lunatic, he'll probably arrive just in the nick of time," Jutlin replied, clear disgust in his voice. "If it were my decision, I wouldn't have him here at all. I cannot stand his twisted presence."

"Coming from the Saurian of Corruption, that says a lot," Felnas noted dryly. "Though I agree. There's madness, there's insanity, and then there's those two things combined to form him. Truly a disgusting creature, and were it not for master Zyglak having use for him, one I would have rid myself of ages ago."

"I love you too, brother," a fourth voice cackled. Another gate opened and another Immoral One stepped out of the red light into the conference room. He was lean and tall, but radiated power all the same. Like all other Immoral Ones, his skin was black, but his hair and scales were a disgusting, sickening shade of yellow, and his red eyes held only madness and pure evil. His black wings were more like fins, but fly with them he could, and his body was well armoured like every Immoral One's was.

"It always pleases me to hear you all compliment me like that," the newcomer said, licking his jaws and grinning madly.

"Mohtrek," Felnas spat, loathing every minute he had to spend in the presence of his 'brother'. Yes, they were all Immoral Ones, but Mohtrek was in a league of his own. There was no doubt he was insane, but the acts of cruelty, the madness, the horrors and the terror he was capable of was frightening even to the others, and all Saurians lived in fear of this terrifying creature.

Mohtrek himself ignored Felnas' tone and dropped himself in the middle of the table, not feeling like sitting on a chair for the moment. Looking around, the evil Saurian suddenly snarled and banged his fist on the table. "Where is our leader?" he shrieked, frothing at the mouth with sudden anger. "I don't have all day!"

"I am right here, oh impatient subordinate," a fifth voice answered from the shadows. The room was suddenly illuminated faintly by red light, coming from some sort of crystals embedded in the ceiling. But one particular spot remained utterly dark, and that was where he stood. All other Immoral Ones turned their heads in the direction of his voice, and waited tensely for him to make a move or speak.

He was taller than any of them, and more muscled as well. Everything about him was black. But not like the black of the other Immoral Ones. No, the others might be coloured black, but they reflected light all the same. Not him. No, his dark skin and scales seemed to _eat_ whatever light touched him, cloaking him in shadow. His armour had originally been silver, but throughout the eons it had been stained with so much blood that it was now permanently red. He was winged like the rest of his Immoral brethren, but they were unlike any wings of any living creature. He had four wings jutting from between his shoulders, and each seemed to be made of wisps of shadow sticking to bony structures, long skeletal fingers like those in the wings of a bat. A twin-bladed sword was held in his left hand, and a demonic shield clung to his right arm. Both were stained red like his armour, but showed a spec of silver here and there.

"Kraahkan," Avsa whispered, respect for the mightiest of them all filling her voice.

"Yes," the leader of the Immoral Ones confirmed with a short nod. "It is I. And now that we are all gathered, we can come to business straight away. For I have just returned from an audience with master Zyglak, and with me I have brought new orders."

All Immoral Ones tensed and focussed their full attention on their leader, listening attentively, even Mohtrek.

"I have informed the Master that the early stages of your plan have been completed, Avsa," Kraahkan said with his quiet, whispering voice. "He demands a full report of all you have learned from observing the battles between the invasion forces you sent and the Child, his family and these 'Sailor Senshi'."

Upon hearing those last two words, Jutlin clenched his fingers into a fist and growled. Seeing this, Mohtrek tipped back his head and let out a series of mad cackles. "Reliving bad memories, my dear Jutlin?" the foul Saurian mocked delightfully. "Perhaps, I don't know, memories of ridiculous-looking, pathetically weak, colourful girls of an ugly, weak race absolutely crushing you?" Again the Immoral One laughed, and it took all of Jutlin's self-control to not corrupt his 'brother' to a pile of gory filth. Then again, Mohtrek couldn't become what he already was, Jutlin thought.

"Silence," Kraahkan commanded sharply, causing the yellow and black Immoral One to shut up immediately. Even Mohtrek was not dumb enough to not fear Kraahkan and the powers bestowed upon him by their Master. "Jutlin's defeat was disappointing, correct. But, and even our Master has admitted this, it was not entirely his fault. He met more resistance than expected, and none of us could have predicted this strange attack he was defeated with."

"Speaking of which," Jutlin interrupted. "Has master Zyglak found out anything about that?"

"No, shocking as it is even to me, he could not understand anything about it from what he has seen in your mind, Jutlin," Kraahkan replied with a growl. The others looked shocked upon hearing this news. "He only said that it was a powerful force that is not to be underestimated, and that it could show up again for sure." Turning to Avsa in particular, the leader of the 'Phantoka' said: "Keep this in mind, Avsa, for the final stage of your plan."

"Remind me what that plan is, again, Kraahkan," Mohtrek said while scratching his throat. "It was so mind-numbingly basic and unoriginal that I forgot. Or perhaps you could explain it to me again, dear sister, as well as why you wasted precious Saurian flesh on invasions that were bound to fail."

Avsa kept her calm and icily replied: "Only one who lacks common sense and intelligence to plan ahead, like you, Mohtrek, could not understand my plan. These invasions were far from useless, as Master Zyglak himself also knows. They were never intended to succeed in defeating these new enemies or to capture the Child." The only female Immoral One glanced briefly at Jutlin before continuing. "What defeated Jutlin, in the end, was a combination of surprise and a lack of knowledge of who he was up against. It is clear, thus, that what would benefit us the most is information. And that is exactly what I have gained by sending my subordinates to this strange world. I have studied all fights, observed the powers and fighting styles of these 'Sailor Senshi', as well as the looks and capabilities of the Child and his family in their new forms."

"It was a good plan," Kraahkan agreed. "No matter how 'mind-numbingly basic and unoriginal' it was, Mohtrek. Avsa has done very well, and collected valuable information indeed. And now it is time that the knowledge we gained was put to a test. Our master has demanded this. He wants us to act, and soon. Very soon. And thus, I have brought you a direct order, Avsa."

"Speak, Kraahkan," the woman answered calmly. "Tell me what master Zyglak desires of me, so I can obey and fulfil his wishes."

"The Child has become second priority," the mightiest of the Immoral Ones explained. "It has become clear that he has found protection with these 'Sailor Senshi'. They are neither of use nor of interest to the Master, but they are a hindrance nonetheless. Refrain from sending more forces to search for the Child. Our Master demands that we focus our attention on the guardians of this world first. We must eliminate them. Master Zyglak wants them dead. And you, Avsa, will be the first to attempt to do just that. Tomorrow."

Avsa bowed her head. "Master Zyglak's wish is my command."

* * *

Oblivious to the fact that the invasion will happen so soon, Haruka drove Traveller, Ignika and Hotaru to Tsukino's house.

"Now, remember, Traveller, if Usagi's mom gets you into a conversation, try to give as few details as possible." The Senshi of Wind instructed the older Saurian. "Hotaru will be near, of course, and will try to correct you if you say something wrong, but interrupting a grown-up talk is impolite, and it might happen so that she, together with the kids, will be in another room."

"I will do my best," the Saurian of Teleportation assured the blonde-haired woman. Regardless, Traveller couldn't help but feel somewhat nervous.

"Note that Usagi will probably be near, but I don't trust her much with thinking things up..." Haruka said as she drove to the parking spot next to Tsukino's house. "Well, here we are. Good luck to you three."

"Thanks, Haruka-papa." Hotaru said getting out of the car. "I'll call you later and tell how we're doing."

"That would be much appreciated." Haruka smiled at her daughter. "Take care, hime."

Ignika and Traveller got out of the car as well, and after bidding their goodbyes and thanks to Haruka, followed Hotaru to the front door of Usagi's house. Along the way, the two reminded each other to only call each other by their humans names, Eiju and Amane, and to act as human as possible, and not speak until spoken to, to prevent them from saying anything wrong if at all possible.

Hotaru rang the bell, and soon after, the door was answered by no other than Ikuko, mother of Usagi and quasi-aunt of Chibiusa.

"Why, Hotaru-chan, hello. We've been expecting you." Ikuko said, smiling brightly. "And you must be Amane and Eiju Genkai? Glad to meet you, I'm Ikuko Tsukino. Come on in." She opened the door widely and stepped aside.

Ignika and Traveller made a polite bow and said their thanks, then quietly followed Hotaru inside, heart beating slightly faster than normal due to their nerves.

"Eiju-kun! Hotaru-chan!" Chibiusa came running in. "Glad you two are here! Now, let's go to the living room and watch some TV while dinner is being made ready."

Ikuko frowned. "Chibiusa, where are your manners? Let them at least have some time to wash their hands, and why didn't you greet Amane-san?"

"Sorry, aunt Ikuko..." Chibiusa bowed her head, although one could see she was still smiling.

"I expected no less from the little brat." Came a voice from upstairs. Then down came a boy with short brown hair, dressed in a casual t-shirt and knee-length shorts.

"Oh, you're no better yourself, Shingo." Chibiusa struck her tongue at him. The elder boy returned the favour.

"Children, behave." Ikuko-mama said sternly, then smiled at Traveller again. "I'm sorry, Amane-san, children are hard to raise properly. This is my son, Shingo. I believe you have met my eldest daughter, Usagi?"

Traveller nodded shortly, and replied, as human and politely as she could: "I have had that pleasure, yes. So has my little brother, in fact." She placed her hand on Ignika's shoulder and squeezed it lightly.

Ikuko smiled and nodded. "Very well. Now, Hotaru-chan, could you please show our guests where the bathroom is? I need Chibiusa to help me in the kitchen."

"Of course, Ikuko-san." Hotaru replied.

"And Shingo, go kick... I mean, get Usagi out of her room and bring her to the kitchen, too." Ikuko told her son.

"Sure thing, mom!" The boy eagerly ran upstairs, and Hotaru and the Saurians followed at a calmer pace.

"Well, that seemed to go rather well, I think," Ignika whispered to Hotaru and his sister, once he was sure nobody else was listening anymore. Traveller nodded in agreement.

"Yes. Ikuko-san seems like a kind woman and a good mother. Not that I can judge, of course, since I never knew what it was like to have a mother," the Child of Life's oldest sister said quietly.

"Well, Ikuko-san is always nice to guests, but Chibiusa had told me she isn't always this polite when alone with her family... In fact, she can be quite scary at times. But shhh, I didn't tell you that." Hotaru replied. "Here's the bathroom, let's wash our hands."

At that moment, a scream reached their ears. "SHINGO, YOU BRAT!"

The said boy ran right past the guests downstairs, grinning mischievously, and was soon followed by a fuming Usagi.

"JUST YOU WAIT TILL I GET MY HANDS ON YOU! I'LL SIMPLY…" Then Usagi noticed the three people staring at her. "Uh… Um… Hello, Hotaru-chan, Amane-chan and Eiju-kun…"

Ignika frowned, looking from the direction Shingo had vanished from to Usagi. "Hello, Usagi-san. Anything wrong?"

"Oh, no, nothing's wrong, at all…" Usagi quickly replied. "A little simple sibling's prank…"

"Shingo again drew funny faces to Usagi's favorite manga characters." A new voice came. The owner of the voice calmly emerged from the room and looked at the newcomers. "Nice to meet you, Ignika, Traveller. I'm Luna."

Traveller and Ignika's eyes went wide. "Is that a… talking mammal?" Traveller whispered, astonished. Ignika was astonished as well, but his eyes held something else but said astonishment. He was absolutely fascinated and intrigued, barely resisting the urge to run over and examine this new life form from all sides and angles.

"Fascinating," the white-haired child said. "It appears like a normal unintelligent animal but it has the intelligence of at the very least a human or Saurian. What kind of evolution is responsible for this?"

Luna laughed. "It's not evolution, it's magic. Look deeper." She winked at the boy. "Usagi told me about you and your family. I'm glad to finally meet you in person. Besides, haven't you heard of my fellow cat Artemis, who lives with Minako?"

Ignika thought for a moment, then remembered that fact and nodded. "Yes, Nightmare mentioned a 'white talking hairball capable of providing some reason'. I didn't know who she meant, though."

"So you can talk because of magic," Traveller muttered thoughtfully. "For what purpose?"

Luna chuckled, hearing such a description. Then looked at Traveller. "It's a long story, and I'll gladly tell it sometime, but now you'd better hurry downstairs, Ikuko might get nervous. Oh, and by the way, I won't talk in her or Shingo's presence, so don't mind me." With those words, she jumped onto Usagi's shoulder and made herself comfortable around her neck.

As the two disguised Saurians followed Usagi and the others, Ignika whispered to the future queen of Crystal Tokyo: "Why doesn't Luna talk in the presence of your family?"

Usagi whispered back: "Simple, they're normal humans and don't know a thing about me being Sailor Moon. So to them, I'm their normal daughter, and Luna is a normal cat."

Traveller raised an eyebrow. "With a crescent of gold on her forehead?"

Luna looked at her: "It takes only a tiny little bit of magic to make it constantly escape their notice. They think it's just a spot."

"And you don't mind having to deceive your family like this?" Ignika wondered curiously, looking at Usagi as he said that. His expression was one of childish wonder, he didn't see his inquiry nor the wording as insulting.

Usagi bowed her head. "I can't help it. It's better for them not to know. Otherwise they'd be worried sick each time I go to battle. Besides, I'm not sure of their ability to keep secrets… No, let them think I'm just a silly lazy girl. If they find out, then bye-bye, normal life… And I value that after all the battles we've had…"

"Normal life," Ignika repeated. He had never had that. He had been the Child of Life since he was born, and it was not a secret well kept. Traveller had had a normal life, at least until she had found her brother. "I wonder what that's like."

The Child of Life then felt a hand on his shoulder, and looked back only to see Hotaru smiling warmly and compassionately. "When it's all over, I'm sure you can have it. At least, if you can call our life normal, since it's not what you're used to."

Ignika hadn't thought about that. None of the Saurian family had considered that possibility. Stay here, on Earth? Never go back to Voya, live life as a human? It was a question that couldn't be immediately answered, and so Ignika did not reply.

Chibiusa came running up to them and said: "What took you so long? Usagi, go help set the table, Shingo's more of an annoyance than help."

"Usagi, are you there?" Ikuko called from the kitchen.

"Coming!" Usagi called back and did as was told.

The pink-haired girl brought her guests to the living room and jumped on an armchair. "So then, what shall we do now? There's an anime going on channel 5, I've got several video games right here, and oh, a nice board game on the shelf."

Traveller and Ignika shared confused glances, having not understood a word what the pink-haired Senshi from the future had said. They just gave her a long stare.

Chibiusa looked at them innocently. "What?"

Hotaru shook her head. "You know our guests aren't too familiar with that." She then explained: "An anime is an animated story made with moving pictures. A video game is same as computer game, only played using the TV and a console. And a board game consists of a special board, figures, dice and cards. They're too different to explain in one sentence, though."

Hearing that explanation, things became clearer somewhat to the two disguised reptiles. "A… board game, maybe?" Traveller tried, uncertain. "It doesn't involve strange machines, does it?"

"Strange machines?" Shingo, having overheard the last sentence, perked in from the kitchen.

For a moment there was silence, 'cause everybody realized they've been caught and nobody really knew how to get out of it, but the day was saved by Chibiusa.

"Amane-san doesn't like steampunk." She turned to her brother and waved a copy of Final Fantasy XIII.

"It's not steampunk, you dolt!" Shingo said, offended, snatched the game from his quasi-cousin's hand and went upstairs to his room.

"I don't know what that was all about but I suppose disaster was avoided?" Ignika whispered very quietly. Taking a deep breath, he turned to Chibiusa. "Can we play this board game now, please? I'm a bit curious as to what it is." What he said was true, he was curious, but he just hoped it would be anything as weird or pointless as the 'games' he had seen in the playground.

"Sure!" Chibiusa grinned and took the game from the shelf. She then took out the colorful board, cards and dice. "Now, the point of this game is…"

While it was indeed kind of pointless, the game has proven to be quite entertaining, and the company played it until Ikuko called them for dinner. The dinner also went well and without any major accidents, except for the toy spider Shingo put in Usagi's salad. After that, the Saurians and the two Senshi played the board game some more, and even watched Usagi and Shingo play a video game. Shingo won, much to Usagi's dismay.

"So, how did it go?" Haruka asked when she came to pick them up and everybody got in the car.

"Oh, surprisingly well." Hotaru smiled.

"I agree with Hotaru," Traveller said with a curt nod. "I think we played our part very well, if I do say so myself, and Usagi-san's parents were very hospitable. I think we also saw what a 'normal' evening is like for humans."

"Yes," Ignika agreed, staring off into space as he remembered Hotaru's earlier words. "It was strange and new, of course, but interesting all the same. I suppose I could get… used… to such things."

Haruka nodded and smiled. "Glad to hear that." Then she started the car and drove out of the parking spot. "Let's go home now, tomorrow we've got a long day ahead of us."

She didn't know how right she was.

* * *

**Next chapter: Avsa the Devourer!**

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	46. Avsa the Devourer

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**46. Avsa the Devourer**

The next day, late in the morning, Tokyo went on its business as it always did. People walked down the streets, hurrying to their work, to the stores or to wherever they had to go. Cars rode over the street or got caught in traffic jams. Advertisements flickered on big boards on the side of the skyscrapers. If anyone was at all worried or frightened by the strange happenings and attacks of the past few days, they didn't show it. Life was its normal hectic self.

Or it was until reality shattered in the middle of the crowded streets, a dimensional gate opening right in the heart of Tokyo. Brakes were slammed and cars came to a screeching halt, trying to avoid the unnatural happenings. Collisions were inevitable, and chaos quickly ensued. But it was just the beginning. More gates appeared, all over the place, and from them came the invaders. Saurians, armed and deadly followed the orders of their leader, and dutifully stormed through the gates between dimensions and into this alien world. A number like this had not been seen yet, and there were at least fifty of them.

Yet as frightening and powerful as they were, they were nothing to the last figure to come through the gates. Her dark blue hair swayed behind her in the breeze that met her, her batwings were folded neatly behind her back, and her clawed hands held two large and deadly sickles. Her yellow, snake-like eyes scanned her surroundings, but if she was at all overwhelmed by the chaos or the world that greeted her, she did not show it. So it was that Avsa of the Immoral Ones arrived on planet earth.

A car headed straight for her, despite it trying very hard to come to a halt. The smell of burning rubber hit Avsa's nose and she frowned in disgust, but she did not move. Instead, when the car was about to hit her, she stopped it with one foot. The driver scrambled out of the car and ran away in panic, but Avsa didn't care. Let him run. She was not here to kill random members of this weird looking species. She had other targets.

A Saurian of Iron came up to her cautiously, eying the stopped car with confusion and fear. "Lady Avsa, how will we find these 'Sailor Senshi'? You did not tell us this when you ordered us to follow."

The Immoral One smiled faintly and shrugged. "We will not find them," she replied. "Nor will we look for them. They are the guardians of this world. We will wreck havoc upon this place, and they will come to us. And then I shall devour them."

"Wreck havoc?" the Saurian repeated with an eyebrow raised.

"Yes," Avsa nodded. She gestured at the chaos around her. "Destroy everything in sight. These strange buildings, these noisy, stinking machines, the weird light, everything you come across."

"What about the inhabitants?"

"Leave those alive. The more that live and run, the more the word of our arrival will be spread, and the sooner my prey will come offer itself to me," the Immoral One answered. "Spread the word."

The Saurian of Iron nodded. "Yes, lady Avsa." With a bow he left, and Avsa returned her attention to her surroundings. She would tear this place down to the ground if that was what it would take to lure the guardians out.

The Immoral One spotted a nearby skyscraper and smirked. Mortal creatures should not attempt to reach for the heavens, she mused. Triggering her powers, she devoured the strength and stability of the foundations of the building, and as simple as that, the building collapsed, taking with it the lives of all those inside. But Avsa did not care. Her own life was more important. And said life could only be saved if she obeyed and followed her orders. Spreading her wings, the Immoral One took to the skies in order to avoid the falling debris, the shock of the earth and the clouds of dusts that were thrown up when the mighty structure fell. Already she had picked another target, and with swift beats of her wings sped towards it, destruction and chaos hot on her heels.

* * *

The Inner Senshi, minus Ami, were gathered, as planned before, at Makoto's apartment. Calm, light chatter filled the room as they waited for Makoto to prepare tea. Even Chameleon and Nightmare were calm and not bickering for a change. The idyllic picture was interrupted by Ami and Gravitas, who practically burst into the living room when Makoto opened the door.

"Turn on the TV, now!" Ami shouted, breathing heavily from running. She was warned by Gravitas that something is about to happen, and caught the news from a car's radio on her way to the meeting place.

Not wasting a moment, Rei turned on the TV, right in time for the live broadcast.

"... by unknown forces. Incredible chaos is underway in the Ikuhara district, unknown reptile-like creatures are destroying everything they can find. Two skyscrapers had already been toppled down by their leader and... AAAAAAAH!" The reporter screamed as a Saurian approached her. The broadcast was immediately interrupted as the camera was destroyed.

Everybody was shocked by the scale of disaster, which was monstrous to say the least, but there wasn't any time for that.

"Ikuhara..." Usagi repeated.

Minako quickly said: "It's quite far from here, but Michiru knows that place, there's a concert hall in that district."

"Good, means we just need to call the Outers..." Rei got up and went to the phone.

Nightmare, Chameleon and Gravitas huddled together, sharing worried glances. What they had seen on the TV had given them a very good idea of the scale of the chaos that had been unleashed, and as of such they did not bicker amongst each other for a change.

"Things look pretty bad," Chameleon muttered. "I counted at least ten Saurians in the background on the TV. It's an invasion on grand scale."

"And we have an Immoral One on our hands, just like Ignika predicted," Nightmare growled as she fingered the hilt of her Terror Katana. "I absolutely hate to be pessimistic, but I don't like our odds."

"Neither do I," Gravitas admitted, with a rare display of worry in her voice. "We used to run from such great numbers, not fight them."

"True," Chameleon agreed with a sigh as he started to pace. "The bad thing is that that won't stop our hosts from going out there and confront them, so we have no choice to go along. They'll be clobbered otherwise."

"No shit," Nightmare spat, rolling her eyes in annoyance. "On the other hand, it's an advantage, too. We'll be with fifteen, that's a rather nice number. It'll keep the enemy's attention divided, and that allows us to strike."

"But it also works against us, as our attention will be divided as well," Gravitas reasoned. "It is hard to form a strategy like this. We need to see the situation ourselves."

"You won't have to wait long," Chameleon assured the Saurian of Gravity, while pointing over his shoulder at the Inner Senshi. "They're about to contact the rest of our family."

"Michiru remembers the place? Good. We're all gathered at Makoto's. Saurians too. Yes. Okay, we're waiting." Rei hung up the phone and turned to others: "Traveller will be here in a moment, and I think it's best to transform now."

The girls nodded and each shouted her transforming incantation. With a flash of light, the girls were replaced by their Senshi aspects. Though they were as ready for battle as they could hope to be, all of them remembered their latest battles, as well as the battle with Jutlin the Corrupt, and dread filled their hearts somewhat. What if a bad situation like that happened again this time, even if the entire Saurian family was backing them up?

Chameleon summoned his Camouflage Daggers and Gravitas called forth her shield with razor sharp edges. Unlike the Senshi, there was no real doubt in the three Saurians' hearts. Doubt would not help in battle, and they knew that all too well, veterans of fights as they were.

"Before we leave, let's make one thing perfectly clear," Chameleon said to the assembly of Sailor Senshi. "Even if you get hurt, even if you fly into rage, do not, for whatever the reason, engage in close combat with anyone. That's plain suicide. Try to retreat or fall back to any of us, and we'll take care of it."

"You heard useless, love twit," Nightmare snarled. "You had better make damn sure I don't have to worry about you or get your ass out of tight spots, you got me? And whatever any of you do… Don't. Get. In. My. Way."

Mars smirked sadly. "Some protector you've got, Minako-chan."

"Just you wait." Minako said. "She trained me, and trained me hard, I'm not as hopeless and she thinks."

Makoto looked at Chameleon and said: "We'll try not to get into close combat, but we won't be able to help it if it gets to us."

"Give me a yell, I'll be there, even if you can't see me," the Saurian of Chameleon replied with a wink.

Makoto chuckled. "I'll remember that." She said with a smile.

Gravitas walked over to Ami and quietly grabbed the Senshi of Mercury's hand. "Stay near me," the Saurian of Gravity whispered. As she touched Sailor Mercury like this, she could feel the bond between them, but not the power of their symbiosis. Gravitas had no idea how it could be triggered at will, and she could only hope that that power would show itself again during the battle. It would surely be a great aid.

Ami nodded. She and Gravitas were a great team, with or without symbiosis powers. She squeezed Gravitas' hand a bit tighter. "I definitely will."

Gravitas smiled, and at that moment, Traveller arrived in the room.

* * *

Avsa walked through the empty streets of Tokyo, her assembled force of over fifty Saurians all around her, tearing down whatever they could get their claws on. By now an entire street had fallen to the assault and the Immoral One herself had done the most damage. No powerscream, no shattering was as powerful as her hunger, hunger with which she could devour everything, could feed of everything. She looked around and smirked, touching the wall of another high building with her hand and sapping the energy that kept the structure standing from it. Calm and collected she walked on, the building collapsing behind her.

"I will continue this!" she shouted, her harsh voice being heard over the noises of destruction all around her. "I will tear down this place until nothing is left, and move on to the next, until these Sailor Senshi come and face me!"

This declaration made, she moved on, and the invading force of Saurians arrived on a wide open place in the city. A crossroads of sorts, with a small park square in the middle of it. She motioned her underlings to destroy it all, while she crouched down and touched the road. The asphalt cracked and shattered, before it turned to dust, together with the earth below it and the pipes of the water system and the sewers. She fed of all energy, leaving none of it behind in whatever she touched.

"Tear it all down…" she snarled, already moving on. "The buildings that surround us, this strange black rock we walk on, that strip of green in this ocean of gray, all of it! Come out of hiding, Sailor Senshi, so you can be destroyed by Avsa the Devourer!"

"Stop!" A cry came from the far end of the street. Despite the chaos all around, the Saurians still stopped to look at the one who dared to raise her voice against them.

Eternal Sailor Moon stood tall and proud in front of them, the other Senshi lined up behind her.

"How dare you destroy innocent lives and homes of thousands of people? How dare you threaten the peace of our dimension?" Sailor Moon shouted.

"We stand for love!" The Inner Senshi cried in unison.

"We stand for justice!" The Outer Senshi continued.

Sailor Moon cried out once again: "We are the Sailor Senshi! And in the name of our planet..."

"We'll punish you!" Came the united cry of the ten girls.

Avsa spread her wings and rose to her full height, then turned to face the assembled Sailor Senshi and smirked. "I am Avsa the Devourer, and I see that you have learned nothing," the Immoral One said, her tone mocking and her expression unimpressed. "You come at me so boldly, despite having been crushed by my brother before? Yes, I can see why Jutlin refused to acknowledge you as warriors."

"You didn't leave us a choice, Avsa." Sailor Pluto replied.

Sailor Mars nodded and continued: "You came here to fight us, so here we are! We won't let you harm innocent people any longer!"

Avsa merely shrugged. "I don't care about the innocents, if they live or die," the Immoral One said softly. "I care only about my own life and my own safety. And in order for me to stay safe and living, I have to kill you all. And I will do whatever is necessary to achieve that goal. Nothing personal, trust me." The Immoral One smirked cruelly and summoned her blood-stained sickles to her hands, crossing them before her chest. "Apologies, but you will all have to die."

"Whether we will die today or not remains a question." Sailor Mercury said. "You have tried gathering information, but you don't know everything."

"Correct," Avsa admitted. "But unlike Jutlin, I came prepared." She signalled all her followers, who had surrounded the Sailor Senshi during their talk with the Immoral One. "Kill them! Master Zyglak demands it!"

The Saurians let out chilling cries of battle and either stormed forward or unleashed their powers at the assembled guardians of earth.

Pluto and Saturn immediately stepped forward to block the power beams with their barriers, and after those were gone, they spread out as far as possible, using the fallen buildings and debris for cover. They tried to do as much damage as possible while being as stealthy as possible. Which wasn't really possible due to incantations.

"Jupiter Oak Evolution!" Sailor Jupiter shouted as a myriad of leaf-shaped energy beams shot out from her tiara.

"Sharbon Spray Freezing! Shine Aqua Illusion!" Mercury used that combo on relatively small patches of the battlefield instead of the whole field not to hinder others, since only Venus had another visor.

"Crescent Beam Shower!"

"Burning Mandala!" Sailor Venus and Sailor Mars tried to do area-damage for now, instead of more powerful one-on-one attacks.

"Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss!" Eternal Sailor Moon's attack covered the most area and did the most damage for now, but left her open while she was casting it. Sailor Chibimoon tried to make up for that and shot Pink Sugar Heart Attacks at any Saurians who came close, but still their forces were overwhelming, and Sailor Moon never could make her attack last as long as she wanted, having to flee together with her future daughter.

The Outer Senshi worked in pairs, Pluto with Uranus and Neptune with Saturn. One protected her partner with the barrier, while the said partner blasted Saurians with powerful attacks.

Avsa was about to step into the fight herself, already seeking out a Senshi to take down, when another Saurian suddenly shouted a warning at her. The Immoral One managed to whirl around just in time to raise her sickles and block the deadly slash of a certain Death Scythe. Golden eyes met yellow eyes, and Avsa found herself locking weapons with the Child of Life himself.

"Ignika!" the Immoral One hissed, breaking away from the scythe and making expert swipes at the boy with her sickles. As the white-haired child dodged the blows, Avsa sneered at him: "You shouldn't be here, Child of Life! I have not come for you, for a change, so why not enjoy that fact and mind your own business?" Avsa slashed at him again, and when Ignika dodged she whirled around and knocked him in the stomach with her tail, then delivered a powerful kick to his chest that send him flying and crashing into a pile of debris.

Avsa didn't get the time to say anything, however, as she had to dodge a jab of a trident, courtesy of Traveller who had seen what the Immoral One had done to her little brother. The two women clashed, each trying to kill the other. Ignika, meanwhile, got up and was about to join the fight against Avsa again when he sensed a couple of Saurians moving underground right to where Sailor Mars and Venus were fighting. Having no choice, the Child of Life abandoned the fight with Avsa and rushed over to warn the two Senshi of the oncoming threat.

Gravitas was hovering over Ami like a shadow, striking down any opponent who came too close to the Senshi of Mercury, while said warrior was busy firing spell after spell at distant foes. Around them, more Saurians fell as an invisible person rushed through the crowded battlefield, searching for any opponents who left themselves open for a fatal strike.

None of them were as lethal as Nightmare, however. The Saurian of Fear had used the distraction of the Senshi, just like the rest of her family, to attack the enemy from behind, and now she was tearing through their ranks with uncontrolled lust and glee for battle. Her mighty powers flared everywhere, sending Saurians all over the battlefield into fits of panic or cowering in fear. Nightmare's Terror Katana was just as busy, expertly blocking whatever Saurian managed to come close enough and then striking them down fatally. Blood stained the sword as Nightmare fought on, but through it all she still kept out a watchful eye for Sailor Venus. Should the Senshi be in any life threatening danger, she would act.

The Sailor Senshi continued their fight, and none of them had gotten any major injuries yet, but it was obvious that the odds weren't on their side. Hotaru scanned the battlefield. If only she could...

"Wait." The Senshi of Ruin thought. "Why can't I? This place is in ruins anyway."

With a firm nod, she turned to her mother. "Michiru-mama, seek cover with Setsuna-mama, I'm going in."

"But... Hotaru! It's suicide!" The aqua-haired Senshi grabbed her daughter's hand.

"No, mama, it's a chance for victory. Go." The fierce determination she said it with made it clear that it was useless to argue. And knowing her daughter's power...

"Alright. Get back safe." With those words, she ran for her life towards Sailor Pluto while blasting all the Saurians that came in her way with Deep Submerges.

Hotaru, making sure her mother was gone, conjured up the most powerful Silence Wall she could manage, and under its protection rushed straight into battle, trying to get as far and as closer to the middle as possible. Just as she felt her barrier was about to crack under the pressure of various weapons and elemental attacks, she stood up straight, raised her glaive and cried:

"Silence Glaive Surprise!"

What followed next was something nobody aside from the Sailor Senshi had ever seen before. A gigantic dome of purple energy expanded from where Hotaru stood and destroyed everything in its path. The Saurians caught in the blast, and those counted for more than half of the total number, were reduced to dust in an instant. The Senshi were at the edge of the battlefield and escaped the brunt of the blast, just like Ignika and his family.

The Child of Life watched the destruction caused by the power of Saturn, and his jaw could only drop. He had known right away that the power Hotaru carried was tremendous, and that she was his equal in terms of strength. But this was the first time he had ever seen her use that power. "So this is the power of the Senshi of Death and Rebirth…" the Child of Life muttered. No wonder she hadn't used it back on the playground.

As the Silence Glaive Surprise faded, the battlefield grew silent as all stood in awe of the destruction. All looked at Sailor Saturn with astonishment or, in the Saurians' case, fear. Even Avsa could only stare. She had not seen this before. She had not expected it. This had not been part of her information.

"Impossible…" the Immoral One whispered. "So much power… So much destruction…"

The remaining Saurians began to back away from Sailor Saturn, their fear of her having grown stronger than the fear of their master.

"It seems the odds have tipped back in our favour, Avsa," Traveller noted with a smirk as she finally got over her own astonishment.

To her surprise, Avsa laughed quietly.

"My, Traveller, what makes you think that?" the Immoral One asked, a strange smirk plastered on her dark face. "This battle… has just begun."

With a flick of her wrist Avsa blasted Traveller away from her by using the energy taken from all she had fed on. With that danger momentarily dealt with, the female Saurian threw a second blast of dark energy into the air. Though none of the defenders of the earth understood why, Avsa understood all too well. This was the signal for the final stage of her plan. To the horror of the Senshi and Ignika's family, what followed Avsa's signal was the appearance of dimensional gates, all around the edge of the battlefield, surrounding the Senshi and their allies. And from those gates more invaders marched into battle.

"I never said all of my forces had been accounted for here," Avsa declared with a triumphant grin, as well over two hundred Saurians surrounded the Sailor Senshi, Ignika and his family. Over two hundred pairs of eyes were locked on the defenders, and in those eyes one and only one desire could be seen…

Kill the prey of Avsa.

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**Next chapter: Day of disaster!**

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SoulLoss: Glad you're still reading! You're pretty much correct about the Immoral Ones, though I'll be doing my best to develop them as I've developed the rest of my cast so far. You'll see, they may not be as one-dimensional as their speeches and actions led you to believe. ;)


	47. Day of disaster

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**47. Day of disaster**

The Senshi stared in horror at the new forces which came at them. Before they knew it, they had gathered in a circle formation, covering each other's backs. That went mostly by instinct, however, as their minds were too busy trying to process the true scale of this new danger, and the ever-so-faint chances for victory. If even a 50-some Saurian force was defeated only when the power of Saturn had been used, how could they hope to win against two hundred?

It suddenly hit Hotaru that Silence Glaive Surprise is a very fitting name for her attack. It could only be used once, only as a surprise attack. For now the kitten was out of the bag, the foes now knew of her power, and will undoubtely try to kill her first. They won't give her a chance for a second one...

Ignika and his family had been separated from their allies, much to their dismay, and were standing in a similar formation: in a circle, back-to-back. None of them said anything, and all of them realized how bad the situation had become. If they were really desperate, Traveller could save them all with her powers, but that would mean surrendering the city to the biggest force of Saurians it had ever seen, and the consequences of that would be indescribable. Ignika clenched his jaw. Saturn had unleashed her full power, but it hadn't helped. Would he have to do the same as Hotaru now? Did he have to unleash the full, terrifying might of his element? Could he condemn this city to such a fate?

His thoughts were interrupted when Avsa approached the Sailor Senshi calmly, her weapons held firmly in her hands but not held in a threatening way for the moment. "Let me make a proposal," she said calmly. "It is obvious that whatever hope you had for victory has now been crushed. You cannot defeat me and two hundred of my brethren. Surrender, and I will see to it that you are killed swiftly and painlessly. You can avoid needless violence, pain and suffering, and I can prevent the needless killing of my brethren. What say you?"

"If death is the only way out..." Came Uranus' hoarse, yet stern voice came. She then glared furiously at Avsa. "Then we'd rather meet it on the battlefield!"

"Yes!" Sailor Jupiter followed her fellow Senshi's suggestion. "It is our duty and destiny to fight for the sake of our planet, our universe, and we won't abandon it!"

"We won't surrender, Avsa." Sailor Moon boldly looked at the Immoral One. "We shall win or die trying!"

The Immoral One sighed and sadly shook her head. "And here I hoped you would be reasonable. You're going to die, that much is certain. And yet, you'd rather die in pain, taking away the lives of my innocent brethren in the process? Some of them have families they long to return to. Some of them don't even wish to be here. And yet they had to follow, for master Zyglak would surely punish them if they did not. This is as much their fight as it is that of other members of your species… And you don't see me killing them… much, now do you?" Avsa spread her arms and gestured at all around them. "You can't save yourselves. You can't save your world. But you can save their lives. The choice is yours, die excruciatingly painful as murderers, or die peacefully with a clear conscience. If I were you, I would know what my choice would be."

Truth to be told, this way of looking at things made the Senshi's heart waver, and they stood silent for quite a while. None wanted to be a murderer, and yet...

"What you said is mere wordplay, Avsa." Sailor Pluto looked up at the Immoral One. "Innocent brethren? I am willing to concede they are, but they came to our world as invaders, and they are our enemy whether they like it or not. And the only one to blame here is you, Avsa, who ordered them here." She shook her head. "Battles of armies might be new for your world, but here war is nothing unusual for several millennia already. And there always are innocents killed, and there always are families left without fathers, and there always are those who wished nothing but to never touch a weapon."

Sailor Mars spoke up next. "You don't seem as immoral as your name suggests... If you're really concerned for innocents of your army, send them away, and take the full blame yourself."

Sailor Pluto continued again: "Let a duel decide who's the winner. Decide yourself whatever you deem fair."

Sailor Moon nodded. "You'll kill us all anyway, but in case we win, you'll call back your army. It's an honourable way to solve a battle, and no innocent lives need to be lost."

Avsa's smile dropped, and her eyes got a gleam of rage in them that did not befit the normally calm and collected Saurian. "Honour…?" she hissed, anger bubbling to the surface and she started to shake. "I. Have. No. Honour!" Avsa's fury exploded as she slammed her fist on the ground and triggered her immoral power. She fed of the energy of the entire battlefield, causing more destruction as road and asphalt turned to dust. Foundations of nearby buildings crumbled as the power of the Immoral One raged on. "What matters to me is my life, my safety! Don't mistake my kindness as honour, you fools!" Everything collapsed and everyone lost their balance as the ground beneath their feet crumbled. "I avoid violence if it doesn't put me in danger of master Zyglak's wrath!" Blind with anger and inner pain, the Immoral One turned to her brethren. "Kill them. KILL THEM ALL!" Her incinerating gaze found those of the Senshi. "So be it, fools. I offered you kindness and you spat on it. Now face the horror of my Immoral Hunger!"

Saturn and Pluto immediately activated their barriers, trying to shield their comrades from the squall of different powers used at them as well as from the wave of weapon attacks from nearby Saurians. They used all their strength to keep the combined barrier up, but it was clear they won't last for very long. Setsuna and Chibiusa could both open a portal to the Time Gates and let them escape, but will it help? The Senshi all charged their most powerful attacks, ready to at least go out with a bang once the barrier is broken.

"My brethren," Avsa called out. "Let us kill these creatures who would rather take as many of you with them to the grave rather than avoid needless bloodshed!"

Her followers responded with a roar of agreement.

Avsa jumped forward and touched the shield Saturn and Pluto were putting up, and triggered her power, smirking all the while. "Shields mean nothing to me, Sailor Senshi. I devour it all!" To the Senshi's horror, that was exactly what happened. The dual energy shields put up by the two Outers crumbled and faded before their very eyes, the energy that held it up being sapped by Avsa the Devourer. Not giving her enemies the time to recover from this shock, Avsa immediately lashed out with one of her sickles, intending to chop Saturn's head right off. She would have succeeded, had she not been suddenly slammed in the ground by an increased pull of gravity.

Gravitas burst forth from the horde of invaders, blood staining her clothes and shield, but she herself was unharmed. The Saurian of Gravity rushed towards Sailor Mercury immediately, and took up her role as protector of that girl once more. Not only that, Nightmare had followed her sister closely, and unleashed a tidal wave of fear energy that washed over a grand number of Saurians, reducing them to cowering, spineless creatures, who proved to be easy targets for the camouflaged Chameleon's daggers.

"Do not forget that we are here as well, Avsa," Ignika said as he and Traveller appeared on the Senshi's side just as the Immoral One crawled to her feet again. "We won't stand by and watch how you destroy our friends. We will stop you!"

"Why don't you just try it?" Avsa spat back, lunging at the child. Traveller leaped in the way of the blow and caught it with her trident. The moment the weapons made contact, Ignika's oldest sister triggered her power and teleported herself and Avsa to high above the battlefield, and higher still, until they were in the clouds. Once there, Traveller vanished again and returned to the battlefield. Avsa was gone for a few precious minutes now, leaving them to only deal with normal Saurians.

The Senshi didn't waste their time. Everybody who had an area-effect attack fired it, and the rest finished the hit Saurians off with powerful one-on-one attacks. That tactics could hold the Saurians off for a while, but not for long.

"Should I try another Surprise?" Sailor Saturn asked Traveller, who had just effectively disposed of another batch of Saurians. "If you teleport me far enough, we won't get harmed..."

"They won't let you," Traveller replied while defending Hotaru from incoming physical attacks. "They've seen your power, they're targeting you specifically, if you haven't noticed yet." The next moment Traveller had to push the girl to the ground by the head in order to have her dodge a blast of heat vision.

Hotaru, while grateful to the Saurian of Teleportation for saving her life, still felt bad. Despite being the most powerful Senshi, she could never use her powers, and was next to useless in combat... She hated it.

"Back to barriers then..." she sighed as she got up.

The other Senshi fired attacks like no tomorrow without any stop, focused on only one thing – destroy as much Saurians as possible. Sailor Mercury, however, tried to solve another problem – she and her guest needed to trigger symbiosis.

"But just how to do we it?" she thought frantically.

While blasting every Saurian in sight with her Love and Beauty Shock and more or less successfully deflecting the few close combat attacks that reached her with her modified Love Me Chain, Sailor Venus looked at Nightmare fighting next to her. It was truly a sight to behold. Swift but deadly, raging but not mindless, a graceful demon of bloodlust... While it wasn't time to be poetic, the Senshi of Love admired her guest. And another thought was bugging her at the back of her mind – Nightmare fought here, right next to her, protecting her.

"Means she cares..." Venus thought briefly and fired another Shock. "And I thought she couldn't stand me..."

The defenders were fighting bravely, but the odds were just too much against them, and each and every one of them was beginning to tire out. Ignika could see it all too clear. And he struggled with himself. "I have no choice," he thought. "I need to do what Master Angonce bade me to never do… It's all I can think of that could even hope to save us…" The Child of Life took a deep breath and shouted to his sister and Hotaru: "Sister, Sailor Saturn, protect me while I prepare myself!"

Traveller frowned. She was about to ask her little brother what he was going to prepare, but when she saw his stance, when she felt him gathering all of his power, she gasped. The Saurian of Teleportation could feel a little bit of her strength leaving her, as her brother began to gather all Life energy that surrounded him.

"Great Beings protect us…" she whispered. "He's going nova!"

Saturn rushed to Ignika's side immediately and conjured up a powerful Silence Wall around them both, but still gladly gave her power to Ignika.

"Nova?" the Senshi of Ruin asked Traveller.

"You can easily call it a move of desperation," Traveller answered darkly while defending her brother. "It's the ultimate power of a Saurian… We gather all energy related to our power that we can find and then unleash it in one single blast. Depending on the power, the scale of destruction caused by that differs, but…"

"The Great Beings forbade me from ever doing a Life Nova Blast," Ignika replied, his eyes still closed as he drew an enormous power upon himself. "For the results of it can't be predicted. Not even by me. What will the effects be? Will my attack just charge everything with an overdose of Life, killing everyone? Will it age everyone to death? Or worse… will it not harm my enemies at all, but instead bring everything inanimate that it touches to life?"

"You're dooming us all, little brother," Traveller growled as she stabbed her trident in a Saurian's chest.

"I have no choice," Ignika replied sadly, his face twisted with the strain of all his power and the emotional pain he felt by making this decision. "It's all I can think of to save this world!" Ignika's eyes snapped open. "Traveller, you teleport all others to safety. Once you're all gone, I'll unleash my power…"

"May the Great Beings protect you," the Saurian of Teleportation grumbled.

Hotaru was shocked and shaken by such a turn of events... Yet in Ignika, she felt the same determination and desperation she herself felt when she had to use her power...

"If... If things go by the worst scenario..." She stuttered, looking at Ignika. "Me and Setsuna-mama will end this world. She will stop time for a brief moment, and I'll bring down my glaive. World won't have to suffer."

Ignika nodded, then motioned to Traveller that she had to leave. Traveller did so with the greatest of reluctance, but she knew she had to carry out her brother's wishes. As soon as he saw Saturn and Traveller disappear, Ignika started to loose his grip on the massive power he now held within him.

"I'm sorry, master Angonce," he whispered, before letting the power go.

"I don't think so!" a harsh voice suddenly snarled. Ignika's eyes snapped open just as he let it all go, and what he saw shocked him. Avsa the Devourer had returned sooner than expected and was right in front of him, breathing hard. Still, she had a triumphant grin on her face, and before Ignika could react or his Nova blast could be formed, she had grabbed him around the throat and triggered her power. Originally having been a Saurian of Hunger, what made Avsa's power different from all the others and immoral, was the fact that she could feed of every kind of energy. From the energy keeping molecules together to the energy generated by the flow of time itself. She devoured it and lived on it, no matter how great her 'meal' was. Her body had been enhanced to the point it could withstand absorbing the energy of the stars.

Ignika screamed and struggled as he felt all the power of his nova blast being sapped away by the Immoral One that held him in her grip. He tried to get away from her, but his physical strength was far inferior to hers. Seeing that he was in trouble, the Senshi and his family tried to come to his aid, but were driven back by the horde of Saurians that had followed Avsa the Devourer. What should have been the attack to end it all became the greatest mistake Ignika had made that day, and soon enough all traces of his forbidden power had vanished into the Immoral One.

Once she had absorbed all energy of the Nova blast, Avsa tossed Ignika a few feet away and laughed. "My, you really were getting desperate, weren't you, Child of Life? But I will let nothing get in the way of my mission. The Senshi will die today, and you will be taken before master Zyglak!"

"Over our dead bodies!" Sailor Moon shouted as the entire group of Senshi and Ignika's family appeared around the Child of Life, thanks to Traveller's teleportation powers. They formed a protective circle around the drained boy, daring anyone to come close to them.

Avsa smirked. "I hoped you would say that." She looked around the at the assembled Saurians. "Get behind me, my brethren!"

The others hurriedly obeyed as Avsa raised her hand and pointed it at the circle of earth's defenders. Then she unleashed all the power she had just absorbed in one massive beam, doing it as easily as one would swat a fly. All of the Life energy that had been devoured by her had been turned to raw power inside her body, and now she fired it all into a massive, destructive blast. The power engulfed the group, breaking the barrier Pluto and Saturn set up as if it wasn't even there. And it didn't stop there, the energy rushed on, hundreds of metres, destroying everything of Tokyo that it came across. Houses, cars and people. The noise of destruction was so deafening that nobody except Avsa could hear the screams of pain of the fifteen people trapped inside the blast.

And the Immoral One chuckled softly.

It took minutes before all the energy had been unleashed, and when finally the attack ceased, Avsa expected to see the smoking, charred bodies of her enemies. Great was her surprise when she could see nothing aside from destroyed roads, cars, humans and houses. But no Sailor Senshi. No Saurians turned human. No Child of Life.

"What in the blazes…?" she began, cursing and snarling.

Her tirade was stopped before it could even begin when she suddenly shivered. The air had grown cold, but not natural cold. It was the kind of cold you got when feeling afraid. And she wasn't the only one who had noticed this. Her fellow invaders were all getting restless, too, an unexplainable fear grabbing a hold of all of them. And this chilling cold was followed by something far worse, something Avsa had felt only when she was in the presence of her master, though perhaps not as strong. Fear latched itself onto her heart, as she slowly turned to take in the vision of a monster that gave off an aura that screamed death.

"My, my," a voice that sounded like bones cracking sneered. "I just can't leave you Senshi alone to deal with something as minor as this, now can I? Pathetic."

All Saurians saw him now, and they got as far away as possible. Even Avsa had to gather all her willpower to stay where she was. Her eyes widened somewhat as she saw the bloodied, but breathing, forms of her prey at the feet of the newcomer.

Crast the Repulsive had arrived.

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**Next chapter: The Repulsive strikes!**

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	48. The Repulsive strikes

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**48. The Repulsive strikes**

Those of the Senshi who somehow managed not to lose consiousness due to the excruciating pain of the blast realized that they were still alive. They were injured, maybe even gravely, but alive nevertheless and someone had come to their aid.

Crast. Despite the fact his repulsive presence threatened to shatter whatever sanity they had left, they, for once, felt relieved that he was here. Not even an Immoral One could stand against a Great Being's darkness. The Senshi themselves, however, were out of battle for good, and simply lay on the ground, pained and drained of strength.

Ignika's family was still conscious, thanks to their greater endurance as Saurians, only Ignika, drained by the ordeal of preparing a Nova blast and then having it sucked away, had lost his consciousness during the attack. Regardless, his family was relieved just like the Senshi were to see the Repulsive tower over them.

Crast snorted and began to use one of his powers. His blood-red eyes glowed and a blanket of shadow fell over the fallen Senshi and Saurians, who slowly felt their wounds being healed, flesh knitting back together and strength being restored. The way this happened, however, was not pleasant at all. This was healing done by a dark creature, and so it was a painful process, though nothing compared to the pain of nearly dying in the blast nearly moments before.

"Get up, you useless humps of flesh," the Repulsive spat, sounding completely annoyed with what he had done. "If you think I'm going to let you weaklings slack off while I do all the work, you're sorely mistaken. Now get up before I make you get up!"

Clenching their teeth, the Sailor Senshi got to their feet. They did realize that their body and strength were fully restored, but all the pain caused their minds to be somewhat hazy still. Nevertheless, they were up and ready for combat.

Crast skittered over to Ignika, who was just barely getting to his feet. "And you, Child of Life, what in my master's name were you thinking? You were never, ever, to use that power, you idiotic mishap of evolution! Do you realize how horrid the consequences could have been? Why, they make me look beautiful!"

"It was the only solution I could think of," Ignika replied, not looking at Crast. His mind was tired enough as it was without having to cope with the monster's disgusting appearance. "I will apologize to master Angonce later."

"You had better, little reptile," the monstrous dark side of Angonce snarled. Then he turned his attention to the invaders, of whom a few had fled, their minds unable to stand being in Crast's presence. "And as for you, shitpiles that evolution shat out, my master is growing tired under all these invasions, and Crast the Repulsive despises his master feeling uncomfortable in even the slightest, tiniest way." When nothing happened and nobody said anything, the insectoid sighed deeply. "How unintelligent can they get…?" he muttered. "This is the part where you all scream and start running."

"Maybe they need a more obvious example?" Sailor Chibimoon suggested.

"A fine idea, undersized bag of meat," Crast replied on what was supposed to be a grateful tone. The smile he sent the youngest Sailor Senshi nearly made her faint with fear, however, and she quickly hid behind Sailor Moon. Delighted with her reaction, the dark side of Angonce returned his attention to the invaders, who still hadn't made a move, his appearance seemingly having frozen them. Crast casually picked out a random target and made the Saurian explode with a blink of an eye.

"There we go."

The Senshi's jaws simply dropped, and some of them felt sick as they saw the remains of the unfortunate Saurian. If a blink of an eye caused a Saurian to explode into thousands of tiny bloody bits, what could happen should Crast actually battle? The girls thanked heavens Crast was on their side.

The Saurian family felt much the same, aside from Ignika, who knew what power the Great Beings possessed. Yet at the same time, he had never seen them use it, least of all in a way so violent as this. It was disturbing, really, that a creature so cruel and terrifying was actually created from a piece of Angonce's very soul.

"Now then," Crast said as he advanced on the group of invaders. "Let's get to business. What follows next will be very simple: you run away and I blow you up, erasing your miserable existence as a way to make you repent for insulting my master."

To everyone's surprise, Avsa the Devourer stepped in Crast's way, calm, collected and determined. "My brethren, he is right about one thing. You should run. He is out of your league. Return to the corridors of this stinking stone forest and wreck more havoc, as well as kill any living creature you come across."

"No way!" Chibimoon shouted before anybody else could. "We won't allow it!"

"Chibimoon is right." Sailor Jupiter clenched her fists and moved into a fighting stance. "You have done more than enough harm to our city, and we will not allow you to destroy it even further!"

Avsa shrugged, not really caring what the Senshi said. She slammed her sickles into the ground at her sides, and triggered her power of Immoral Hunger, sapping the strength that kept molecules and atoms together, causing the ground to collapse like it had many times before. Only this time, Avsa had pushed her powers far beyond what the Senshi had seen so far, and the results made their jaws drop. Avsa had destroyed so much of the road and ground beneath that a tremendous chasm had been created, dividing the entire crossroad square in two. Avsa, Crast and the defenders of earth stood on one side, the rest of the invaders on the other. The chasm was too wide and too deep for even a Senshi to jump over.

"Go now, my brethren. Perhaps if we create more chaos, our master will be merciful and allow us to live for another chance," the Immoral One said sharply. She was obeyed immediately, and the Saurians began to retreat from the open crossroads en masse, splitting up in small groups that disappeared into different streets, alleyways or even houses. Crast moved to stop them, but Avsa quickly blocked his path and smirked. "Ah, ah, Crast. I can't let you do that."

"So you wish to die, then," the Repulsive said with a terrifying grin and obvious delight in his voice. "You have to, because you cannot seriously believe you can stop me."

"Not for long, no," Avsa admitted with a similar grin. "But long enough for my final order to be carried out."

On the other side of the chasm, Ami and Gravitas quickly ordered Ignika's family and the Senshi to split into groups.

"Haruka, Michiru, follow the Saurians down that side street." Ami commanded. "Usagi, Chibiusa, Rei, go down the main street. Me and Gravitas shall go down that alley towards the square."

"Brother, you and Makoto shall sneak on another group through that... alley. It crosses the street they went down in a few minutes run." Gravitas remembered the street names from the map Ami showed her, and was certain of her answer. "Setsuna and Traveller, you go to that building..." Gravitas pointed at a rather big two-storey music instruments shop. "And after that down the alley behind it. Nightmare, Minako, you go up this building." Gravitas pointed at one of the skyscrapers the Saurians disappeared in.

"What about me and Ignika?" Hotaru asked.

Ami shook her head. "I don't quite know. After you've shown your power, you're their main target. Leaving you with Ignika seems safe enough, even though he's tired from the Nova. But it's up to you two whether take part in battle or not, and where."

Ignika immediately knew what his answer would be. "I'm going to fight," he said determinedly. "What about you, Sailor Saturn?"

Hotaru slowly nodded. "Yes. Although now all I'm good for is putting up barriers..."

"That's still helpful. Somebody to watch my back is never unwelcome," the Child of Life assured her. He then turned to Crast, who was still in some sort of staring contest with Avsa. "I don't think you're in need of our assistance, are you, Crast?"

Without taking his gaze of Avsa, the Repulsive snorted and replied: "Reptile, the day I'll ask for your help is the day I'll colour my armour pink and start singing cheerful songs."

Hearing that, all the Senshi looked at Crast, which they immediately regretted. Still, they tried to imagine him wearing pink armour and singing cheery songs, and the image would have been very funny if Crast was something else than a Great Being's darkness. But he was, so the picture was horrifying in its ridiculousness.

Shaking with annoyance, the vile beast snarled: "Don't you have a stupid city to save, pathetic fools?"

Suddenly being reminded of their tasks, the Senshi looked at each other, nodded and each group scurried away.

Satisfied that they were gone, Crast returned all his attention to the Immoral One that stood before him. The monster couldn't help but smirk again. "Yes, so brave… Or at least you pretend to be, Avsa," he whispered menacingly. "But make no mistake, I can sense your fear, almost smell it, even. Your mind is screaming, your sanity is slipping from your grasp with every second you look at me. You'd like to scream and flee in terror, and it's only your fear of Zyglak that keeps you before me."

"True," the Immoral Saurian admitted quietly. "I fear master Zyglak more than I fear you. Compared to him, you are nothing, Crast."

"Indeed, and this nothing is going to kill you, and then go to kill your followers. Those foolish creatures who thought they could insult my master and get away with it. Well, they won't, not as long as I am alive," the dark side of Angonce replied, sounding almost bored. It was as if he was informing Avsa of a fact, a certainty, instead of making a prediction.

"And that's precisely why I'm not taking my eyes off you until I've bought my brethren some time!" the Saurian of Immoral Hunger shouted. Then she stormed towards the monstrous creature that was Crast, her sickles shining and ready to tear through armour and flesh. She leaped and lashed out with her weapons, but they never made contact. Crast merely let out a bored sigh and blinked, triggering his signature Repulsion power, sending the Immoral One spiralling away from him and crash into the ground.

"This won't take long," Crast thought. "Hopefully those Sailor Senshi are competent enough to deal with the situation on their own for a minute."

* * *

"Curses... Why does my battle involve climbing stairs?" Minako thought as she ran after Nightmare to the ninth floor of the skyscraper. Thanks to Avsa there was no electricity, thus no way to use the elevator, and thanks to the Saurians, the first nine floors were nothing but some more or less intact walls standing. Thankfully, the Saurians hadn't yet damaged the bearing walls too much, but if they keep up at that, the entire skyscraper will collapse.

Though climbing stairs wasn't as tiring in Senshi form, it was quite annoying, but Minako perfectly understood why Ami sent them here. Her and Nightmare's powers were, after all, most suited for closed space.

Speaking of said Saurian of Fear, she was rushing up the stairs far more agile and quickly than her Senshi partner. If it was just her Saurian nature, or her lust for battle driving her, neither knew, but it didn't really matter.

"Hurry up, love twit!" Nightmare hissed over her shoulder. "Our enemies are two stores above us already! Speed it up, for goodness sake!"

"I'm already doing my best!" Minako shouted back. "Why don't you go ahead and catch up with them? You didn't want me to get in your way, did you?"

"I don't want to end up having to save your sorry ass when you're ambushed from behind, either!" the Saurian of Fear snarled in response. "So stick close to me, for once I'll tolerate it!"

"They're all upstairs, you said so yourself! Besides, if you let them go too far ahead, they can make an ambush there!" the Soldier of Venus argued back. "Besides, I've learned some things from our trainings, I'll live long enough to call for help."

"Just because they're there now doesn't mean they'll stay there, love twit!" Nightmare said with a sigh, still running. She couldn't believe that her 'partner' wasn't thinking of this herself. "They could blast through the ceiling at any moment, any time, wherever they want, whenever they want. Great Beings, how stupid are you?"

"You're right..." Minako had to agree. "But what's better – getting hit by a sudden blast or getting caught in a logical trap?"

"You're forgetting one thing here, love twit," the other girl replied. "Our targets are scared and on the edge. Crast made them more frightened than I ever could, and they're in a world they've never been to or even seen before. They're not in the right mindset to create traps. They're afraid, and at best will try to ambush or overwhelm us, but that's about it. And since I know Saurians better than you I'd say you have to trust me on this one."

"Alright." Minako kept running up the stairs silently for a while. "Did you notice what powers we are up against?"

"At least one disintegration Saurian, which is really bad news in this stupid building," Nightmare growled as the two of them arrived on the floor she smelled their enemies on. "Can destroy any inorganic matter with a single touch. Stone is simply screwed that way. Also noticed a Saurian of ice, which is annoying. As for the last one, it was too dark to see."

"Oh just great." Minako sighed. "If one of them damages the bearing walls too much, we'll have the entire building collapsing on us! And it's at least forty storeys high!"

"Then we'll just have to kill them before they get the chance," was the simple reply. "Now hush, love twit, the scent is getting stronger." Nightmare then pressed herself and Minako to the wall and slowly crept along through the dark halls. She could smell the fear of her foes, all she had to do was pinpoint their exact location. They were hiding in one of the rooms, that much was clear. But where?

As they crept, Minako suddenly heard a small splash. She looked down and saw water on the floor. It was flowing from under the door of one of the apartments. "There." She whispered to her companion. "They must have damaged the pipes."

Nightmare nodded quietly. "Good. Now listen, love twit, you blast down the door with as much power as you can, so I can storm in and soak the room in fear before the dust has even settled. We need to kill them before they even get the chance of using their powers, got it? We don't have time for long fights, especially not this high above the ground in such confined space. It makes for a bad battleground."

Minako looked at the door. It looked quite normal for an apartment door, though you never know there is metal under that wooden decoration. Still, she nodded and charged her powers.

"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!"

The blast made extremely short work of the door and much of the wall, blowing it wide open, debris being knocked into the room and dust raining down from the ceiling. Nightmare moved instantly, almost as soon as the attack from Venus had been fired, actually. She flew through the cloud of dust and let her powers loose, drenching the entire room in her powers of fear. That done, she moved, relying mostly on her sense of smell and hearing. Despite the scent of dust, wood, stone and metal flooding her nose, she still possessed senses acute enough to detect the scent of blood and flesh. Like an eagle dropping down on its prey she moved in, and before the Saurian of Disintegration could even raise his weapon Nightmare had her katana through his throat. She pulled it out of the corpse and whirled around to catch the blow of the second Saurian in the room. She kneed him in the stomach, and when he leaned over slightly and staggered backwards in pain just a little bit, she took her chance, slashing open his chest before stabbing him through the heart.

The third and last Saurian tried to flee from the room, but noticed Sailor Venus in his way. He moved to pounce on her and rip her to shreds with his claws, but before he had the chance he was hit from behind by a blast of fear energy. He fell to the ground, shaking and screaming in pure terror, the movements and sounds intensifying as the energy that hit him did, until suddenly it stopped and he dropped dead, killed by nothing more than an overdose of pure terror.

Behind him stood Nightmare, who smiled a smile of satisfaction, then wiped the blood of her weapon and sheathed it once more.

"Whoa." Minako stared at her guest wide-eyed. "Quick work."

"Well, duh, love twit," Nightmare snapped. "The goal of battle is to claim victory in whatever way possible, as quickly as possible. Prolonging the battle longer than necessary is just taking unnecessary risks. Now let's get out of here, there are more Saurians to hunt."

Minako nodded and followed her guest down the stairs. As they were running, she couldn't help but think of ease and delight Nightmare used her powers with. Her siblings weren't like this... She didn't know them too well, but Ignika resorted to violence and killing only if there was no other way, and the others seemed not too far from that mindset... But Nightmare... She seemed to enjoy killing, enjoy the fear her powers bring.

"Why?" Minako wondered. "Maybe it's her acceptance of her powers? Either this or loath them and yourself... No, accepting doesn't mean enjoying... Then why?"

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**Next chapter: When the dust settles!**

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SoulLoss: I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter. =) Avsa's reasons for her strong reaction to the concept of honour will be explained further along in the story. Please look forward to the conclusion of this battle next week, and thanks for the review!


	49. When the dust settles

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**49. When the dust settles**

Avsa crashed down in the dust for what seemed like the hundredth time already in barely five minutes. She bore many wounds, a few of which were bleeding quite heavily, and her armour was cracked in numerous places. She didn't doubt she had a few bones broken, either. Coughing and spitting out some blood, she crawled back to her feet shakily, weakly grabbing her sickles as she did so.

Her opponent, the dark side of Angonce known as Crast, bore not a single wound, not even a scratch. In fact, it was quite the opposite. He looked as healthy as far as one like him could look like that, and what was more, he had an expression on his face that left no doubt that he was absolutely, mind numbingly bored.

"Challenges, challenges, whatever happened to challenges these days?" the monster taunted as he moved in on his weakened enemy. During the entire battle – if it could be called that – he had spent most of his time simply repelling everything Avsa threw at him, while continuously scanning the city in his mind to make sure no Sailor Senshi or member of Ignika's family had died yet. His master would never forgive him if he allowed that to happen. On the other hand, keeping Avsa at bay probably had done much to keep the Senshi safe, too, as the Immoral One, while not posing any sort of threat towards him, was a foe too dangerous to let the Senshi deal with. No, better to have them taking care of the rest of the invaders while he occupied this miserable waste of flesh.

Avsa didn't reply to the taunt, merely sapped some more strength from the ground – by now the entire crossroad had been reduced to nothing – that she used to hurl at the monster in the form of an energy blast. Crast merely scoffed and repelled it right back at her, making the Immoral One dive out of the way and biting the dust again.

"Honestly, why do you keep this humiliation going? You're not even amusing me with your efforts. Just lie down and die already," Crast said while shaking his vile, sickening head.

"Silence, beast!" Avsa snarled back. "If this fight bores you so much, then why not grow serious and end it once and for all?"

Crast laughed, a horrible sound that threatened to tear Avsa's mind and sanity apart forever. "Perhaps you're right. Perhaps it is time to end this farce. You won't even have time to regret your decision to ask me to become serious, retarded pile of scales."

Avsa merely raised her sickles as a challenge. "Bring it on, vomit-face."

To her shock, as soon as she had spoken those words Crast vanished before her very eyes, and she frantically looked around to try and locate him again so she could try and defend herself from his attack. Her efforts were for naught, however, as a giant invisible bladed forelimb forced itself through her armour and stomach. As soon as the Immoral One was fully impaled on the spiked blade, Crast became visible again, looking down with utter disgust at the impaled reptile on his bladed limb. It hadn't even taken five seconds.

"Fool. Did you honestly believe you could hope to even try and defend yourself from my assault once I abandon all restraint?" the monster snarled. He then proceeded to trigger his power of pain, sending shockwaves of excruciating pain into the Immoral One, making Avsa scream in sheer agony, a sound that Crast enjoyed very much. The dark side of Angonce waved his bladed limb and flung Avsa of it, tossing her carelessly into the crevice she had created before. Patiently the disgusting creature waited for the sound of Avsa hitting the bottom of the chasm.

Only it never came.

Mildly annoyed, Crast scattered over to the edge and looked down into the darkness below, his eyes having no trouble whatsoever to see through the shadows. He frowned when he noticed that the Immoral One had vanished into thin air. Enraged, Crast cursed in a language that had already been old when the world was new.

* * *

Sailor Pluto had just finished the last Saurian in the musical shop off with a Dead Scream and sighed, observing the battlefield. The building had been spacious enough not to be damaged much, but most of the musical instruments were beyond repair now.

"We're finished here." The Senshi of Time turned to her guest. "Shall we go on?"

"Yes," Traveller replied with a nod. "There are still many other Saurians out there. They need to be stopped before they can wreak more havoc." The Saurian of Teleportation was pleased and relieved, as so far they had been lucky in their hunt. Sailor Pluto had not been wounded at all yet, and Traveller had managed to keep her out of the way of physical combat most of the time. And the few times she hadn't, her companion had been wise enough to retreat as quickly as possible towards Traveller for protection. If they could keep this up, they might just make it through the night without any real disasters happening, like the last fight with an Immoral One.

"Let's go then." Setsuna went towards the stairs that led to the first floor. "Gravitas told us to go down the street once we're done." She fell silent for a moment. "Thank you for protecting me."

Traveller smiled faintly and shook her head. "You're welcome. I'm glad I can repay you for all the kindness you've shown me and my brother, even if it's like this." Then the Saurian of Teleportation left the building and went back on the streets.

Setsuna was glad to hear that, even though she didn't show it. Truth to be told, she was still ashamed that she got so carelessly carried away during her last battle. And yet Traveller risked her own life to reach her beyond the borders of this dimension...

"I'm glad to have an ally like you." She admitted.

Traveller was about to say something kind in reply, but she was interrupted by a broken, harsh voice snarling: "Then I hoped you enjoyed it while it lasted!" The next moment a clawed, blood-stained hand grabbed Traveller by the head and slammed her down onto the ground brutally. Worse, the ground beneath her had its strength sapped and shattered when the disguised Saurian was knocked down into it. As Traveller coughed up blood and tried to comprehend what was going on, a clawed foot came down and stomped her on the head harshly a few times, then grinded it further down in the dust.

"Avsa!" Sailor Pluto shouted, her eyes widening slightly in shock.

Indeed it was the Saurian of Immoral Hunger who had appeared and brutally downed Traveller, and she looked worse than ever. The wound given to her by Crast would soon claim her, and it was nothing short of a miracle that the female could still stand, let alone fight. Perhaps it was desperation that gave her the will required. Avsa ignored Setsuna for now, wanting to make sure that Traveller was down and stayed down. She kicked the Saurian of Teleportation a few times, making her cry out in pain, but Avsa remained unmoved. Pain, anger and despair had clouded her mind and senses. Sailor Pluto tried to get the Immoral One off her partner by blasting her away with a Dead Scream, but all that happened was Avsa feeding on said energy.

"I'll get to you in a minute, cursed Senshi," Avsa snarled, spitting out blood as she did so. Groaning, the Immoral One put a hand over the gaping wound in her stomach. She had to act fast, she realized. Tapping into whatever strength she had left, Avsa used her power to weakened the building at whose base Traveller was slammed in the ground, causing the entire structure to collapse and burry Ignika's oldest sister under tons of debris. While this collapse had happened, Avsa had already ceased to care about the downed Saurian of Teleportation, and she began to stagger in the direction of Sailor Pluto.

"I have failed…" Avsa the Devourer hissed in pain, as more blood trickled down the corners of her mouth and dripped onto the ground. "If I leave without killing at least one Senshi… master Zyglak… will kill me for sure… But if I stay to claim your life… that accursed creature… will come to finish me off… Either way… I am at death's door… but I'll take you… to the grave with me!"

Setsuna slowly backed off from the Immoral One, her staff at the ready. She had to win time... Suddenly, she chuckled. Then started laughing quietly. Then she couldn't handle herself anymore and started laughing out loud.

"What's so funny, creature?" the Immoral One snarled as she lost more blood.

"You got the wrong Senshi... If you want to redeem yourself by my death..." Setsuna said, while still laughing almost uncontrollably. "You can never kill a Senshi forever. Senshi will exist as long as our guardian planets exist. And I..." She looked at Avsa, her eyes shining. "I am Sailor Pluto, Soldier of Time. No matter whether I'm reborn five, fifty or a thousand years from now, I can always return to the present time and moment. You killing me means nothing, Avsa."

Avsa stared at Sailor Pluto for a moment, and then it was her turn to chuckle, slowly evolving into a low, terrifying laughter that echoed through the empty streets. "You think time will save you? You think _time_ can stop me? Time may be against me now…" Avsa smirked and spat out more blood. "But whatever is against me… I _devour_." And then, the Saurian of Immoral Hunger did that which she had dared to do only once before. But her life was nearing its end, so she cared little for her usual limits.

Triggering her power, the female Immoral One began to devour the energy of all around her. First it was just like before, the ground beneath her shattering as its molecules fell apart. This destruction spread, but it was nothing Pluto hadn't seen before. But then Avsa pushed her power further, and revealed the true horror, revealed that which made her powers so Immoral in the first place. Everything had energy. Be it spiritual or physical, it was there. In all matter, living or dead. And even in things that had no matter. Slowly, the air around the Immoral One began to seemingly _melt_ and warp into… something, and this strange happening continued to spread. Slowly, ever so slowly, Avsa devoured the power that kept time flowing correctly. And without that driving force, what remained was chaos.

Setsuna's eyes widened as she sensed the major disturbance Avsa caused. "My god..." She thought. It was too late even to use her ultimate move, Time Stop, for it couldn't stop time where time didn't exist. Avsa knew the Senshi would be powerless against that...

Setsuna didn't know what to do. She considered going back in time to prevent this from happening... But the disturbance, while still small, made opening the portal towards the Time Gates too dangerous nevertheless... She simply stood there and stared as the Immoral One ate the very fabric of space and time.

"Where is your laughter now, Soldier of Time?" Avsa spat, a sickening, triumphant grin smeared over her face. "Weren't you going to survive?" The Immoral One coughed up more blood, but stood strong, continuing her destructive assault.

"Even if I am powerless, there are those who are not..." Setsuna said in a low voice. "And if the world is beyond repair, we'll mercifully destroy it ourselves. But it won't happen now."

Avsa smirked a bloodied smirk. "I will leave you no world to destroy or repair." With that said, she pushed her powers even further, hastening the speed by which everything – even time itself – was being devoured.

A hand, also bloodied, but not belonging to Avsa, dropped on Sailor Pluto's shoulder as Traveller suddenly appeared at the green-haired woman's side. The Saurian girl looked terrible, bruised in many places, cuts all over her body, and nasty, bleeding wounds on her head. She was leaning heavily on Setsuna for support, but nevertheless looked determined about… something.

"Get out of here, Setsuna-san," Traveller said, then she coughed up blood just like Avsa had done so many times already. "I will remain here and try to destroy her… but you must live… to restore Time, to protect it… like I have always protected Life…" Ignika's oldest sister pushed Sailor Pluto behind her, now leaning heavily on her own trident to remain standing. The destruction of time approached the pair silently but swiftly, but Traveller held her ground.

Setsuna hesitated. Traveller had a point, but... She couldn't. She couldn't leave her bloody and nearly powerless like this. Traveller had come to her rescue despite the risk of crossing dimensions... Setsuna couldn't bring herself to leave her.

"No." Setsuna said. She acted as support for Traveller again and said: "I owe you my life. I won't let you die here, alone. I will guard Time... Even if I die now." She looked at the chaos approaching them.

To Setsuna's surprise, Traveller chuckled, though it was bittersweet. "As soon as I learned who you were… When Ignika told me what your duty was… I felt somehow… related to you. Maybe I didn't act like it, maybe you didn't notice, but it's true… and in the end, how could I not? Are we not the same, after all, Setsuna-san? Both guarding things that are beyond our comprehension, Time and Life, knowing the weight of the duty but carrying it regardless?" The Saurian of Teleportation closed her eyes and smiled. "Thank you, Setsuna-san. For helping me, helping my brother… But also, for making me see that I was not alone. That I wasn't the only one with a responsibility too big for one person on her shoulders."

"You're welcome, Traveller..." Setsuna said, touched by her words. "I would have done it all again for you..." Setsuna shook her head. "I try not to get too close to anybody besides the Sailor Senshi, because I am, in a way, immortal... I have buried so many loved ones, so many friends in my former lifetimes..." Tears welled up in her eyes. "And it's painful to lose you as well, Traveller. You saved my life... And you understand me..."

Traveller grabbed Setsuna's hand and held it firmly, smiling reassuringly at the other woman. "Let us face death together then, Sailor Pluto. And when you return from death, please remember me, and tell Ignika that I am sorry." Taking a deep breath, the Saurian of Teleportation then turned to Avsa, who was still destroying space, time and matter with her horrendous power. "Come, Avsa! Let us finish this!"

"Yes!" Avsa snarled in reply, blood flying from her mouth. "Come, fools, join me in death!"

Traveller bowed her head in acceptance, closed her eyes and held Setsuna's hand, waiting for the end to come, for their life energy to be sapped away, for their bodies to be destroyed as the fabric of time dissolved around them. She was not afraid. Not anymore. Setsuna was with her now, and they understood each other. And that was all Traveller needed in this moment.

Setsuna faced the coming death as calmly as she could. She knew that it, as well as her rebirth, was inevitable. She was only tremendously pained by the fact she couldn't prevent this from happening... Space and time being eaten away by a bottomless void... Traveller losing her life... She thought of Ignika, of how painful for him the loss of his only true sister, his Guardian, his protector, would feel to him... His family, the Senshi, everybody else in this or the other world – even if they surround him by love, they will never replace his sister. And nobody will replace Traveller for her...

It was at this moment, the moment where they accepted their oncoming doom hand in hand, courageous and fearless, that they felt something burst to life inside of them. A force, overwhelming, warm and powerful, that flowed through the two friends. It took away their fatigue and their pain, filled them with new strength and new understanding. Understanding about each other.

Traveller understood, no, _felt_ the loneliness Setsuna had faced as Sailor Pluto during the millennium she had been alone, guarding the gates. She felt all the pain from dying and being reborn again and again, the pain of all those losses, all those friends she had lost while she lived on in one way or the other. Traveller felt it and understood it, and reached out with her mind to offer her comfort.

Likewise, Setsuna _felt_ the sense of duty Traveller had about guarding her little brother. She felt all the pain, all the loneliness Traveller suffered during the first five hundred years of her life as she searched for a duty she didn't even know she had. And then she felt the tension, the burden and the pain of five centuries of running, of being constantly alert, of never sleeping completely relaxed and safe, but always tensed and insecure. She felt the worry Traveller had for her little brother's wellbeing, as well as that of her entire family. She felt the duty Traveller thought she carried as the oldest of the family. Setsuna felt it and understood it, and reached out with her mind to offer her understanding.

And so they were one, linked together by symbiosis, and they somehow knew how they had to do what they did next. Calling upon the power bestowed upon them, they raised their hands as one and unleashed the might of their union.

"Voya Cosmos Seal!"

A vast, shimmering flow of energy came from the light that surrounded their body, and slowly, but steadily surrounded the patch of Chaos Avsa created. As soon as the flow had it circled, it began to eat away the chaos, restoring it to what it was before Avsa sucked time away.

Avsa's jaw dropped and her eyes widened in disbelief. "No!" she whispered as the force of symbiosis encircled her. "This cannot be… Not again! I cannot fail the same way Jutlin did!"

The patch of chaos became smaller and smaller, and finally the sea of light closed itself around Avsa. Before she could do anything, though, another cry rang through the air:

"Voya Flare Star!"

Faster than the eye could see, the light around Avsa flowed into one point, shrinking into a tiny golf-ball sized orb. The next moment it exploded, creating a huge, bright, brilliant star. The star existed for a mere second, though, as it too exploded, leaving nothing but a cloud of galactic stardust above a crater.

And when the dust settled, Avsa the Devourer laid defeated.

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**Next chapter: The second aftermath!**

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	50. The second aftermath

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**50. The second aftermath**

Silence had fallen over the battlefield after that brilliant last attack. Nothing could be heard, no cars in the faraway distance, no birds, no sounds of other battles, not even the wind. Nothing at all, aside from the laboured, exhausted breathing of Traveller and Sailor Pluto, and the ragged, almost inaudible gasps of pain coming from the utterly crushed Avsa. The Immoral One was defeated totally, and that she was even alive was nothing short of a miracle. Yet she was not conscious, and if she did not receive aid soon, she would die.

Suddenly, the body of the Devourer began to fade slowly and without a sound, until it was gone. Both Pluto and Traveller noticed it, but where far to exhausted to comment on it. That, and they had much more important matters to think about. Things such as what had just happened between the two of them.

Their symbiosis, it had been nothing short of incredible and indescribable for Traveller. She had asked Gravitas before what symbiosis felt like, but the Saurian of Gravity had only given a very short and vague answer. Now she knew why: there was no way at all to put the experience into words. Never before had she been so close, so connected and so united with anyone before, not even her very own brother. She had felt, seen and understood all of Setsuna, all her knowledge, all her pains, all her fears and all her memories. Not only that, but the feeling of power she had felt during the experience had likewise been incredible. Never before had she been filled with such terrifying and beautiful might, born from their combined lights and powers. It had been a warm power, and that warmth had spread throughout all of her body and had yet to leave her.

Setsuna was just about as surprised and grateful for the sudden power their symbiosis brought forth. In her several millennia long existence she had never felt that close to anybody, nor such powerful energy. It was amazing that they could even do such a seemingly impossible thing as restoring the fabric of space and time, and then have a star explode in front of them.

Setsuna looked at Traveller. What mattered even more than that, is that the Guardian of Time was no longer alone. There was someone who knew her to the very depths of her soul, and she herself knew that someone just as well. Yes, it had been strange to experience someone else's life and feelings like that, but only welcome. She and Traveller were much more than friends now... Maybe even more than sisters.

"That… that was…" Traveller finally managed to stammer, her hand searching for Setsuna's absentmindedly. "In… incredible… I feel… so warm."

"Yes..." Setsuna took the Saurian's hand. "Me as well. Though I wonder... what have we done..." She said, referring to their attacks.

"What do you mean?" Traveller asked with wonder, finally able to move more than just her hand, and she turned her head to look curiously at her symbiosis partner. "We've defeated Avsa and restored the damage she created, that is what we did."

"That's right. But we restored the time and space she had destroyed... And that star... Isn't symbiosis combining our powers?" Setsuna explained.

"It is… But perhaps symbiosis knows how to use our powers better than we do, using it in ways we have never thought of yet. It wouldn't surprise me, especially not with you Senshi, and your way too limited attack arsenal," Traveller replied slowly and thoughtfully.

Setsuna nodded. "I guess... Hmm, come to think of it, even I don't know why we have so few attacks." She raised her eyebrow because she had never thought about it before.

Traveller was about to say something in reply, when suddenly all warmth and happiness she was feeling faded instantly, replaced with a feeling of dread and looming fear. For a moment she feared that Avsa had returned, but to her relief – if it could be called that – the draining of her positive feelings only heralded the arrival of Crast. The repulsive beast looked around at the destruction and sneered.

"I sensed an enormous disruption in space and time and came here as quickly as possible, but I see my hurry was not needed," the vile creature hissed quietly. He placed his killer gaze on the pair of warriors and frowned, tearing apart their mental defences and diving in their memories as if they were an open book. "Ah, I see," he said once he was done. "That piece of no good was wrecked even further by you two primates having the stupid luck to unlock your symbiosis. Yet you failed to finish her off, not that I expected anything better from a bunch of amateurs."

"You didn't finish her off either," Traveller managed to say, but it sounded weak and fearful.

Crast snorted. "I intended to kill her, but it seems these Immoral fools have either a teleportation power up their sleeves or have a servant to do that for them. Most unfortunate. Yet it matters little, the crisis has been averted in the end. Avsa is out of the picture for a long time." The Repulsive looked up to the sky and scanned the city with his insanely powerful mind. "And it seems those other weaklings you call friends have managed to contain the rest of the invaders that escaped my attention when I came here. You can go home now. I must go to report to master Angonce immediately, and tell him the… fortunate news of another symbiosis having been unlocked."

And with those words said, Crast abruptly vanished, without any sound or leaving any traces that he had been there at all, aside from the lack of positive feelings inside Pluto and Traveller.

Setsuna cursed. "There goes our warmth and comfort." She said with a frown.

Despite everything, Traveller managed to see some humour in the situation and giggled. "To be honest, we should have expected that. We knew he was around." She tiredly climbed to her feet and extended her hand to offer Setsuna to help her up. "Let's go and find the others and regroup somewhere nice and calm. I've had my portion of action for today."

Setsuna smiled and took Traveller's hand. "You don't say." She said, getting up.

"At least you didn't get hurt again like last time, Setsuna-san," Traveller muttered quietly, bowing her head.

Setsuna nodded. "But you did..." She put her hand on her guest's shoulder.

The Saurian of Teleportation shrugged it off and tried to smile. "I've been through worse, honestly. And it's nothing that Ignika can't fix."

Setsuna smiled. "That's good to know. Still, I was worried..."

That made Traveller happy. To be honest, she hadn't really seen Setsuna display much emotion in the relatively short time she knew the woman, and it was nice to know that the woman cared. Of course, the symbiosis had told her that, too, but it was still good to hear it in person. "Thank you, Setsuna-san. Now then, shall we go find the others?"

Setsuna nodded. "Yes, they might be worried... I wonder how they fared with their task."

"Crast said they succeeded in fending the rest of the invaders off, so I guess they did okay," Traveller replied. She took a firmer hold of Setsuna's hand. "But let's go see for ourselves." And with that said, the disguised reptile triggered her power and teleported the two of them away to find the others.

* * *

"Great Beings, I'm spent," Chameleon groaned as he unceremoniously let himself drop on one of the couches in the house of the Outer Senshi. "Can't believe we had to deal with so many, and that we got out unscathed."

"No kidding, useless," Nightmare said between laboured breaths. Even the vicious Saurian of Fear was exhausted, having done a lot more fighting today than ever before. Usually, when up against a large force like that, they fled, simple as that. Then again, to be fully accurate, they had never come face to face with two hundred Saurians at once yet. That Avsa had managed to gather that many under her wing was impressive indeed.

Traveller had transported all of them to the house of the Outer Senshi. Though technically Rei's shrine was a much more convenient place to gather after the fight, with what had happened in Tokyo today and the Saurian family possibly having been seen fighting alongside the Senshi, it was better to stay away from there for a while. Here it was peaceful, and they could all catch their breaths and recover.

"Mom? It's me, Usagi. How are you guys?" No matter how tired she was, Usagi found the strength to phone her mother to find out whether they had lived through the destruction the Saurians caused. "No, me and Chibiusa are fine. We're at Hotaru's place now... Huh?" Usagi blinked. "Yes, we were at Makoto's, but then went to Haruka and Michiru's place... Oh?" She put the phone away and looked at Makoto: "A street in your block was blown up." Then returned to the conversation with her mom. "And how is dad? Evacuated? Where? Is he hurt? Oh. Okay then. When will he be back? I see. Well, that's good. Shingo's home, I recon? Good. Well, okay then, I'll call you later then. Bye." Usagi hung up the phone and sighed, relieved.

Ignika sighed deeply and sank down in a chair. He was still reeling from almost using a Nova blast. "The destruction caused to your city was terrible… And with so many people having seen the Saurian invaders, I don't think they'll be able to say that the cause of the destruction is unknown on the news, right?"

"You're right." Haruka sighed. "The officials will probably refrain from giving any comments for a while, but the rest..." She shook her head. "I expect a lot of panic and even more religious and anti-scientific gibberish about end of the world."

"Good thing we managed to seal the disturbance Avsa created. Otherwise they'd have more footing." Setsuna added.

"Her powers were truly fearsome and frightening… She could devour everything, it was…" Traveller didn't finish that sentence, but shivered, looking meaningfully at Setsuna.

Setsuna nodded. "Immoral. Your people gave them a fitting name..."

"However, we have to be honest," Ignika said quietly. "She was powerful, and if Crast had not arrived as timely as he did, we would not be sitting here."

Everybody fell silent and looked at the ground. They knew it was true.

"Then again." Ami perked up. "Now we have two pairs who can do symbiosis. And we all see that it's a force enough to defeat an Immoral One."

"True," Gravitas agreed. She paused for a moment before thoughtfully adding: "However, we cannot rely on it, as we have no control over it. Not yet, at least."

"For all we know now, it activates in near-death situations... And, from my feelings... The key is acceptance. Of fate, of each other." Setsuna said softly and looked at Traveller. The Saurian of Teleportation nodded in agreement.

"I wish we knew more, or that we could ask someone about it…" Ignika muttered, a frown on his face. "But even Master Angonce cannot help us here, so we'll have to figure it out for ourselves. Just like we will have to figure out many things. Like, what is our next move? We avoided another major crisis, but the results are still catastrophic. What do we do now?"

"I think a more appropriate question is, little brother," Traveller answered. "What _can_ we do? So far, we have always had to let the enemy move first, and that puts us at a disadvantage. But can we change it? Can we strike first? No we can't. None of us can create dimensional gates, and even if we could, where to? We don't know where Zyglak hides, or where the Immoral Ones hide. So what can we do but sit and wait and be prepared for the next attack?"

"As much as I loathe having to wait for my foe to rear his ugly face, Traveller is right," Nightmare agreed. "Besides, and I hate what I'm going to say now even more, but we can't take on however many Immoral Ones there are. We know of at least two, but there are more for sure. Should we make the first move, it would mean going to where all Immoral Ones are gathered, and frankly, that's plain suicide."

"Indeed..." Usagi said. "They're way out of our league..."

"All in all..." Rei concluded. "We still can't do anything, and thus have to continue living normal lives."

"Or what's left of normal, until the city recovers." Makoto made a point.

"True. Oh well, at least school and college will be cancelled, we won't be skipping then." Minako added cheerfully.

"That means a lot of time to train, love twit," Nightmare growled with glee.

Minako rolled her eyes. "Sure, if you admit I wasn't that bad during the battle. And if the volleyball hall or the ground outside isn't damaged..." She looked at Nightmare with shining eyes.

"You didn't get in my way, so that's… acceptable, I guess," the Saurian of Fear scoffed, looking annoyed. "And I'll beat you at that silly game, love twit, just you wait. While you were either snoozing or doing some retarded scribbling on parchment, I practiced. I can kick your ass."

Minako grinned widely. "I'll be really glad if you do."

Nightmare wiggled her foot tauntingly. "Then just turn your best side to me and I'll do it right now."

Minako stuck her tongue at her: "Not literally. Let the game decide who's better!"

"That will obviously be me, I've got the better reflexes and the greater strength."

"And I have more experience and greater arsenal of moves." Minako argued back. "Besides, we haven't really played yet, only practiced the moves you know. And volleyball is a team game, you have problems with that."

"I do not," Nightmare snarled, crossing her arms and glaring.

"Oh really? From what I've seen, you probably haven't even heard of the word 'teamplay'." Minako said, crossing her arms as well. "And you can't be a good volleyball player without that."

Nightmare opened her mouth to say something, but then shut it again and growled. "Why would I need others to play with when I'm so much better on my own?" she snapped.

Minako shook her head. "Volleyball is a team game. What we do is just practicing. Real volleyball requires teams."

"I said I'm better on my own!" the Saurian of Fear finally snapped, rising from her chair so quickly that it fell over. "Always have been, always will be! And a silly little weak love twit like you isn't going to change anything about that fact!" With those words spoken, Nightmare stormed out of the room and threw the door close behind her.

Hard.

Minako looked at the shut door. "What did I say?" She wondered aloud.

"You mentioned Nightmare and teamwork in the same sentence," Chameleon replied with a shrug. "Don't do that. It pisses her off immensely, for some reason. We tried to ask her once, but she yelled at us to mind our own business. So, we just went with it. Nightmare and teamwork don't go together. Ever."

Minako nodded silently, looking at the door Nightmare had vanished through. Chameleon's words echoed in her mind, and she couldn't help but wonder: "_Nightmare, why is it so_?"

* * *

**Next chapter: Kindness and composition!**

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**Review replies:**

BookLoverAF: Thanks for reviewing! Hope you weren't disappointed that I didn't show the other battles in detail. The next series of battles, though, should more then make up for that, promise. =)


	51. Kindness and compositions

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**51. ****Kindness and compositions**

"The keys... Jeez, where did I put my keys..." Makoto said, sitting on her bed as she looked through every single purse she had been taking within her the previous few days. "I was sure I took them out. Ah, here they are."

"Going somewhere, Makoto?" Chameleon asked, leaning at the doorframe of her room.

"Umm... Yeah." Makoto answered, then stood up, took all the purses and put them away. "With all the destruction, many people were left homeless, and I wanna help them out."

"How?" Chameleon asked, curious.

"A station opened not too far from here where homeless people can get free food and clothes. I'm going to work there." Makoto explained, as she put her passport in her purse.

"Ehm, and what about me?" the Saurian of Chameleon wanted to know. "I'm a homeless person in need of free food, too."

Makoto shook her head, chuckling. "Silly. You live here with me, you're not homeless. I'm talking about people left all alone with their family and without money to afford feeding themselves."

"Oh," the boy muttered. "I knew that. But still, what about me? What should I do?"

"Well, I dunno, you can stay here, or tag along..." Makoto looked around, checking if she had taken everything she needs with her. Seemed that she did. "Now, one last thing..." Makoto went over to her wardrobe, opened one of the drawers and took out a triangular white kerchief. She sighed, looking at it, then put it to her chest as she closed the drawer.

"Makoto, what is that piece of cloth?" Makoto's guest inquired curiously.

The Senshi was silent for a while. "It's... It's my mom's..." She said slowly. "Whenever she went on such charity activities, she wore this kerchief on her head... She often took me along, too... She always told me to help people..." Tears began welling in her eyes. "Nobody could help them in the end..." She whispered quietly.

Chameleon suddenly felt very stupid and inconsiderate, and he didn't really know what to say. He hadn't known Makoto had lost her parents. Heck, he didn't know that much of her, aside from the fact that she was Sailor Jupiter and a good fighter. And a good cook. But aside from that? He felt heartless, and bowed his head in shame. "I'm sorry."

Makoto smiled a bit through her tears. "It's okay. You couldn't have known." She sighed. "My parents died when I was ten. I was in a summer camp, and they were returning from a trip to Europe... I came back only to find out their plane had crashed..." She knew Chameleon won't get most of it, but she needed to say it all anyway. "Luckily, aunt Mamiya managed to get guardianship over me, so I didn't have to go to an orphanage... But really, I saw her only when there were check-ups performed by government. I don't even know if she's really my aunt or some other relative..." She looked around the room. "Most of the time I was all alone..."

"I'm sorry…" the Saurian muttered. He let out a deep sigh. "I never knew my parents. None of our little family does. We were all from eggs laid by travelling parents, who don't live in a village and as of such don't have time for taking care of offspring. I don't even know if they're alive or not…"

"I see..." Makoto shook her head. "It's bad to say so, but... I think their death helped me become who I am..." She looked at her hand. "I had to be strong to defend myself from bullies in school. I had to learn how to cook and wash and clean the house... Mom hated messes in the house, and a sparkling clean room helped me imagine mom did it... I studied hard, because my dad was always proud when I did well with them..." Makoto looked at the kerchief. "And that's why I do charity whenever I can. Because my mom did it, because she wanted to help people."

Chameleon smiled. "You're a very kind person, Makoto."

Makoto smiled. "Thanks." She put the kerchief on and tied it at the back of her head. Then turned to Chameleon. "So, will you tag along?"

"Yup. Don't feel like staying here all on my own boring myself to death, so I might as well go along," her guest replied. Then he sheepishly added: "Though I have idea what use I could be or what I could even do, of course."

Makoto chuckled. "I don't exactly know myself, but we'll see when we get there. I'm sure there's enough work for everybody."

"Okay then," Chameleon nodded while smiling brightly. "Lead the way."

As he followed the Senshi of Lightning out of the apartment, Chameleon couldn't help but think about his host. There was no doubt, he realized, that Makoto was a kind woman indeed. She was strong and tough, true, but that didn't dominate her character, at least not as far as he could see. Throughout his stay with her, she had been kind and helpful to him, and now she was being kind to others, to people she didn't even knew, just because she wanted to help. It was an unfamiliar concept to the Saurian boy, but not an unpleasant one, and it only made his admiration for his host grow.

* * *

"No, not exactly like that." Haruka corrected her student. "This piece is played staccato, and a bit faster, like this." She played the said piece.

Traveller observed attentively, then tried again. She tried it slowly first, to make sure she got the keys right, and once she was sure she did, picked up the pace until it matched Haruka's example. Playing the piano took a lot of attention and concentration, but for Traveller it was all worth it. She enjoyed the heavenly notes that the instrument, no, that she created. She played it again, to make sure she got it right and that it stuck in her head.

Nearby, seated at the table facing each other, sat Ignika and Hotaru. Hotaru was teaching the young boy a tricky game she called chess, which she herself had learned from Ami, or so she said. Though every now and then Ignika's attention slipped from the game to his sister, and he observed her with a smile. She looked so pleased, it made him really happy.

"Good." Haruka smiled at her student. "Now play it all together."

At that moment, Michiru entered the room and came over to the piano. Haruka looked up at her with a question in her eyes. Michiru answered the unspoken question:

"I phoned Matsui-san, he'll organize us a concert within a week."

Haruka nodded. "I see. Let me finish with Traveller now, then we'll start rehearsing."

"A concert?" Traveller repeated, not recognizing the word. She stopped playing for a moment and looked at her teachers. "What is a concert, Haruka-san, Michiru-san?" Ignika, from where he sat, also stopped paying attention to his game to listen to the conversation. This inattention gave Hotaru the opportunity to take his queen.

"Check, Ignika," she smiled. This snapped the white-haired boy's attention back to the board game.

"Check, right," he repeated slowly. "That was a bad thing, right?" Hotaru giggled, but nodded.

"Well..." Haruka replied. "Basically, a concert is when a lot of people gather together to listen to someone playing music. Only they also pay money for it." She laughed softly at the simple explanation.

"Paying in order to be allowed to hear music? That seems cruel," Traveller muttered, feeling that music should be for everyone, for free.

Michiru smiled and shook her head. "That's how this world is. Everything should be paid for... Besides, for a musician, money is more like a reward. If you perform so well people are willing to pay money just to hear you doing it, why refuse? Me and Haruka have bought this house and land with the money we've earned from my concerts and her races."

"All of this, with just music?" Traveller exclaimed, her eyes wide.

Ignika's eyes widened too, but this time he didn't let it break his concentration, and he slew the horse that was putting his king in check.

Haruka smiled. "Yes. She's that talented. And she was lucky enough to meet Matsui-san early in her career."

"Yes, he recognized my talent for music when I took part in a competition, and paid for my studies in the best musical school and conservatory in Japan. I have won several national competitions, and then things just started to go my way." Michiru explained.

"We could afford the mansion pretty quickly with my savings as well." Haruka added.

"That's amazing," the Saurian of Teleportation muttered quietly. "I will never be that good…" She returned her attention to the piano and, in a sudden sombre mood, started to play something. She didn't even know where it came from, she just did, a short, low melody, heartbreaking in its sadness. But as quickly as it had come, it was gone again, and Traveller looked at her own hands in surprise.

"Checkmate, Hotaru," Ignika said happily. This snapped Hotaru's attention back to the game and she frowned. She'd been carried away by Traveller's sudden melody, and it had apparently cost her her victory.

"Checkmate? How? No way!"

Michiru looked at Traveller wide-eyed. "Can you repeat that?" This melody... It touched her and gave her an idea about a new composition for violin as well.

"I think so…" Traveller muttered quietly. She closed her eyes for a moment and thought, and then her eyelids snapped open again as it all became so clear to her. The oldest sister of Ignika smiled, and played the short melody again.

"Haruka, write that down." Michiru hurried to her room to get the violin. "This will definitely be the basis for a new composition."

Traveller frowned. "Did I do something wrong?"

Haruka smiled: "On the contrary, you've just composed an excellent melody. Michiru will take it as a basis for her own, expand it and compose more..." She paused. "Then again, maybe you'll try yourself? What should go next in that melody?"

The Saurian of Teleportation bit her lip. How had she even come up with it in the first place? She tried to remember. Michiru and Haruka had been explaining all they had achieved with their music because of how good Michiru was, and it made her realise how far she still had to go and that she'd never would be as good. And that had made her sad. Then she had simply… let herself go, let her fingers and her instinct turn that sadness into notes. Could she do it again? She played the melody again and suddenly smiled. Yes, it all made sense now. Closing her eyes, Traveller let instinct take over.

Haruka grabbed the note book and started quickly writing down the notes. The melody was beautiful and touching, yet it carried a strange and somewhat alien feeling to it. No wonder, since it was a Saurian who composed it. She could barely believe it was merely an improvisation...

Traveller wasn't aware of that, she was just listening to herself, her eyes still closed. She remembered the music she had heard outside of the fortress of the Great Beings, and let its memory inspire her instincts. No, her 'composition' wasn't very complex, but it had her feelings, her heart in it, and that, Traveller realized now, was the one and only way to truly make music.

Michiru had already returned to the living room with her violin, and now silently stood listening to Traveller, afraid to disrupt such wonderful concentration and beautiful melody. Should she really add violin to this? Won't it ruin the simplicity and the mood the music gave? Nevertheless, she perfectly knew now that what Traveller said about never being good enough was not true. She had talent, and a big one at that.

The Saurian in question slowed down her play, carefully and almost quietly hitting the last few keys that her instinct told her to hit. Her instinct knew best. That's how this melody should be ended, it told her. So she obeyed.

"It is done…" she whispered quietly, a hazy look in her eyes and a dreamy smile on her face.

"It was wonderful, Traveller." Michiru whispered.

"Yes, definitely." Haruka looked at the notes she had written. "How did you come up with this?"

The Saurian just smiled before saying dreamily: "I took my sadness about never being as good as you and Michiru-san… Then gave myself to my instincts, letting it guide me, confident it would lead me to the right keys…"

"It's great, Traveller!" Michiru smiled and put her hand on her shoulder. "If you could compose that by instinct... Means you are really talented, and one day you definitely will be as good as us."

"Or even better." Haruka said, nodding.

Traveller chuckled and blushed, but shook her head. "It's kind of you to say that, but you don't need to lie to me to make me feel better."

"They aren't lying, Traveller." Hotaru smiled. "This melody is indeed very beautiful. Few people can compose so fast, let alone on instinct. Mostly it's trying and trying and trying to get what you want to get, what you want it to sound like."

"Thank you," Traveller replied, standing up from her place behind the piano to make a grateful bow. "Though it is mostly my instinct that did things, not my consciousness. So perhaps it doesn't count."

"It counts." Haruka nodded. "As long as you can repeat it later on again, it counts. Now, let me try, I want to play that myself..." She said, putting the written notes on the stand.

Traveller smiled gratefully. "It would be an honour, Haruka-san," she said, before moving aside to let Haruka take place at the instrument.

Haruka looked at the notes attentively and then started playing. Perhaps it wasn't as flowing and emotional as Traveller's play, but it was smooth technically correct. Michiru also listened carefully, to try and see whether the violin will sound good added there and where and how exactly.

As the two lovers bowed themselves over the composition, Traveller couldn't help but feel a surge of pride in her chest. Michiru and Haruka, two musicians far superior to her in every way when it came to music, were playing something she had, by accident and instinct, created. Though she didn't know much about musicians, Traveller thought that having Michiru Kaioh and Haruka Tenouh play her composition was every musicians dream.

* * *

**Next chapter: Peace and calm before the storm!**

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**Review replies:**

BookLoverAF: I agree, I find Minako and Nightmare very interesting to write about, too. They're an unusual pair, with conlicting views and personalities, making it all the more fun to write about them. If you like them, the next couple of chapters will be about them, so enjoy. Thanks for the review! =)


	52. Peace and calm before the storm

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**52. ****Peace and calm before the storm**

Gravitas was watching television. That was quite unusual, as she had only just been told how to operate it, and she never had been that interested in it before. The news was useful for information, she supposed, but aside from that it was a silly machine that only showed humans doing retarded things, or worse. But here she was now, watching television. She had wanted to study, work some more on her maths, but she got stuck on a division, and since Ami was taking a shower, couldn't go on. So, to keep away boredom – she had already finished the most interesting books they had borrowed from the library – the Saurian of Gravity had turned on the TV. After zapping a bit, she had come across an outlandish channel, and stopped to watch.

The television showed her images of large reptiles, bigger than trees sometimes, going about the daily business of animals. Now and then a voice of a human said something, but she saw no speaker and did not understand the words used. That didn't bother her, she was content just watching the animals. Finally something normal, she thought. Just animals living on nature's rhythm, as it should be. Sure, she didn't know the animals, but they were reptiles, obviously, and truly fascinating in their unknown and unfamiliar forms, shapes and colours.

Meanwhile, Ami finished taking her shower and entered the living room wearing a cosy white bathrobe. Nothing was better than a warm shower after a long, tiring day. Just then she noticed Gravitas watching dinosaurs on TV. Looking a bit closer, she realized the scene on the screen was familiar, and recognized the show.

"Ah, 'Walking with Dinosaurs'. It's a good show." Ami smiled and sat next to Gravitas.

Gravitas frowned, not knowing that last word. "Die no sour?"

"No, dinosaur. It's a type of reptiles that lived on Earth millions of years ago, before they all died out due to a meteor that crashed and caused an ice age."

That explained something, but immediately brought up another question. "Then how can the tee vee show them alive and breathing?" the Saurian of Gravity wondered, her eyes filled with confusion.

"Ah, it just shows models created on computer. It's all made with technology and is partly based on assumptions. For example, we could guess their anatomy, diet, the plants around them and all based on archaeological findings, i.e. their remains, but the details like scale colour are all thought up." Ami explained.

Gravitas didn't get all of the words, but she understood the meaning behind them, and she looked somewhat sad. "That's… sad. They looked so nice."

"I guess. But if they hadn't died out, human species would probably never have come into existence, and who would teach you maths then, hmm?" Ami chuckled.

That brought a smile to Gravitas' lips as well, and it also reminded her of her problem. "Speaking of which, I am having a problem with a division. Will you help me?"

"Of course I will." Ami stood up and went to the desk where Gravitas' notebook was. "You've made a mistake over here. You did the first division correctly, but after that you need to divide this number first, and only then subtract the result from the first part, not subtract first and then divide."

Gravitas abandoned the television and went over to Ami, bowing herself over her notebook. She followed Ami's reasoning and nodded, the entirety of the sum now making sense to her. "I see…" The aloof Saurian let out a deep sigh. "These divisions keep troubling me… Why?" It irritated her, obviously so, as she clenched her jaw and almost growled.

"Oh, come on, it's just a matter of remembering the rules in this case." Ami replied. "First do the operations in the brackets, then division and multiplying from left to right, then addition and subtraction from left to right. You just got a bit confused about the order."

Gravitas nodded, but said nothing. She went back to the television, having been turned off from her maths for the moment. She'd just watch these fake animals and try to relax a bit. Maybe her mind was just tired from today's battle and was that why she had messed up the order of the rules. Yes, that was probably it. She just had to rest and do something that didn't take much effort. Calmed by reasoning with herself, the Saurian of Gravity snuggled into the couch and continued to watch the television show.

Ami raised eyebrow at Gravitas not wanting to continue studying, but nevertheless came over and joined her. The series was good and worth watching, in her opinion, and it was good that it caught Gravitas' attention.

They watched in silence for a while, until Gravitas suddenly said: "I'm a bad sister."

Ami, taken aback by the sudden statement, could only say: "What? Why?"

"When Nightmare became mad today, when being told to work together… It happened before. A lot," Gravitas replied, on a rather monotonous, emotionless tone, yet her facial expression was somewhat sad. "And before, she always glared at me for days then. Like she wanted something from me. But I didn't… don't, rather, understand what it is she wants from me. I'm a bad sister."

"Did it... Happen only with that kind of argues?" Ami asked.

Gravitas merely shook her head and sighed. "It happened on other occasions, too… When she gets mad."

"Well... Maybe she wanted some support, or... comfort?" Ami suggested. "I don't know Nightmare that well, but still..."

"I don't know," Ami's guest replied quietly. "I have never known, or understood… And today, I just realized that, again."

Ami put her hand on Gravitas' shoulder. "You'll understand someday, I think. Maybe... Maybe I can help you a bit, explain things..."

"You can? How?"

"Well... By showing and telling, I guess." Ami smiled. "I know that when people are sad or upset, the best way to cheer them up is hugging. Like this." She hugged Gravitas to show what she means.

Gravitas merely blinked. "Why is that so?"

Ami smiled. "Don't you feel that yourself? It's nice and warm. And to make it even better..." Ami began stroking Gravitas' hair.

The Saurian of Gravity didn't immediately respond. She knew she was supposed to feel something here, but as it was, she didn't. And she was afraid, or maybe ashamed, to admit that. But at the same time, Gravitas didn't want to lie to Ami. "I… don't feel anything special."

Ami frowned. "Is that so?" She let go of Gravitas. "Well, it is kinda sad, but, doesn't surprise me much... It was strange that during our symbiosis I didn't feel almost anything of you... Only the love for your sister, thirst for knowledge, joy of finding out new things and solving mysteries... Not much other emotions..." She said in a low voice.

"And… that's bad?"

Ami slowly nodded. "It's... Not normal, at least." Saying it was hard, but she felt she shouldn't lie on this subject.

Gravitas looked away and said nothing. The Saurian of Gravity didn't want to lie to Ami, true, but staying silent didn't count as lying, in her eyes. But Gravitas knew it wasn't normal. Or at least, she had been _told_ it wasn't normal before. A lot of times. Only this time it was Ami instead of one of her family members. She didn't want to go through it again. She didn't want to talk about it. Ami didn't have to know about that…

Ami looked into Gravitas' eyes carefully. Since Ami has had symbiosis with Gravitas, it was clear to her that she was upset for some reason and didn't want to talk about it. So she just hugged her again.

"Well... Even if you don't understand, next time your sister feels bad, just try to hug her, okay?" She said, smiling slightly.

Gravitas nodded, though in her mind she asked herself what good that would do.

* * *

At Minako's house, Nightmare was digging through a pile of manga books she had borrowed without permission from Minako's room, looking for more weird creatures she could tell her brother about and embarrass the love dove with. She didn't really know what else to do, Minako was watching something terribly disgustingly sweet called a romance moo vee, and it had bored her to tears and made her sick. She did like the white fluffy stuff Minako ate while watching, though. Nightmare thought for a moment. What had love twit called it again? Just as the answer was about to get to her, she was torn out of her thoughts by the phone ringing.

"Hey love twit!" she shouted from the kitchen to the living room. "Get your lazy ass over here and get this retarded machine to stop making so much hateful noise!"

Minako ran over to the kitchen and picked up the phone. "Moshi-moshi?"

"Minako-chan! Glad you're safe." Came a voice from the phone. It was the volleyball team captain, Miyuki Furuhara.

"Ah, Miyuki-chan! It's good you called. I'm sorry I didn't call you earlier, I was in the countryside when the whole disaster happened... How is the rest of the team?" Minako quickly said.

"They're all fine, thankfully." Miyuki replied. "The hall is closed together with the rest of the school, but that outside training ground we use didn't suffer. And that's the reason I'm calling you – do you think you could come over and train with us?"

Minako thought for a moment. On one hand, she did want to go and train, but then Nightmare would want to tag along, but the whole team would be there, and remembering what she said about teamwork... "Sorry, no can do, Miyuki-chan. I already have some plans for the day, and I gotta look after Kira..."

"Oh. That's too bad." Miyuki said. "Well, I'll phone you when we have another training then."

"Okay. Thanks for calling me, and say hi to the girls!" Minako finished cheerfully.

"I will. Bye now!" Miyuki said and hung up.

Nightmare had heard the entire conversation thanks to her better hearing, and glared angrily at her host. Not going to do that silly sports game? Why? She actually _wanted_ to do that, she had hoped they could go do that again soon, so she could kick love twit's ass, and maybe even the behinds of those other girls!

"And just WHY can't we go play tomorrow, love twit?" the Saurian of Fear snarled.

Minako sighed. "Firstly because all the other girls will be there, secondly, I still haven't taught you the serves, third, if you get to play you'll probably injure them all, and lastly, you don't get teamwork."

"I get teamwork just fine!" Nightmare snapped. "The others stay out of my way if they don't want to get hurt and that's all there is to it!"

"And that's exactly the reason we're not going. If you hurt players you could be removed from the field for foul play! Even if not, if you position yourself and act that way, the team will push you out of the game, not letting you even get the ball." Minako said, perhaps sharply, but she felt it was needed.

"It's not my fault others are wimps and useless! Why did you introduce me to something I need to keep others in mind with, anyway?" the Senshi of Love's guest growled.

"Because it's the only thing I know that suits you well enough. And judging on what your family and you yourself said, you need to work on teamwork, and a lot." Minako replied, despite Chameleon's warning not to mention Nightmare and teamwork in one sentence. She, being an Inner Senshi and the type of person she was, valued teamwork very highly, and couldn't really accept Nightmare refusing to do the same.

Nightmare seemed ready to shoot through the roof in anger. "I work best alone," she said, dangerously quiet.

Minako replied: "And what if you're in a situation when you can't work alone?"

"That never happened," Nightmare answered with a shrug.

"It still might." Minako said with a nod. "And when it does, it's best to be prepared. Volleyball is good practice because it artificially puts you in a situation when you need to play in a team and rely on your teammates."

Nightmare growled but didn't immediately reply. She just wanted to go play, not be locked up here inside this house watching picture books because it was all she could do in here. Forcing herself to sound sincere, she said: "If I promise to behave, will we then go and play tomorrow?"

Minako raised her eyebrow sceptically. "And will you keep that promise?"

Ignika's youngest sister was about ready to bang her head on the table. Just what more did she have to do to be allowed to go, for the Great Beings' sake? Clenching her fist, she tried to remain calm. "Don't make me beg, love dove!"

Minako chuckled. "Okay, I'll take your word." She fell silent for a moment. "Hmm... You know, I have an idea." She looked at Nightmare mischievously. "If you're so overconfident about your abilities and think teamwork is for weaklings, I could talk the girls into having a team match against you."

The idea of being allowed to kick some butt appealed to the young Saurian, and she relaxed a bit. "Really? Why?"

"Well, someone needs to show you that other people on the field aren't useless things standing there to hinder you." Minako shrugged. "And that a single person can never win against a team. In-game, at least."

Nightmare almost laughed, but she could stop herself just in time. "We'll see about that, love twit!" she grinned darkly. "Don't come whining and complaining to me once I'm done drying them off."

Minako frowned. "No injuring people." She said sternly.

"Stop worrying, love twit, you're starting to annoy me more than you usually do!" Nightmare snarled.

Minako shrugged again. "Better safe than sorry." Then smiled. "Well, let's go to the garden, I'll show you how to serve the ball and explain some rules of the game. Can't play without that."

Nightmare nodded curtly, suddenly full of eagerness and energy. Tomorrow she'd have another chance to prove that she was superior to love twit, and that teamwork was for the weak only. She was best on her own. She had had to be so. Others had made it so. And she wouldn't change now. She'd prove it, even if it was the last thing she did. Others didn't want her, but tomorrow she'd show that she needed no others at all, that she was superior when she was by herself only!

Smirking, the Saurian of Fear followed her host to the garden.

* * *

**Next chapter: Eons of hurt!**

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**Review replies:**

BookLoverAF: I'm kinda the same like you, I like all of the characters I've made, and can't pick a favourite. XD Sometimes it's Ami and Gravitas, then it's Nightmare and Minako, or Ignika and Hotaru, they're all interesting for their own reasons. =) Thanks for the rview!


	53. Eons of hurt

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**53. Eons of hurt**

"So let me get this straight," Nightmare muttered as she and Minako approached the training ground. "I can't growl. I can't snap. I can't snort. I can't hiss. And I can't shout. Great Beings damn it, love twit, do you even WANT me to communicate at all?"

"It's called being polite." Minako replied cheerfully. "Being polite is always good. Oh, and no insulting them as well."

The Saurian of Fear gagged loudly. Polite? The mere thought of it made her ill and she shivered. Suddenly, it all didn't seem worth enduring it for anymore. It was just a stupid human game, why should she have to obey all those rules Minako laid out for her just so she could play it? She could easily find another way to pass time! One that didn't involve her bending to others' wishes. Again.

Minako, however, ignored Nightmare's condition and went straight towards a tall girl with long purple hair tied in a ponytail.

"Hey, Miyuki." She greeted the team captain.

"Ah, Minako-chan. So you came after all." Miyuki smiled. Then she looked at Nightmare and raised her eyebrow. "And you brought Kira, too?"

"Yeah, well, had a change of plans..." Minako said, then quickly got to the business: "I have a favour to ask of you."

"Oh? And what is that?" Miyuki inquired.

"You see, Kira-chan got a bit over her head. She's a bit overconfident in her volleyball skills and thinks she doesn't need teamwork to win. So I need six of you to have a match against her." Minako explained.

"Six of us against her?" Miyuki raised her eyebrow again. "Isn't that too much?"

Nightmare almost scoffed at that notion. Six against her? They'd have to bring an army of humans with them to stop her once she stopped holding back. "Why would it be?" the Saurian snapped. "You can't have too much if you want to last even a minute against me."

Miyuki looked at Nightmare. "I take my words back, she needs to be taught a lesson." Then she turned to her team. "Takako, Chiara, Reiko, Miku, Minako – come to the field. We're going to play against Kira."

"Um, sorry, I'm not playing this match." Minako said.

"What? Why?" Miyuki raised her eyebrow.

"Well, you see, I trained with Kira a lot, and I think it wouldn't be fair if someone who knew her moves took part in the match."

"Oh. Okay then." Miyuki agreed. "Rin, take Minako's place."

Nightmare merely smirked and cracked her neck, did a few stretches and moved to her side of the field. She'd show them. She'd show them all that being on your own could get you just as far as working with others. The world had denied her that chance, had forced her to be alone, taunted her about it in the face, but now she'd spit back. She was alone, and she was superior. Of that, she had no doubt.

"You're in for a beating," she hissed softly, a dangerous glint in her eyes. "Love twit made me promise to obey the rules of this stupid game and to be polite… She didn't say anything about holding back, so I won't. At all."

Minako suddenly shivered. Was it really a good idea?

"Remember what you promised me!" She shouted to Nightmare.

"Shut your trap and let me play, love dove!" 'Kira' shouted back with a glare.

"Alright, since it's your match, you serve first." Miyuki rolled the ball under the net to Nightmare.

"My pleasure," she said, smirking from ear to ear. Now despite what anybody might say about her, Nightmare wasn't stupid. She wasn't rash, like that no-good older brother of hers. No, she was very observant and cunning. Even now. The reptile disguised as a human observed the battlefield for a moment, taking in her enemies' positions and holes in their defences. Then, with her mind made up, Nightmare made her move. Using all the strength and speed her race granted her, she served the ball, making it hit the ground on the other side of the net before the opposing team could even react.

Nightmare looked positively smug.

The team looked at the ball, which had now rolled into the 'out', with their eyes wide.

"Uh... Okay, you caught us unprepared..." Miyuki said slowly. "Serve again."

One of the girls passed Nightmare the ball, who gladly accepted it. To be fair, she wanted to throw out a taunt or an insult, but she remembered her promise to Minako and kept her mouth shut. The young girl simply prepared herself for another serve, and then repeated the same process from before, serving the ball with all her might and strength. It had already worked once, why would it not work a second time?

This time, a girl with short dark-green hair tried to get into the ball's way and deflect it with a bump pass. She almost succeeded...

"AAAH!" The said girl cried in pain as the ball flew in a completely wrong direction. She put a hand over one of her forearms which hurt like hell.

The game was forgotten as girls rushed over to her. "Takako, are you alright?" They asked.

Minako looked at Nightmare angrily. "Kira, come here at once." She said.

"Why?" the disguised Saurian of Fear snarled.

"Someone needs to be reminded of something." Minako frowned at her.

Feeling her irritation rise faster than one could say "ouch", Nigthmare nonetheless went over to her host, with angry paces. "WHAT?" she practically shouted, nearly grabbing Minako by the collar. "I'm busy! I was winning!"

Minako couldn't take it anymore herself, so she came over to Nightmare and dragged her a few paces away from the field. "What did I tell you about injuring people?" She hissed angrily.

"It's part of the game, love twit! When you play, you risk injury! Deal with it! And besides, I didn't do it on purpose! How was I supposed to know you humans are so weak?" Nightmare hissed back just as angry, not wanting to be outdone.

"My example didn't show you anything? Remember our trainings." She shook her head. "You've got to keep your strength in check. If they can't counter your moves, how the heck are they supposed to play?"

"Why should I keep my strength in check? That's not fair! It was my naturally born advantage, so there's no reason why I shouldn't make use of it!" Minako's guest screamed.

"Can't you understand it defeats the whole purpose of why I suggested this match in the first place?" Minako replied angrily, albeit in a low tone. "It would have worked much better if you had to be up against a bunch of Saurians, but that's not possible, you play against humans, so you have to use human strength."

"It's not fair!" Nightmare insisted. "Some people are born stronger than others, that's the way it works! You don't ask a genius to not use all his brainpower when solving a riddle, now do you?"

"Even a genius needs to hold back when playing against children. 'Cause the difference is that big!" Minako said sternly, not willing to back up on it.

"You just want me to loose because you can't stand me being right about being better off all by myself!" Nightmare shouted, quite loudly this time.

"No you aren't!" Minako shouted as well. "Why can't you understand it? Nobody can stand alone against a team!"

"I can!" Nightmare snarled. "And you just won't let me prove it!"

"Because the way you prove it is unfair. They can't counter you, it's a situation where they can't do anything against you! What kind of proof is that?" Minako whispered angrily.

"The proof that my strength is superior to theirs, thus making it clear that they can't win! That's all the proof you need!" the other girl hissed angrily, becoming absolutely livid as the argument went on. "But if you keep finding excuses just to make it so that you're right, then I'm through with this stupid farce of a match, love shit!"

"Well, fine, back out of the challenge. You don't want to be proven wrong, that's why you're doing it!" Minako shouted.

"Are you calling me a coward?" Nightmare asked, so lowly it could almost not be heard. Had Minako known a little bit more about the Saurian of Fear, she'd know that at this point she had best of all back off and leave her be, because Nightmare was close to exploding with fury.

"No. I'm calling you a stubborn little girl who doesn't want to see the point of the lesson being taught to her!" Yes, that was harsh, but Minako was too absorbed by their argument to notice.

"Shut up," Ignika's youngest sister whispered icily. Then she turned and began to walk away. "I'm through with this."

"Fine! Go, if you want. You're too stubborn for dealing with, anyway." Minako crossed her arms, angry that her try to actually teach Nightmare something useful failed.

And that did it.

Nightmare snapped. All the frustration that had been building up inside of her, unseen but there, day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year, eon after eon, it finally became too much for her to bear. This argument, that seemed so banal compared to some of the others that she had had in the past, was the final drip. She had had it. She was sick of it. Through with it all.

Without a word the Saurian of Fear whirled around and stormed at her host. Then, without a warning and so fast the Senshi of Love couldn't react, Nightmare hit Minako on the cheek with all her might, nearly breaking the girl's jaw and knocking her to the hard ground.

"Shut. Up," Nightmare growled, her eyes filled with uncontrolled fury. She turned around again and stormed away, anger boiling up inside of her with every step.

"Minako-chan!" A couple of girls from the volleyball team ran up to her and helped her sit up.

Minako's gaze was fixed at the direction where Nightmare went. "I overdid it..." She realized, and immediately felt guilty. She got up from the ground and looked at her teammates:

"I'm sorry for what happened. I'd better go after her now, who knows what she might do in such a condition..." Without waiting for a reply, the Senshi of Venus ran away to catch up with her guest.

Miyuki shook her head. "Training's over."

* * *

Nightmare was storming down the streets, not caring where she went. She cared about nothing at that moment. She was steaming, boiling with anger, a volcano near eruption. It was unfair. All of it! She clenched her jaw and fought against the tears that threatened to spill. She refused to show that weakness, but it was hard in this moment. She had snapped. Finally been pushed over the edge after eons of build up.

"Why did I even promise?" she screamed, not caring that people could hear her. "It's always the same! Other people only get in your way. They never allow you to do what you want to do, or the way you want it. They only complain and hold you back. They call you names behind your back! They shun you and hate you for what you are born with! They give you no chances! In life you're on your own! That's how it is and always has been, even if I have a 'family'!"

One tear managed to break through her defences and ran down her cheek.

Minako ran through the streets, looking for Nightmare frantically. She knew people were probably smart enough not to get near her in such a condition, but she didn't want her to get lost, or be discovered by police, or... But then, as she turned around another corner, she spotted Nightmare further down the street. The Senshi of Love sighed, relieved, and followed her guest, but kept her distance.

Unfortunately, the Saurian of Fear caught Minako's scent, and her anger reached a new level. Without a minute of hesitation she summoned her Terror Katana, unsheathed it and attacked the Senshi of Love, holding nothing back and with the clear intent of hurting her.

The people around them immediately started screaming, many ran away, and Minako prayed they won't call the police.

"Damn you, not in public!" Minako shouted at her guest.

But said guest was beyond any form of reasoning now. "Do. I. Look. Like. I. CARE?" Nightmare shouted on top of her lungs, attacking Minako again, missing the Senshi only by a hair, to her great irritation.

"Of course you don't, but your brother definitely will when the police arrest us for fighting in the streets!" Minako shouted back, frantically looking around for a place to transform, because otherwise she won't last long against an enraged Saurian of Fear.

Nightmare merely snorted and set her hands aflame with the energies of Fear. A red glow engulfed her and she unleashed a blast of fear in the form of a dome around her that kept expanding and expanding, sending everyone inside of the dome in a frenzied panicky state.

"I dare ANYONE to come at me!" the Saurian girl screamed, and she unleashed blasts of fear of a deadly dose in random directions, not caring if she hit anyone and killed him or her.

Minako, who thankfully had developed some resistance during their trainings, saw her opportunity and transformed. She had to stop Nightmare, no matter the cost, she needed to prevent her from hurting anybody like that.

"I HATE YOU, LOVE TWIT!" Nightmare roared, anger of unseen proportions clouding any form of common sense or clear thought. "And I'm going to kill you."

"Couldn't you at least wait until we were home?" Sailor Venus shouted and summoned her Love Me Chain, then modified it into a kusarigama, like she had already done before on trainings. "Why do you want to kill me, anyway?"

"BECAUSE I'M SICK OF YOU!" the other girl snarled as an answer. "SICK OF YOUR RETARDED RULES, YOUR DISGUSTING BRIGHTNESS, YOUR CONSTANT HAMMERING ON TEAMWORK! SICK OF YOU COMING UP WITH RULE AFTER RULE TO HUMILIATE ME!" Nightmare followed up her outburst by sending a wave of fear strong enough to give a grown man a heart attack at the Senshi of Love, together with an incinerating glare of utmost hatred.

"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!" The Senshi of Love used this attack to break the wave, dispelling a part of it. The hole the attack made was just enough for the wave to pass the Senshi harmlessly. "You know that the whole purpose of the match would be lost in unequal circumstances!" She shouted at her guest.

"AS IF I STILL CARE ABOUT THAT IDIOTIC GAME OF YOURS!" Ignika's youngest sister shouted, going in for another attack. She lashed out with her Terror Katana, with every intent to draw blood.

"Well, apparently you do, because you're making this happen in the first place!" Sailor Venus tried to dodge the blow or at least block it with her kusarigama. She succeeded in catching Nightmare's sword with her own blade, then used the weight of her chain to knock her attacker in the head and throw her off balance. With the Saurian fazed for just a minute, Venus quickly increased the distance between the two of them.

"THAT…" Nightmare spat. "Was just the last drip you filthy whore!" Seething, the girl grabbed the nearest human she could find and held her katana to the man's throat, looking absolutely ready and capable of running him through. "Should I do it? HUH? Can you stop me without your mighty teamwork? HUH? CAN YOU?"

"Are you an idiot or just faking it?" The Senshi of Venus shouted at the Saurian of Fear. "Do you realize just what consequences you put us all in for if you kill a human? Your whole family will be in danger!"

"So. What?" was the only reply Nightmare gave her host. A gleam of madness caused by her anger was visible in her eyes, and it was an unsettling and frightening sight.

The gleam frightened Minako. She couldn't understand just what caused this outburst. Sure, Minako overdid it with the training, but it was clear she had unleashed something way more powerful than just irritation by the rules. Minako shook her head. It wasn't the time to think, she had to draw her attention away from killing the unfortunate man and try to make her realize what she's doing is madness, so she tried to appeal to her pride.

"You want me to call them here, huh? Want Gravitas to see you rage and lose your face? Want Ignika to see you risk the safety of your family in this world?"

The volcano that Nightmare had become erupted even worse, and she threw the man she was holding away carelessly, then she stormed towards Minako with all her strength and speed given to her by birth. She unleashed a beam of pure fear at the Senshi of Love, and though Minako did her best to dispel it like before, Nightmare was stronger this time around and overpowered her. Sailor Venus had the choice to either dodge or die from a heart attack, so she wisely dodged the blast, leaving herself open for a tiny second. But it was all Nightmare needed.

She homed in on her enemy like an eagle on his prey and lashed out with her Terror Katana, slicing open Minako's side and finally drawing the blood she had so craved to see and smell. As the Senshi cried out in pain, Nightmare hit her in the face with a punch that knocked her to the ground.

"What do YOU know of loosing your face? What do YOU know of ME raging?" the Saurian girl lividly demanded as she stomped Venus in the stomach, making the older girl gag. "What do YOU know of Gravitas?" Nightmare began to charge another overdose of fear to unleash upon her foe, fully intending to kill her right there and then.

"I know that you're acting stupid and putting us all in danger!" Minako cried as she slashed with the kusarigama's sickle at Nightmare's legs, making her lose balance, and rolled away from under her. She knew she was probably done for, but couldn't allow herself to go down easily.

If Nightmare felt the slash wound on her legs, she didn't show it. She merely let out a terrifying growl and leaped at the rolled away Minako before said girl had the time to get up. The Saurian of Fear landed on Minako's back cruelly, with all her weight, earning another cry of pain from the Senshi of Love.

"What do YOU know of MY safety?" Nightmare hissed coldly as she grabbed Minako harshly by the throat and lifted her up as if she weighed nothing. Her sharp nails dug into Sailor Venus' skin. Then Nightmare head butted her host directly in the face, almost breaking the blonde's nose. Not that the Saurian of Fear cared. She had flown into a blind rant of rage, where she wasn't aware – or didn't want to be – of anything anybody said to her.

"YOU KNOW NOTHING OF ME!" Nightmare raged on and she rammed her free hand as a fist in Sailor Venus' stomach. "Teamwork?" She dug her hand into the wound she had inflicted with her katana before and tore it open even further, staining her hand with blood. "Rely on others? WHY? WHY SHOULD I RELY ON OTHERS WHEN I'M ALL ALONE?" Suddenly the Terror Katana was back in Nightmare's hand and was used to mercilessly slash open the Senshi's right arm.

"RELY ON OTHERS? WHEN I HAD AN OLDER SISTER WHO I NEVER COULD RELY ON, EMOTIONLESS AND TOTALLY FREAKISH AS SHE WAS FOR THE MOST PART OF HER LIFE?" she roared as she drove her katana through one of Minako's legs. The tears she had so forcefully held back before were now being spilled freely, as eons of hurt were poured out of the unfortunate Saurian. Somewhere deep inside, Nightmare knew that what she was doing was horrible, and that Minako couldn't help it. But that side of Nightmare was buried deep under ages of pent up frustration, anger and sadness, and now it had to be expelled, and Minako just happened to be the unfortunate one on who she took it all out.

"RELY ON OTHERS? WHAT OTHERS? THE OTHERS WHO SHUN YOU, WHISPER 'IMMORAL ONE' BEHIND YOUR BACK BECAUSE YOU HAVE THE POWER OF FEAR FROM BIRTH?" Again she punched Minako harshly in the guts, her anger not diminishing in the least. "YOU MEAN THOSE OTHERS? RELY ON THAT LITTLE BROTHER OF MINE, WHO GOT IN MY LIFE BECAUSE THAT ASSHOLE OF MY NATURAL SISTER BROUGHT HIM IN AND MADE ME EVEN MORE HATED THAN I ALREADY WAS? YOU MEAN THAT BROTHER?"

Finally the grip on Minako's throat loosened and the Senshi fell to the ground, where she was immediately treated to more stomping of Nightmare. And every time the Saurian of Fear brought her foot down on the Senshi at her feet, tears fell down with it.

"YOU MEAN RELY ON THAT SO CALLED OLDEST SISTER OF ME, WHO ONLY CARES ABOUT THE SAFETY OF THAT ACCURSED CHILD OF LIFE, AND ALL THE REST CAN BE STOLEN FOR ALL SHE CARES? YOU MEAN RELY ON THAT SISTER?" With every word of bitterness she spoke, Nightmare stomped harder and harder on the now defenceless girl below her. But with every stomp, the flow of tears also increased, as Nightmare cried for the first time in eons.

"RELY ON THAT NO-GOOD CHAMELEON, WHO ONLY CAN MAKE YOU WORRY, ASSHOLE HE IS BY ALWAYS STORMING OF BEING INVISIBLE AND NO CLUE WHERE HE IS? YOU MEAN RELY ON HIM?" Nightmare shouted again, so loud Minako's eardrums threatened to pop. But her eardrums were the last thing on the Senshi's mind, as her guest had raised her katana above her head and then brought in down swiftly, running Sailor Venus straight through the stomach.

"WHO DO I HAVE TO RELY ON? I'VE ALWAYS BEEN ALONE, DAMN IT!" the unhappy Saurian of Fear finished with a shout, before her strength and resolve finally left her, and she fell to her knees, holding her face in her hands and crying. Nightmare broke down completely, weeping and sobbing like she hadn't done in ages. It was too much. It seemed so silly, that a simple argument about a stupid sport could have such terrible consequences, and yet it had happened. Sometimes, rage was like gravity: all it required was a little push. And Nightmare had had that push, that had been coming for a long time, today.

There she was then, the proud Saurian of Fear, broken and crying because of the unfairness of her life, of everything. She couldn't take it anymore. Crying was all there was left for her to do.

All Sailor Venus could do was stare at Nightmare in shock. "So that's what it is..." She thought. "That's why she... that's why she's so mean and moody and quick to anger... that's why she keeps insulting everybody. How could I not notice...?"

Nightmare wasn't aware of the Senshi's thoughts. Perhaps she wasn't even aware of Minako's presence anymore. She was trapped in her pain and sadness. "What did I ever do wrong... Sadistic, me? Violent, me? Spiteful, me? Insolent, me? Because others made me!" The memories of the first decades of her life, all on her own, flooded her and Nightmare cried harder.

Minako closed her eyes. Despite the tremendous pain her damaged body was in, watching Nightmare cry like that was unbearable. Then, she made a decision. The Senshi of Love took the katana that was still implanted in her stomach with her hands, clenched her teeth and with one swift movement pulled it out. This action made her cry out in pain again, but it didn't matter to her.

The broken Saurian of Fear didn't notice, too caught up in all the painful memories and talking to herself. "Having lived for hundred years, and then suddenly have this complete... thing show up with no emotion whatsoever and realize it's your natural sister, oh fantastic!" she screamed, banging the ground with her fists in wild, powerless frustration.

"I had to think for two, as that stupid cow couldn't even take care of a wound on her own! And don't think you'd get some thanks or affection from it in return, oh no! Just a blank stare, for THIRTY FUCKING YEARS!" A heart wrenching wail of pure sorrow escaped the youngest sister of Ignika, as she fell over and hit the ground with her head, still banging the road with her fists in anger as sob after sob wrecked her body.

Minako, meanwhile, had managed to turn over and lie on her stomach and now was ever-so-slowly making her way towards the hysterical girl. It was hard, it was painful, but she knew that whatever pain her body was feeling dwarfed the pain in Nightmare's soul.

"St... stop..." she managed to stutter.

"I can't take it anymore..." the other girl sobbed, in vain trying to sit up again and ignoring Sailor Venus' words. "Today was just too much..." She clenched her fist and punched the ground again and again until her knuckles were bleeding. "'Don't be insulting, rude, snide, sarcastic, Nightmare, or else! Think of the others!'" The blood on her hand was mixed with the tears that fell from her eyes. "'Don't use your strength, Nightmare, think of the others!'" She was visibly shaking, a clear indication that another outburst was coming. And indeed, Nightmare tipped back her head and roared at the heavens above: "WHY THE HELL CAN'T I JUST BE MYSELF? FUCK ALL OTHERS, WHAT ABOUT ME? JUST ONCE JUST ME, IS THAT TOO MUCH?"

Suddenly, Nightmare felt weight push her back to the ground. It was Minako, who managed to crawl over to Nightmare and throw herself at her. Now the Senshi of Love was tenderly, but firmly embracing the crying teenager, and whispering:

"Shhh... I'm sorry... I didn't know... I couldn't..."

Unaware of the identity of who held her, Nightmare leaned into the embrace and clutched to Sailor Venus like a child to its mother. Tears now mixed with the blood already staining Venus' sailor fuku, but Nightmare wasn't aware of that. She just clung to the person embracing her and cried, having longed her entire life for just this kind of comfort.

"Shhh... I'm sorry I didn't realize..." Minako whispered and began stroking her hair. "But, I didn't do that to harm you... I wanted to protect you from mistakes..."

The Saurian of Fear didn't immediately reply, just continued to cling to her host blindly, desperate for the warmth and comfort the embrace was giving her. "I'm so unhappy…" Nightmare finally managed to choke out. "Don't…" Her hands grabbed fistfuls of Venus' fuku. "Don't go… don't leave me alone… please…" More tears fell down to the ground below.

Minako smiled at that request and said as warmly as she could possibly manage: "I won't." She continued to stroke the girl's hair. "You could have told me... I would have listened... I was there for you when you got scared of the Death Note, no?" Minako closed her eyes as fatigue from the blood loss began to take over. "Silly girl..."

Nightmare's eyes snapped open in realization as she heard those words. "You were there…" she whispered in awe, memories of that morning when she had been scared of the TV playing again before her eyes. "For me…" The Saurian girl began to cry again, because of mixed feelings this time. Minako was right. She had been there for her. Somebody had been there for her, to help her confront and overcome one of _her_ fears. Massive regret for how she had behaved in the Senshi's presence all this time suddenly welled up from deep inside the Saurian's heart.

"Minako…" she whispered quietly, her voice broken and interrupted by sobs. "I… I'm… sorry…"

And it was at that moment, when the two girls sat together like that, with each having come to an important realization about the other, that a warm golden light engulfed them both.

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**Next chapter: The true face of Nightmare!**

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BookLoverAF: This chapter wasn't really a volleyball match, so I hope it didn't disappoint. ^^" Thanks for the review!


	54. The true face of Nightmare

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**54. The true face of Nightmare**

A warm light, that seemed to have the colour of gold mixed with red, engulfed the two girls as they lay there together, holding each other. A link of understanding had formed between the two of them, and it manifested itself now in a physical form. The light flowed forward, washing over the city, erasing the memories of the Saurian of Fear's rampage from earlier, as well as warmly and painlessly healing all of the damage the two had inflicted upon each other's body during their struggle. As they bathed in the warmth, Venus and Nightmare felt themselves leave the road where the disaster had taken place behind, the light taking them away until they reappeared on the soft couch in Minako's house.

There was no doubt in Nightmare's mind that what had just happened between herself and the love twit was the awakening of their very own, personal symbiosis. It was the only way she could explain all the feelings she had felt coming from the older girl. She had seen Minako's memories, but more importantly, had felt her feelings, seen the compassion and warmth she carried towards the Saurian girl despite everything Nightmare had done to her. She had felt the forgiveness, she had felt it all, and it made Nightmare cry once more. But perhaps this time, it was more for the sake of crying than for the sadness and pain in her soul.

Nonetheless, she clung to the blonde as they lay down next to each other, letting the tears flow as they wished.

Minako was smiling. It seemed that everything ended well... She held Nightmare tenderly and protectively in her arms, letting her cry it all out. When they had symbiosis she had felt all Nightmare's pain, loneliness and frustration, and frankly, she admired her self-control, because she has snapped only now, after living for several hundred years. She stroked the girl's hair, to try and make her feel better.

"Don't leave me…" the Saurian girl begged with a whisper, clinging more desperately to the other woman.

"I won't leave you, I promise." Minako told her guest and embraced her even tighter. "I'm sorry I couldn't get through to you earlier..."

"I don't want to be alone…" Nightmare said quietly, still crying. "I don't want to feel alone even when I'm in company… Don't leave me alone… I'm scared to be alone, I'm scared to be in company! I'm scared to be hurt… I'm scared… Don't leave me, please, Minako, don't leave me!"

"I'm here for you, and I'll never leave you." Minako promised. "Don't be afraid. You're not alone anymore."

"Thank you," Nightmare sobbed, her cheeks burning red with shame, her eyes slightly swollen from the tears. "I've always been alone… I was born alone… Nobody wanted anything to do with me because of my powers… My sister has failed to develop any feelings… My youngest brother has too much problems to bother him with mine, my oldest sister only thinks about him… And my oldest brother is stupid…" She hiccupped and burrowed her face against Minako's chest. "I'm sorry… so, so sorry…"

"Shh… It's alright, I forgive you." Minako simply said. "But… I think your family needs to know of your problems as well. How can they help if you don't tell them anything?"

"How can you forgive me, after all I've done?" Nightmare wondered tearfully.

"I just can." Minako said in a low voice. "I understand why you did it now, I've felt all your feelings, all your sorrow, and… I understand why you're so harsh and prickly now…"

"Others hurt me… just for being born the way I was…" the youngest sister of the Saurian family whispered quietly, her voice broken and full of sadness.

"I know…" Minako said sadly. But then brightened up. "But now you're here, and nobody can tell you have Fear powers just by looking at you. You could start over!"

"People are prejudiced against me!" the Saurian replied despairingly. "It doesn't matter what I look like! People always shun me! And I can't take it… I'm not invincible… I can't keep taking everything people throw at me… I'm weak…" Once again, she broke down crying.

"Shhh…" Minako tried to comfort the girl once again. "You're not invincible, I know it… But nobody has prejudice against you in this world. Come on, try to realize it. In your world people could tell your Fear powers just by your scales color, but here? Why do they have to be prejudiced? There's nothing for them to be prejudiced about!"

"Because of who I am…" came the quiet answer as Nightmare burrowed her head in the embrace again. "People just find me unlikable… Because of my personality… But it's their fault I'm like this in the first place!" She sniffed, then went on: "If other people hurt you, you won't keep taking it… You defend yourself… And now that defense turns people off, the defense they made me create!"

Minako kept stroking her hair in silence for a while. "But it's your own defense… I know you don't want to be hurt, but if you keep hurting all the people who can come close to you, you'll always be alone…"

"I can't trust others…" Nightmare said, her voice barely audible, and she sobbed again. "The risk of hurt… it's not worth it…"

"It is." Minako said firmly. "Because if you risk being hurt and reach out to people… You can gain a friend. And then you're not alone anymore."

"I'm too afraid to be hurt… Can you blame me, after eons of nobody wanting to have anything to do with me?"

"I don't blame you for anything…" Minako sighed and fell silent. "Tell me… Do you think Ignika, Traveller or Gravitas… Would ever hurt you on purpose?"

"Of course not!" Nightmare immediately objected. "But... but you should have seen it, the moment I first met my sister…" As the memories came flooding back, so did the pain and the stream of tears intensified for yet another time that day. "You… you see a creature, that you know by instinct is your sister… But I swear… hugging an icicle was more warm and comfortable than hugging her back then… It's your sister… And she doesn't even know what pain is, how to react to it properly… I had to teach her everything! I had to take care of her every single minute! And I'm the youngest of us two, it should have been the other way around!" Another sob wrecked her body and for a moment Nightmare's voice was lost amidst the cries of sorrow. "And then that same glacier of a sister… just runs off all of the sudden to two random strangers and decides they'll be our new brother and sister from now on… and they all just expected me to go along with it! They didn't even give me the choice to decide for myself…"

Nightmare took a deep breath to try and calm herself a little bit, but it proved to be a futile attempt. "I love them now…" she admitted. "But back then… can you blame me for not loving them from the very first minute I placed my gaze on them?"

"Of course not…" Minako said softly. "But how could they know? Did you ever open up to them like you did to me now?"

The young-minded disguised reptile looked at Minako as if the idea alone was just beyond ridiculous. "Do you think I ever had the chance…?" She choked on a sob again. "Who would I confide into? Gravitas, who doesn't understand anything emotional? Traveller, whose only concern is Ignika? Ignika, who has enough problems on his own without mine piled on top of them? Chameleon, who can't keep a serious face for a minute?"

Minako felt stupid. "Yeah, that's a hard situation…" She paused. "But you still need to tell them one day, after all, they're your family, they have to at least listen to your problems…"

"I can't…" Nightmare said so quietly Minako could barely hear it. The young Saurian's cheeks coloured red with shame. "I'm scared… I'm afraid…" She held herself tightly to her human host, as if she was afraid Minako would vanish if she let go.

Minako held her gently. "It's okay… I don't expect you to change right here right now… But just think of what I said."

"I don't want to lose them," the Saurian of Fear admitted. "I don't want to hurt them…"

"You won't. You didn't lose me, no?" Minako smiled at the girl in her arms.

"But you are different!" Nightmare argued. "You're not family, so you won't take family complaints personal or anything like that…"

"True, and I know they will take it personal, but…" Minako paused. "They're your family, you'll have to live with them for your whole life, which could as well be eternity. And I think it's better to tell them everything in order to prevent such breakdowns from happening again."

"I'm too afraid to hurt them…" the younger girl whispered. "It's much safer to keep it all in, to keep everyone away…"

"And much more painful and lonelier for you." Minako started stroking the Saurian's hair again. "If you didn't take all your emotions out and tell your feelings like this, how could I have known you need comfort?"

"Can you blame me?" Nightmare snapped. "It grew that way because of how people treated me… Nobody ever offered me comfort, only spite and hate, so I had to rely on myself… And I can't just change… Though, I am… happy, that it turned out… like this…" A blush colored the tear-stained face of the Saurian, and she gave Minako a warning look. "Don't tell anyone I said that."

The Senshi of Venus smiled: "I won't. But… I think it's best not to bottle up your feelings to the point when you need to injure someone to expel them."

"I… I don't know…" the Saurian of Fear replied while hiccupping. She wiped her tears away, and this time it took longer before new ones came in their place. "Like I said… I… I can't just change after hundreds of years… living like this… I… I need to think."

"That's all I'm asking for." Minako grinned. "I think you can change. You've let me in, no? You trusted me, and now you have a friend. You're not alone."

Nightmare said nothing and just buried herself in the embrace of her new friend. The idea of it was strange to her still. It had all happened so suddenly, and it was very confusing and overwhelming. "I've never had a friend…" she whispered tearfully. "How can you be my friend, Minako? You said you forgave me, but I… I almost killed you…"

Minako smiled: "How could I not forgive you after I found out all your pain? You need someone by your side, someone who can comfort and understand you… And now that you have one such person, we need to find more! So you'll never be alone!" She finished cheerfully. "And we need to start from your family."

A deep sigh escaped the youngest sister of Ignika's lips. "What have I gotten myself into now…" She looked up pleadingly at Minako. "It can wait until a bit later, right…?"

"Of course." Minako said. Then sat up, still holding Nightmare close, and meeting no resistance from the latter. "Say, are you hungry by any chance?"

The Saurian girl nodded. "Yes, kind of… I used a lot of my power when I…" She sobbed again. "Great Beings… I'm sorry… I'm sorry, Minako…" The disguised reptile bowed her head in deep shame.

"Hey… It's okay…" Minako said warmly. "All's well that ends well. Now let's go find something edible in the fridge, okay? And maybe have some tea with chocolate candy, hmm? How about it?"

Nightmare visibly brightened upon hearing this and she perked up. "Chocolate? Really?" She had tasted it before. That sweet kind of food the likes of which she had never eaten or tasted before. Her first impression of the sweet hadn't been the kindest… But after tasting it, her opinion had radically changed. Unfortunately, Minako was reluctant to let her eat a lot of it, saying something weird like 'sugar high'.

"Yep." Minako grinned. "So much tears and sadness can't be good for mental health. So we need to balance them out by positive emotions. And chocolate is the quickest way to get them!"

Nightmare frowned. Chocolate could influence emotions? Heck, food could do that? That just seemed strange to her. Wasn't food just for stilling your hunger? "Chocolate can do that?"

"Yep." Minako said cheerfully again. "It contains some substances that affect the mood by making the body produce special hormones. But an overdose can cause one to become hyper, and that's the other bad situation."

"So you eat too much chocolate every day then, huh?" Nightmare teased.

Minako giggled. "Nah, I don't need chocolate to be sunny, I have enough of that from nature."

"That can't be healthy," the younger girl muttered. "You should ask Ignika to check the way your body is build someday, I'm sure something's wrong with it."

"No thanks, I'm perfectly fine the way I am." Minako declined the offer. "So, you coming?" She asked, heading towards the kitchen.

Nightmare nodded and stood up. Minako started to head for the kitchen, but her guest stayed behind, seemingly a bit reluctant to follow. She stared at her feet and fiddled with her folded hands. "Ehm… Minako… You… I… I mean…" the Saurian of Fear stammered. Inwardly she cursed. She really didn't know how she had to do what she wanted to do. She'd never done it before. "I… well… you know… thank you."

Minako stopped in her tracks, touched by those words. "You're welcome." She said. Then turned around, flashing Nightmare the sunniest and warmest of her smiles: "Everything is gonna be alright, you'll see!"

Nightmare smiled as well, and wiped the last of her tears away. "Put that smile away, love twit, you're making me ill." Yes, she had said love twit again, but it wasn't meant as the insult it usually was. It was just… a tease. A harmless nickname now. She wouldn't insult Minako again, ever. Because she knew that the blonde with the red bow understood her, because she had offered her comfort, had taken those eons of hurt and washed them away. And she hadn't done that because they were symbiosis partners. She had done it because she was her friend.

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**Next chapter: A peaceful evening!**

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BookLoverAF: I hope this chapter was as interesting as you thought the title made it sound! Thanks for reviewing! =)


	55. A peaceful evening

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**55. ****A peaceful evening**

Nightmare let out an exasperated sigh. "I don't get it, love dove, why do I keep losing?" She laid down the eleven cards in her hand on the table so that the Senshi of Love could recollect them all and shuffle the deck for another game. It was evening now, the sun had already set, and the two girls sat at the table in the kitchen, playing a game of cards Minako had taught her Saurian guest.

"Heh. You gotta think ahead." The Senshi of Venus replied while shuffling the deck. "You need to think and decide which cards to play now and which should be saved for later." Having said that, she began dealing cards again.

"It's the pictures on the cards," Nightmare huffed, pointing at said images of various dinosaurs that were printed on the cards. "They're so distracting. Not to mention beautiful and nice to look at, I don't want to throw them away. Why can't the game be whoever has the most cards wins?"

Minako chuckled. "There are such games, I'm sure, but I don't know any. And you mustn't let the pretty pictures distract you."

"You picked this deck on purpose, Minako! You want me to lose!" Nightmare accused in mock-anger.

"Nah, I just figured out that you're not the one for pictures of cute little kitties or anime girls..." Minako said, putting a card on the table.

"These reptiles are fine," Nightmare confirmed with a nod. She looked over the cards in her hand with a smile. "They're very interesting. Some look familiar, and some don't. Ignika should see these, I'm sure he'd find them fascinating. Are they real or fictional animals, love dove?"

"Well, they're real enough, but they all died out millions of years ago due to an ice age. Now the climate is too cold for reptiles like these." Minako explained. "Come on, your move."

"That just sucks," the disguised Saurian female muttered, as she stared at her cards thoughtfully, no doubt trying to pick one to lay down.

"You mean that the dinosaurs died out, or your cards?" Minako asked.

"Both," Nightmare quipped, before finally putting down one of her cards on the table.

"Uh-uh-uh!" Minako said and shook her index finger at Nightmare. "Never tell your opponents whether you have bad cards or not. Don't tell about good cards, either. In fact, one should keep as secretive about them as possible." Having made that conclusion, she took both cards, turned them over and put them to the side.

"And why's that?" Minako's guest wondered aloud, a confused look on her face.

"Because otherwise your opponent will have an advantage over you." Minako explained. "If you let him know you have bad cards, it will lead them to do more daring moves, knowing you can't counter because of your bad cards. Likewise, if you let them know you have good cards, they'll try to be careful and make you play all of them so you're left with bad ones." She paused. "This is true not only for card games, you know."

"I suppose not," the black-haired girl muttered. She then gave Minako a disbelieving look. "A valid, wise point from you, love twit? What's next, ice burning you?"

"Well, if something is way too cold, you could get frostbite..." Then looked at Nightmare. "What?"

The Saurian of Fear just rolled her eyes. "You know that's not what I meant! I'm just surprised you said something so wise when you act so foolish and lightheaded most of the time!"

Minako chuckled. "Acting foolish doesn't mean one is foolish. Sometimes it's better to let people think you're stupid, makes them underestimate you. Your move, by the way."

"I need to get my ears cleaned, I thought I just heard you make another valid point," Nightmare said with a teasing grin. She then studied her cards again for a long while, until she picked one out and made to lay it down on the table. Just as the card was about to touch the table, however, the Saurian girl hesitated. "You know… I…" She struggled to find the correct words. Being nice, calm, gentle in her speech… It was all so alien to her, she had no idea how to do it. But with Minako, it now felt right to at least try to be so. "I… I've never done anything like this before…"

"Hmm?" Minako hummed her question as she looked at Nightmare's card and then at her own cards, thinking how to counter.

"Well…" Nightmare hesitated. Why was Minako so slow, she wondered annoyed. Didn't she notice this was hard enough as it was for her without her having to explain in detail? "Just sitting here with someone… playing a game that's not lethal and… well, just being _nice_ and talk…"

Minako smiled. "Well, it's a nice change of pace, no? Besides, from what you've told, you never really had an opportunity or person to do so with."

The Senshi of Love's guest quietly shook her head, muttering a barely audible 'no'.

"Et voila." Minako nodded, grinning. "So enjoy it now that you can."

Nightmare smiled faintly and returned her attention to her cards.

After a few moments of silence and a couple of card moves, Minako said: "You know, I always suspected there's something like that in you."

"Huh?" The words had pulled Nightmare out of her analysis of her cards and she looked up from her hand in confusion. "What is in me?"

"A nice side." Minako explained cheerfully.

The youngest sister of the Saurian family almost gasped. "I do not!" she said in mock-rage, 'glaring' heatedly at her new human friend.

Minako laughed at that playful glare. "No, really, you do, and I knew it." She said, grinning widely.

Nightmare huffed, but didn't further deny Minako's claim. Uncomfortably, the young Saurian girl said: "Just don't tell anyone, Minako. I'll loose my face and my reputation if you do."

Minako studied the younger girl's face for a while. "Well, if you don't want to, I won't... However..." The blonde looked into Nightmare's eyes. "You you really think you need to keep such a reputation?"

"Why not?" Nightmare replied with a frown on her face. "I mean, just because I've let you in my heart, doesn't mean I'll suddenly be all sugar and rainbows! We're symbiosis partners, so you're different from all others. I… I don't trust others enough to let them in."

"Well, I don't expect such a radical change from you..." Minako said in a low tone. "But do you really want to continue hurting every single person who comes within your range? You're lonely, but you know, nobody would want to befriend a mean prickly hedgehog."

"What's a… hedgehog?" the blonde's guest wondered, her face bearing a confused expression. "And as for befriending people, I have you now, don't I? One good friend is all I need, really."

"A hedgehog is an animal. It's about this big," Minako showed the approximate size with her hands. "And its back is all covered in needles. When danger comes, it curls up in a ball, so nobody can bite or even touch it. Difference is that the hedgehog still moves around and lives well with other animals until there's danger. You're in a prickly mode 24/7."

The blonde sighed. "As for me... You do have me, and I am your friend, be sure of it, but... You're eternal thanks to your brother, and my time is limited." Then she murmured: "At least until proven otherwise..."

"That's no real problem," Nightmare said offhandedly with a shrug. "I'll simply ask Ignika to make you immortal too, and then I won't ever lose you." She said those words as easily as one talked about the weather, as if immortality was not a heavy subject, or reaching it was as easy as swatting flies.

Minako sighed and shook her head. "I know you don't want to lose me, but... I don't want to lose a lot of people... My family, my friends... How do you think it'll feel to see them all age and die before my eyes, while I remain the same?" The Senshi of Venus shook her head again. "I don't want eternal life. Not yet..."

Nightmare's good mood melted like snow under the sun. "I don't want to loose you, Minako," she said sharply, sitting up straight and tensed.

Minako didn't seem to listen, too lost in her own thoughts. "I still have my parents to take care of when they're old... Can't leave them on their own..." She muttered.

"I don't want to loose you!" the black-haired reptile disguised as a human snapped, looking at Minako with an expression that could best be described as pleading and panicking. "You promised me! You promised you wouldn't go, remember?"

Minako looked up at her and smiled: "Calm down, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon. But it may very well be that someday I won't be able to stay by your side. And I want you to be prepared in case something happens to me." That was true. After they had symbiosis, Minako realized she cares for Nightmare, cares as much as she would for a sibling, if she ever had one. And she did want her to be able to live a life without the loneliness she had for hundreds of years before. "What if I get killed? I'll reincarnate, sure, but there's no guarantee it'll happen soon, and when it does, I may not have my memories."

"I'll protect you!" the younger girl replied determinedly. "I won't let any enemy lay a finger on you, won't let anything take you from me! I won't let you die! I won't!" And she meant it, every single word. The symbiosis had made her understand that she was not alone, that she could trust at least this one person with her own personal fears and troubles. It was an unfamiliar but all too welcome comfort and security, and Nightmare didn't want to loose it, not ever. She would let nothing, no enemy, no illness and not even time and age tear this warmth away from her. She had spent too many eons isolated in her own heart to allow that.

Minako stood up and went over to the black-haired girl. "Thank you..." She said and hugged her tenderly. "You know I promised to be there for you and support you. But, please, try to understand..." The older girl looked into the Saurian's eyes. "I don't want you to make me the only support of your life. That's why you need to talk with family, and... well, try to be nicer to people."

Nightmare clenched her jaw and said nothing at first. Then she let out an unhappy sigh and leaned back against her host and into the embrace. "I can't just change!" she whispered quietly, her voice shaking. The Saurian shut her eyes to prevent tears from coming out.

Minako nodded. "I know. But I'm sure you can try." She looked at Nightmare trying her best not to cry again, and sighed. "Poor girl..." She said quietly, as her hand instinctively began stroking her hair.

The guest of the Senshi of Love was feeling sad and vulnerable again, a feeling she was not used to and did not like. Crying was a sign of weakness, or so she believed, and she didn't want to cry again. She hated Minako seeing her like that, all snivelling and pathetic and useless. It was humiliating, for herself and for her new friend.

"I… I'm tired," she muttered quietly. It was both true and an excuse to get away from this situation that made her feel vulnerable.

Minako smiled. "Well, let's go to bed then. It's indeed getting kinda late..."

Nightmare nodded and reluctantly slipped out of the embrace, ready to drag herself to the couch where she was allowed to sleep. Normally, she didn't complain about it at all. The couch was soft and warm and all in all an excellent sleeping place. But at that moment, with her feeling so vulnerable and sad, and with all that had happened today, the idea of sleeping on the couch seemed lonely, cold and unappealing to the Saurian of Fear. Another idea came up in her head, and though she didn't think Minako would agree to it, she asked anyway. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, after all.

"I… Ehm… I mean… Minako…" Nightmare stuttered, feeling very stupid and embarrassed while her lips tried to form the words required to pose the question. "Can I… I mean… Can I sleep with you? I… I don't… I don't want to be alone again." There, she had asked it. No doubt her host would now laugh at her, or find the idea ridiculous, but still Nightmare had wanted to ask, as it was indeed what she wished for.

Minako seemed to be taken aback by such a sudden request, but after a few moments of thinking she smiled and said: "Sure! I don't see why not. Have to warn you, though, I'm not a very still sleeper... I might fall from the bed or push you out."

Nightmare managed to smile at that. "That makes two of us, love dove."

Minako laughed softly. "Okay, so we're sleeping in my bed, and expect to find each other on the floor the next morning, right?"

The Saurian girl nodded, a bit too eager perhaps. "Right!"

"Okay, let's go then." Minako smiled, took the girl's hand and led her away from the kitchen and then upstairs.

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**Next chapter: Human bathing rituals!**

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	56. Human bathing rituals

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**56. Human bathing rituals**

As they climbed the stairs, Nightmare suddenly became aware of the fact that they were one person short. "Hey, Minako, where's the hairball, I mean, Artemis?" Truth to be told, she hadn't seen the cat for the entire day.

"Ah, him... He has gone out on his own affairs. I suspect that he's finally getting serious with Luna. Everybody knows it has to happen one day, otherwise how would Diana be born?" Minako explained happily, glad to gossip a bit, even if it was about her cat's private life.

Nightmare, however, was lost as soon as Minako mentioned the other two names. "Who and who?" she wondered aloud.

Minako chuckled. "Luna is Usagi's talking cat, black and with a crescent mark as well. Diana is Chibiusa's kitten, and is their daughter from the future." The two girls came to the bathroom door and Minako entered it, walking over to the sink. She then took a cotton tampon, poured a bit lotion on it and started washing away her makeup.

Nightmare observed her host for a moment, not really getting what she was doing. And so, when she could no longer stand not knowing, she, as gently as possible, demanded an explanation.

"I'm washing away my makeup. You may have not noticed, but most women paint their faces with special cosmetics to look prettier. I'm no exception." Minako smiled at herself in the mirror. "I do only light makeup, though, while I'm still pretty from nature."

"You're very modest, aren't you?" Nightmare teased. Then she raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms. "But I don't get why you need to try and be pretty all of the time, unless you're looking for a mate."

Minako chuckled. "You never know you might meet a nice cute guy in a cafe or a shop when going home after college or just hanging out... Then it's best to know you look perfect than later be embarrassed thinking about various little things he may or may not have noticed." Minako finished washing off her makeup and started brushing her teeth.

"Now what are you doing?" the Saurian girl cried out in disgust as she noticed the foam forming itself around Minako's mouth. Her host wasn't getting ill all of the sudden, was she? From the looks of it, though, Nightmare feared so…

Minako spit the foam from her mouth and said: "Ah, I'm just brushing my teeth. Keeps them white and prevents infection."

"But you're foaming at the mouth!" Nightmare cried, slightly in panic. "This way of brushing isn't healthy! If you want your teeth to remain healthy, chew on the right wood, as disgusting as that is!"

Minako spit again. "Don't worry, it's not me making the foam, it's the toothpaste I'm using to clean them. Heh, wood..." Minako shook her head. "If we still used that, there'd never be enough right wood for everybody. Why, every single tree would have to be cut into tiny pieces."

Nightmare remembered Minako telling her once just how many humans there lived in this world, and as she did so, she could see Minako's point. "Well, I suppose you're right, but still…" She let out a deep sigh. "I guess I overreacted. But it's not my fault, there's so much weird and unusual stuff here…"

"It's okay." Minako simply said and finished brushing her teeth by rinsing her mouth. "Want to brush them too, by the way? I have a spare toothbrush here somewhere..."

"Well, I guess I'll try… Having to learn to be human and all…" the younger girl replied, albeit reluctantly. To be honest, having seen Minako, the thought of cleaning her teeth the human way didn't seem very appealing. She preferred chewing wood to it! And she hated chewing wood.

"Okies!" Minako smiled and went over to a cabinet on the wall, then started rummaging inside. "Now, where was it... Aha!" Minako unpacked the spare toothbrush, which was red, and gave it to Nightmare.

Ignika's youngest sister accepted the weird tool and sniffed it cautiously. "What kind of stuff is this made from, love dove?" she wondered. "It doesn't smell very natural."

"It's plastic, like most things in the human world." Minako replied. "Don't worry, it's perfectly safe."

"I don't know, love twit," Nightmare muttered as she observed the toothbrush from all sides and sniffed it again for good measure. "Are you sure it's safe to put this kind of unnatural material in my mouth? It may be poisonous."

Minako smiled at her guest. "I've been doing it almost all my life! Don't worry, it's _made_ to be put in the mouth."

The Saurian of Fear let out a sign and surrendered. "Okay, I'll take your word for it…" She took the brush firmly in her hands and gave her host an inquiring look. "So I just… put it in my mouth and brush?"

"Nope, gotta put the toothpaste on first." Said Minako and did it. It was her favourite mint Aquafresh toothpaste.

The strange goo on her brush made Nightmare frown in disgust and confusion once more. "What the…?" she sputtered, looking from the toothpaste to Minako. "Love dove, this stuff has three colours, that's a clear sign it's poisonous and lethal!"

Minako shrugged. "Come on, I just did it, and have been doing it with this particular type of paste for three months already. And as you see I'm alive and healthy."

"Too healthy sometimes," Nightmare muttered under her breath before she finally gave in. Bracing herself for death by poison, she started to brush her teeth, only to immediately gag and spit it out again. "That stuff is absolutely filthy!" the Saurian girl declared angrily, wiping her tongue as if she had burned it. "My whole mouth's frozen!"

Minako raised her eyebrow. "Oh? And I like that. Leaves a nice cool minty smell behind..." Then she looked doubtingly at the cabinet on the wall. "Maybe I have a fruit-flavoured one here somewhere?"

"No thanks, love twit," Minako's guest grumbled. "I've had it with funny-looking goo. I'll just brush my teeth clean with water, thank you very much."

Minako shrugged. "Suit yourself. But I'll buy you nicer tasting toothpaste tomorrow, anyway."

While Nightmare was brushing her teeth, Minako went to her room and took spare panties from a drawer in the wardrobe, as well as her nightgown. Then she went back to the bathroom and started undressing to take a shower.

Nightmare tore her gaze away from her reflection in the mirror to glance worriedly at her undressing host. "What are you going to do now?"

"Wash myself. I do so every evening." Minako pointed at the bathtub with the shower. She kept undressing until she was wearing just her panties and the bra, then stopped. "Do you mind if I undress fully? Some girls are shy to look even at members of their own gender."

Tensed, the Saurian of Fear let out a low growl. She had her fingers curled and was leaning away from Minako as much as she could without the other girl finding it suspicious. "You're not going to…" Nightmare began, a bit of an embarrassed blush coming up on her cheeks. "Well, you know… want to mate with me, are you?"

Minako raised her eyebrow. "Of course not. What gave you that idea?" She went over to the cabinet and took out a big hair slide, then took off her bow and put her hair up.

"You're getting naked in some body's presence who is not your family," the younger girl replied slowly, finding it hard and embarrassing to speak. "Saurian females only do so when they want to mate."

"Oh." Minako blinked. "For humans, it's... Well, not entirely normal, but in some special places like public baths and hot springs, everybody undresses fully... Only members of the same gender, though. And I'm kind of used to that, after all, I don't like to be all stinky after trainings, so I take a shower together with the rest of the girls..."

"What?" the black-haired girl cried out. "You mean that after playing volleyball we're _supposed_ to get naked in a room together with girls we barely know? And same gender means nothing in this world, Minako! Here, girls hit on girls! For all I know, you do too, and you undress now because you find me attractive, Great Beings forbid!"

Minako shook her head. "Relax, it's alright. Girls who like girls are usually subtle, they won't hit on you openly until they're sure you might react positive. But you don't have to worry about that, either. You're 13 human years old, and at that age mating is forbidden by law, and if anybody tries to make advances on you, they'll be severely punished if you report it."

An eyebrow shot up as Nightmare gave Minako a look of surprise. She understood the word law, even if for her it was just another word for rule, but it didn't stop her from getting the gist of what her host was saying. Rules forbidding to mate until a certain age, though? Weird. Very weird, but also helpful. Since she would never age, she'd remain thirteen human years old, she reasoned, meaning she wouldn't have to worry about annoying interested males once mating season kicked in. Then again, maybe Minako was just joking.

"You serious?" she asked carefully.

Minako nodded. "I am. But even if you weren't underage, I wouldn't hit on you. I find males attractive." She smiled widely and took her pink shower cap from the cabinet. "Gils like Haruka and Michiru are an exception, not a rule, otherwise we'd all have died out."

"You promise not to hit on me?" Nightmare asked quietly, nervously and even almost fearfully.

"I promise." Minako nodded firmly. Then put her shower cap on and asked: "So, can I undress now, or you want to turn around?"

"No, no," Nightmare hurriedly said. If the love twit said she wasn't going to hit on her, nor going to mate with her, then Nightmare wasn't about to let the thought of a naked human scare her away. She could deal with that. She was strong, damn it! "Go ahead, love dove."

"Okay." The Senshi of Love simply said, took off her last items of clothing, got into the bathtub and closed the curtain. Soon she was contently humming a tune, the warm water and orange-scented shower gel washing away the stresses and troubles of the day.

Satisfied that this particular awkward moment and talk were over, Nightmare resumed brushing her teeth. A good Saurian looked after her teeth, after all. They were her most important natural tools that she had left in her human body, now that her claws were gone. She listened to the sound of the blonde humming in the shower and couldn't help but roll her eyes. The love dove could be so… easy going, it continued to amaze her. Then again, she was bathing in warm water, and who didn't love that? Nightmare herself had fond memories of the few hotsprings she had come across in her travels with her family.

"It must be nice," she said, loudly enough so that Minako would hear her above her humming and the streaming water. "To always have warm water at your disposal."

"It sure is!" Minako agreed. "But we're dependant on it, you know. There's no other way to get usable water here."

Nightmare merely nodded, not knowing what else to say. She had finished brushing her teeth and was now just standing in the bathroom, listening to the sound of her host bathing, and feeling at loss of what to do now.

As if knowing what Nightmare was thinking now, Minako asked: "Hey, after I'm done, do you want to take a shower yourself?"

The idea of washing herself with warm water did appeal to the young Saurian girl, however, there was one problem. "I'd like to, love dove, except that I don't know how to operate that warm water machine you're using."

Minako chuckled. "It's easy, pretty much the same as the tap..." Minako began explaining, but then she got a mischievous idea and poked her head from behind the curtain. "Or you can get here now, I'll wash you yourself." She said, half teasing, half joking.

Nightmare's eyes widened as she heard that suggestion, but she tried her very best to hide it. Bathing with someone else was not new to her, and the love dove had promised not to hit on her or mate with her. So maybe the idea wasn't that bad after all. Of course, Nightmare knew that Minako was teasing her, probably hoping she'd react in shock and start screaming in fear or something. Well, she'd show the blonde! She wasn't afraid of Minako, not even if the two of them were naked and bathing together!

On second thought, maybe she was. But she refused to yield to it. "Okay, love dove," she announced, sounding far braver than she felt. "Saves me the trouble of having to learn how to use another weird machine."

Minako was also surprised. Who knew Nightmare would agree? But then again, it's nothing bad. "Okay then. Undress and get in." She turned off the shower and opened the curtain.

Seeing the surprised look on Minako's face made Nightmare smile. She had caught her host off guard with her decision! Though she would no longer compete with the love dove on a lethal, mean manner, that didn't mean she didn't enjoy a bit of friendly sparring or teasing from time to time.

"Me and my sisters used to bathe together, you know," the black-haired girl explained as she began to peal off her human clothes. "The few times we had the luxury for a full bath, we washed each other's back, since we can't reach that on our own."

Minako smiled. "Well, we can't really reach our backs, either, but since washing is mostly private, we have scrubs with long handles. Still nice to have someone else do it, though."

Her fellow girl said nothing as she removed the last articles of clothing still sticking to her body. Once she was as nude as the day she crawled out of her egg, Nightmare moved over to the bath, but stopped hesitatingly before entering. "Now listen, love twit," she growled on a warning tone. "You said you don't hit on girls, and I'll trust you on your word. But if you make one wrong move on my body, then no matter how nice I have become, you WILL regret it, you got me?"

"Crystal clear, Nightmare." Minako grinned widely. "Now get in, I'm getting kinda cold."

Slowly, the Saurian of Fear added quietly: "And if you're wondering why I agreed to this… You're kinda like a sister to me now, and it's okay for sisters to bathe together…" With those words said, the young girl quickly moved into the shower and hung her head so that her hair concealed her face and her reddened cheeks.

Minako smiled at this. It was quite touching to hear... Then she looked attentively at Nightmare. "My, you definitely need to wash yourself. And your hair, too. Now, look here." She pointed at the shower. "That's a shower. You can leave it hung up there or take it down like this." Minako took the showerhead in her hand and brought it down. "Now, the rest is the same as with the tap. Red handle is hot water, blue one is cold." She turned the shower on again so that water was nice and warm.

Nightmare nodded knowingly. This she understood, having been introduced to the tap days before. It was nothing new yet, and so she managed to relax a bit and enjoy the first warm water she had felt on her skin in ages.

Minako smiled at her enjoying and gave her the shower. "Here, soak a bit. And make sure your hair is wet." Then she took a sponge from one of the corner-shelves hanging next to the bathtub, poured shower gel on it and squeezed it, making the foam.

The black-haired sister of the Child of Life cast a worried, suspicious glance at the sponge and the foam from the shower gel. She wrinkled her nose as the scent of the soap hit her. "More strange stuff with poisonous colours?" she asked carefully, meanwhile directing the shower at her chest to let the warm water run over the entire front of her body. She almost let out a content sigh.

Minako chuckled. "It's not poisonous, unless you eat it. It's about the same as soap we wash our hands with, only liquid. It washes the dirt and old skin off better than just water." She explained.

"But why does it smell like…" The Saurian disguised as a human sniffed the scent again to make sure. "Flowers?" she cried out in disgust, gagging audibly.

"Cause it's made to smell so." Minako grinned. "You don't like that?"

"I hate flowers," Nightmare grumbled in response. "My arm got trapped once in a flesh eating flower's mouth, and its acid almost melted my arm off while its sickening sweet swell almost made me faint!"

Minako's eyes went wide at that, and her jaw dropped. She hastily took the shower from Nightmare and washed all the foam out of the sponge. "Sorry, sorry..." She took another bottle from the shelf. "This better?" She gave Nightmare the orange-scented shower gel she herself used.

"Smells like fruit," the disguised reptile said, mildly approving.

"Okay. Glad you like it, it's my favourite one, too." Minako smiled and hung the shower up to free her hands. Then turned to Nightmare. "And now let's make you squeaky clean!" She declared and started enthusiastically washing the younger girl.

Nightmare squealed and quickly shut her eyes, her head bowed down as her body tensed up fully. Yet she didn't make a move to stop Minako from washing her. She kept repeating to herself that her sisters had done the same to her in the past, but it wasn't working as well as she had hoped it would. "AWKARD!" she said loudly between clenched teeth.

Minako stopped washing her and looked at her feeling a bit guilty. "Heh, sorry... You agreed to that when I offered it, so..."

"I know, love dove," Nightmare replied as evenly as she could, still keeping her eyes closed while her cheeks burned red. "And I'm not stopping you. I'm going to prove that I can let myself be washed by you, just like I have no problems with being washed by Traveller or Gravitas!"

Minako felt warm and touched as she said that. "Thanks." She said in a soft tone and continued to wash the Saurian teenager, with less eagerness perhaps, but still gently and thoroughly. It was so strange and alien to get along so well with Nightmare, and to be so close and wash her now. As she did that, she suddenly thought of Usagi and Chibiusa at the hot springs... When not teasing and bickering, they acted pretty much the same with each other...

"And I'm NOT embarrassed, love dove!" the young Saurian girl said, still with her eyes closed and unaware of the Senshi of Love's thoughts. "I'm just…" she fell silent as she hastily looked for an excuse. "Not used to this! Yeah, that's it, just not used to this!"

"Sure you are." Minako smiled. "Well, your upper body is clean enough now, so wash the rest yourself. Sister or not, there are some areas I'd rather not touch." Unaware of the word that slipped from her tongue, she gave Nightmare the sponge and turned to take the shower down again.

Nightmare hadn't heard the slip of the tongue either, too busy trying to get the thought of Minako washing her _everywhere _out of her head. She hurriedly snatched the sponge from her host's outstretched hand and started scrubbing herself clean.

Minako took the shower and turned back to Nightmare. "Well then, now to wash your hair." She came close to her guest and started to soak the girl's hair with the shower, washing the foam from her body away while at it.

"It'll take a lot of scrubbing to get all the dirt out of my hair," Nightmare muttered, enjoying the feeling of warm water running over her skin and scalp. "I think there's even some blood from our last fight left in it, even though I tried to get it out under that… tap."

Minako shook her head. "Yeah, you're right about that. Well, I'll try my best!" She finished cheerfully and hung the shower back up, and then took a shampoo bottle. Remembering the way Nightmare reacted to flower scent, she decided to let the Saurian smell the vanilla-scented shampoo first. "How is this?"

"Smells… okay, I guess," the younger girl lamented. "What is it?"

"It's a shampoo. A kind of soap made especially for the hair." Minako explained and poured some on Nightmare's head. Then she put the bottle back on the shelf and started to wash Nightmare's hair gently while massaging her scalp, making sure all the old skin and dirt go away.

The Saurian of Fear enjoyed the skilled fingers massaging her scalp, and the scent coming from the 'shampoo' was not unpleasant either. Before she could stop herself, Nightmare purred in enjoyment.

Minako giggled at that. "Kitty." She said quietly and affectionately.

Hearing this, Nightmare's eyes snapped open and she puffed her cheeks a bit while putting her hands on her hips. "Hey!" she snapped in mock-anger, not liking being compared to something that was _cute_.

"Hey what? You purred just like a kitty now. And you're just as cute when you do that." Minako grinned.

"I'm not cute!" the other girl cried out in shock and disbelief.

"Oh yes you are!" Minako insisted.

"No!" Nightmare protested vehemently. "Why would I be?"

"Why wouldn't you be?" Minako asked back.

"Because," the Saurian female replied on a tone that said that what she was going to say next was the most obvious thing in the world. "I'm Nightmare. _Nightmare_!"

And then Minako said something she didn't expect herself to say:

"And you're my little sis..." Those words were soft and calm, and despite them being so weird and unlikely they too sounded like the most obvious thing in the world.

It became very quiet in the bathroom, aside from the water streaming from the shower. Nightmare's eyes had widened in shock and her jaw had dropped. Slowly, very slowly, the wet Saurian girl turned around until she was facing her host. Quietly she raised her eyes until she met Minako's gaze, and Nightmare felt herself saying very quietly, as if she could barely believe what the Senshi of Love had just said: "Really?"

Minako smiled and said, slowly and awkwardly: "Well, you said I was like a sister to you now, and... Well, I always wanted a sibling, so... I thought, why not? So you're my little sis now."

"I am?" Nightmare said tonelessly, her expressionless face and gaze still directed at Minako's.

"Well, sounds weird, but, and it's not official... But it'll harm nobody if we call ourselves that..." Minako paused. "Unless you don't want to."

Nightmare just stared at the blonde, her lower lip now quivering and tears threatening to spill. Then suddenly, she lunged forward and latched herself to the Soldier of Venus, pulling her into a tight embrace. "Thank you…" she said with a tiny, shaking voice, as tears ran down her face and were washed away by the water.

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**Next chapter: Newfound sisterhood!**

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	57. Newfound sisterhood

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**57. Newfound sisterhood**

Nightmare just stared at the blonde, her lower lip now quivering and tears threatening to spill. Then suddenly, she lunged forward and latched herself to the Soldier of Venus, pulling her into a tight embrace. "Thank you…" she said with a tiny, shaking voice, as tears ran down her face and were washed away by the water.

Minako hugged her new sister and caressed her back, comforting her. "You're welcome, imouto-chan..."

Ignika's youngest sister didn't know that word, so she simply remained silent and continued to hug her newfound 'sister'.

"It's the word for 'little sister'." Minako explained. "You can call me onee-chan, 'big sister', if you want."

"O… nee… chan…?" Nightmare repeated quietly, testing out the new word. It sounded strange, but not unpleasant, and had a rather nice ring to it. The black-haired girl decided she liked the word, though she preferred 'love dove' or 'love twit' or just her real name.

"Yep, onee-chan." Minako smiled happily. "Well, let's finish washing you now, it's late already."

As if on cue, the Saurian of Fear yawned. "You're right, love dove…" she said softly. "And it's kind of getting awkward hugging you like this…" A blush coloured Nightmare's cheeks as she hurriedly let go of her new 'sister', suddenly very aware of the nakedness of them both.

Minako just chuckled and started washing shampoo from her sister's hair.

Suddenly Nightmare yelped and squeezed her eyes shut as some of the foam got in them. She snarled and clawed with her blunt fingers at her eyes. "It's burning and stinging my eyes!" she wailed in discomfort.

"Whoops, sorry, forgot to warn you!" Minako said, apologizing, and quickly directed the shower on the girl's face, washing the foam away from it. "Don't worry, it'll stop stinging soon."

The disguised reptile let out a relieved sigh, feeling the stinging lessen. "Thank you, onee-chan."

Minako just smiled and continued washing the younger girl's hair. It wasn't very easy to wash, after all, Nightmare didn't get a chance to do that for a long time, but in the end Minako was satisfied. She turned the shower off, got out of the bathtub and quickly dried herself with a big towel. Then she took a much smaller one from the hook where it was hanging and warped it around Nightmare's head, so that she could get dressed without making her clothes wet.

"Dry yourself with this." Minako said, giving her the big towel. "I'll be right back." With those words, Minako slipped on her nightgown and panties and exited the bathroom.

Wondering what her new 'sister' was up to, Nightmare nonetheless started to dry herself off. It was weird, she realized while rubbing the water away. When this day had begun, she couldn't stand the mere presence of the love dove. Now she was her closest 'sister' and friend. All because of that symbiosis. Or had it been something different than that that had caused the change? Like the fact that Minako had offered her comfort despite everything she had done? Probably, Nightmare reasoned. The symbiosis had merely sealed the bond that the two of them had willingly set the first steps towards.

But it remained strange, weird even, that her behaviour had changed so radically when it came to dealing with Minako. Why was that so, Nightmare wondered. After all, all the love dove had said was that she understood, that she'd be there for her when she needed her. The Saurian of Fear let out a quiet sigh as she knew, deep down in her heart, that those words had been the exact ones that she had longed to hear for her entire life. Yes, she had sisters, and they loved her… But Gravitas was Gravitas, born and raised with zero understanding of feelings and emotions and unable to act on them or express them. She never was capable of giving Nightmare the comfort she had looked for. It had more been the other way around. And it had always been like that, she felt. She had always been there for her family, but in her opinion, they hadn't been for her.

Minako was different, Nightmare thought as she dried her legs off. She was not family. She was a stranger like all other strangers had been. But had the love dove chased her away because of her powers of Fear? Had she called her 'Immoral One' behind her back? No. She had always tried to befriend the young Saurian girl, tried to get her to open up, tried to get her to relax and have fun and feel at ease. And Nightmare, cursing her own stupidity, knew that she had only realised all of what Minako had done for her today. And that was what had caused her to change. Her eyes had been unwilling to see, grown that way by eon after eon of being alone and incapable of trusting anyone with the young frightened girl within. Today, they had been rudely opened, in a weird way. And when she had finally seen, the sight that had greeted her was that of Minako still offering her comfort, holding out a hand for her to grasp, despite everything she had done.

Nightmare rubbed the tears of gratitude away with the towel quickly, before Minako returned and saw them.

Minako returned to the bathroom and smiled at the Saurian teenager. "Sorry, don't have anything of your size, so you'll have to sleep in my nightgown." Said the Senshi and proudly presented a knee-length light-pink nightgown to Nightmare.

"Put on that _pink_ frilly tunic when I have my own clothes? Why?" the Saurian girl exclaimed in protest, staring at the pink gown in utter horror.

"Well, firstly, because you're squeaky clean and your clothes aren't, they need washing." Minako explained sternly. "Secondly, because it's the shortest nightgown I have, all the rest are either pyjamas or ankle-long."

"But it's… pink…"

Minako smiled. "Come on, it's only for one night. I'll buy you a different one, promise. I just don't want you to put dirty clothes on now that you're so clean."

Seeing there was no escape, Nightmare surrendered. "Fine, for ONE night, it'll do." And then, grumbling all the way, the Saurian of Fear put on the borrowed and pink nightgown. No sooner was she finished with this, or the black-haired girl had to stifle a yawn again. She was really getting sleepy, it seemed.

Minako looked at the girl, satisfied with the view. "This nightgown suits you, you know. Gotta buy a similar fashion..." She nodded to herself, making a mental note. "Now, let's dry your hair."

Nightmare frowned. Dry her hair? "Onee-chan, I already did that." She mentioned at the black mess that was her hair, now full of knots and ties from where she had rubbed it with a towel. She had scrubbed her hair so hard she thought her scalp would come off.

"Yeah, and your hair looks like a mop now. That won't do. Look at mine!" She ran a hand through her golden locks, making them fall down beautifully. "Besides, they're still wet at the roots. So sorry, gotta dry them the human way. But first I'll comb it." Minako took a haircomb from the shelf and started combing the girl's hair, carefully untangling the knots, making sure it was as painless as possible. "Next time just tell me to dry them, kay?"

"What's the difference between you rubbing my hair with a towel or you doing it?" Minako's new 'sister' demanded to know.

"A completely different principle." Minako said, grinning widely. When she was sure that the comb can get through the girl's hair without meeting any resistance, she went over to the cabinet, took the fan and plugged it. "Come over here."

Nightmare frowned. "Another machine? You humans really need machines for everything, huh?"

"We don't _need_ them for everything, we _have_ them for everything." Minako replied. "Besides, it's much better than using the towel. Watch." She turned the fan on and made it blow in Nightmare's direction.

"It blows hot air and makes noise?" the Saurian of Fear said dryly, unimpressed.

Minako chuckled. "Yep. And, believe me, it's much faster to dry the hair with hot air than wait for them to dry naturally or use the towel. With hair my length, it's a must." She then put a comb-attachment to it. "And you can even attach a comb to it, so your hair won't get tangled. Or attach a round comb and make wavy or curly hair. Really, there's a ton of uses for the fan." The Senshi explained to her new sister. "Now come here and let me dry them properly."

Seeing no reason not to – after all, it was only some hot air, nothing to be afraid of – Nightmare moved over to the Senshi of Venus to get her hair dried. It was weird how for something as simple as washing themselves, humans needed so many unnatural tools and things like showers, soaps, sponges and fans. Talk about overkill. Not that she really complained, she did feel clean, but it was still all a bit much.

Minako, meanwhile, was humming a tune while drying the Saurian's hair. It was strange and pleasant at the same time. When Minako's mother did that for her, which she stopped doing when she was 7, Minako often imagined her own daughter or sibling, of whom she would take care of and be the best of best friends. Now she had a sibling, even though they weren't related by blood. Yet the symbiosis bond felt no less strong than that... And, after all, being 'sisters' could forever remain their 'secret', their 'game', with the exception of it being as serious as it can possibly be. Nightmare was far from the perfect little sister Minako imagined, but in Minako's opinion, it was even better this way.

Minako finished drying the girl's hair and combed it once again. Satisfied, she said: "Okay, let's go to bed now."

"Finally, I'm really tired for some reason…" the younger girl replied as she stretched her arms behind her back and yawned. "Though," she added, with a voice that was barely audible. "I did kind of… enjoy the attention."

Minako smiled. "I'm glad. I enjoy giving it too, imouto-chan." The Senshi took her sister's hand and led her to her bedroom.

"You really don't mind that I… well… you know… sleep in your bed?" Nightmare whispered quietly as they walked. "I mean… I'll understand if you find it pathetic and weak of me… Because I'm sure it is…"

"Don't be silly." Minako told her guest. "I perfectly understand why you want it. It's natural to want warmth and comfort. When I was little, I often slept in my parents' bed when I was scared or felt lonely..." She fell silent, and then added: "It's alright, Nightmare. I'm glad I can give you comfort now, you really need it, so..."

"Thank you, Minako…" the younger girl replied with a slightly shaking voice.

"You're always welcome." Minako said with a smile.

The girls arrived to Minako's room. The blonde went over to the bed and moved the covers so that Nightmare could lie down. "Come on, get in!" Minako invited her cheerfully.

Soundlessly, Nightmare nodded, then moved in the room and crawled on the bed. She hadn't actually slept in a bed yet, before she had slept on the couch downstairs in the living room. The softness of the mattress surprised her, and she gladly nestled herself down onto it, letting out a content sigh once she was comfortable.

Minako smiled at her sister and got into the bed as well, then covered them both with the blanket. "Well, now you're like a normal human. Properly washed, wearing a proper nightgown, in a proper bed." She said, looking at the girl with a hint of pride.

Nightmare just shrugged. She didn't know what it took to be a normal human, so she trusted the Senshi of Love on her word. "If you say so, onee-chan."

Minako lay on her side facing Nightmare, her two hands put comfortably under her cheek. It was strange, but she loved her little sibling already. When had it begun? Perhaps from the very first meeting, the Saurian of Fear looked, acted and sounded so cool... Even her name sounded fearsome, but that made it all the more interesting to try and befriend her. Yes, it didn't go well at first, and Minako was glad when Nightmare agreed to play volleyball. She knew that team spirit could unite them... Who knew that teamwork was such a painful point for Nightmare? But now that everything had been found out and sorted, Minako was sure that she can help Nightmare adapt, learn teamwork and find friends. Despite the teenage mood swings the Saurian suffered from.

Minako sighed. "You're stuck at an unfortunate age, you know."

The Saurian of Fear's face got an expression of confusion on it. "I am?" she wondered aloud, not really understanding what was so unfortunate about her age. For that matter, did Minako mean her true age, or the age her body had stopped growing at?

"Yeah." Minako nodded. "Thirteen human years old is a difficult age. Puberty kicks in, changing you from a child into an adult. Body grows rapidly and prepares for having children, and that causes hormones to act wild, bringing mood swings and all..."

Nightmare wasn't completely sure if she understood Minako, but she got the gist of it. At the same time she wondered if human development could really be applied to her, she was, after all, merely changed to look like a human, and she was sure her body differed from a normal human's on the inside. The Saurian girl decided to ask her little brother about it next time she saw him.

"Did you… have mood swings?" the black-haired girl wondered as she snuggled closer to the Senshi of Love, enjoying the softness of the covers and bed, and the warmth of a comforting embrace. "And what's puberty?"

"Puberty, like I said, is the period when your body changes from a child's one into an adult's one. And I did have mood swings, quite a lot. Feeling happy one moment and absolutely steaming on the other. From crying to laughing to shouting at parents..." Minako sighed and hugged her sister a bit tighter. "I still have them every month, but they're nowhere near as bad as before, and it's normal. As time passes and body adapts, you get calmer."

"And I'm stuck at the peak of this annoying age, huh?" Minako's 'sister' grumbled.

"I'm afraid so." The Senshi sighed. "Why don't you want to grow up, by the way?" Minako asked, suddenly curious. "I mean, you can still be eternal at 16 or even 20..."

"Because of Ignika," Nightmare replied quietly. "Even if he would want to, he _can't_ age. That's how the Great Beings made him to be. And so, as his family, me and the others share the same burden and do not age."

Minako fell silent for a while. "I see... Chibiusa had the same problem. And me, I wouldn't know, I kinda never had a choice whether to grow up or not... Even though many adults dream of bringing childhood back."

"I don't see why," the other girl said. "My childhood sucked. And still does."

Minako stroked the girl's hair. "Most humans have a happy childhood. Me included. It's partly the reason why I can love and comfort you now, because I got all that warmth from my parents."

"I never knew my parents," Nightmare sighed. She closed her eyes and smiled, snuggling even closer to her newfound sister. Ignika's youngest sister enjoyed this kind of warmth and attention, even if she was unused to it. "None of us did."

Minako just kept stroking her hair and caressing the girl's back, happy to give the lonely Saurian the comfort she deserved.

"I'm sorry, onee-chan…" the Saurian girl whispered quietly, failing to stifle one sniff. She pulled the blonde in an awkward embrace, not used to giving out hugs.

"What are you sorry for, imouto-chan?" Minako asked, warmly returning the embrace.

"Everything," Came the quiet reply, as Nightmare bowed her head in shame. She couldn't help it, she had to apologize again, even if her new sister said she forgave her. To Nightmare, it seemed impossible to be forgiven so easily for everything she had done wrong, and that had been a lot, not in the least nearly killing her and so badly injuring and hurting her.

Minako smiled. "I forgive you. I... I'd never hate you or anything, you just did it from loneliness, and were blinded by it... But now it's okay, no?" The Senshi smiled, finishing her kind of awkward reply.

"How can you forgive me so easily?" Nightmare wondered as tears of gratitude welled up in her eyes again. "I nearly killed you, I was so mean to you, when all you do was try to help me…"

"Well, is there any point in keeping a grudge, making us both even more pained by it than we already were? Besides, it's all healed thanks to symbiosis, look, I don't even have any scars left!" She moved her nightgown so that Nightmare could see a bit of her chest, where there indeed was no sign of the damage the Saurian dealt to it before.

"That's good…" the Saurian of Fear whispered, relieved. She hugged her sister again, the enjoyment she got from such a simple gesture not having lessened in the least. Hesitatingly, Nightmare's lips formed a smile and the girl fully relaxed, contently basking in the warmth of the bed and Minako's comfort. "I haven't slept like this… well… ever," she said, her eyes still closed. Sadly, she added: "My sister… she just can't do this… Gravitas, I mean."

"I see..." Minako replied. "Why is it so, I wonder? I mean, you say she's incapable of showing emotion..."

"None of us know," Nightmare answered slowly and thoughtfully. Her eyes fluttered open again and she frowned. "And Gravitas doesn't tell us. But Ignika thinks it's because she didn't have anybody to teach her emotions… He thinks she somehow grew up on her own, with no social contact whatsoever, and so had no way of knowing how to deal with her feelings, how to understand them and act on them…" The young Saurian girl sighed deeply, thinking back of the days when she and her natural sister had first met. "You think I am cold at times, onee-chan? You should have seen her when she entered my life. It's like I said before… you'd have gotten more warmth by hugging a glacier."

"I see..." Minako said slowly. "Well, she has Ami now, no? If symbiosis helped you open up to me... Maybe it'll do the same for her? And she'll understand something?"

"I hope so…" the younger woman muttered. "No offence, love dove, but I'd find it more fun if my natural sister could do what you are doing to and with me now…"

"Well, I might try to talk to Ami so she could talk to Gravitas..." Minako yawned. She was getting really sleepy. "Well, guess we should try to fall asleep now. You don't wanna miss tomorrow's Death Note episode, do you?"

"No way!" Nightmare firmly replied. Then she smiled an uncharacteristic smile and snuggled as close to Minako as possible, nestling herself in the embrace of her 'sister'. Once she laid like that, the Saurian of Fear let out a content, happy sigh and let her eyes fall shut.

Minako smiled and warped her arms around the younger girl's body, keeping her close, safe and warm, like a real older sister should. "Good night, imouto-chan..." She whispered affectionately.

"Good night, onee-chan," Nightmare whispered back, just as affectionately. She looked at the blonde Senshi of Love one last time before closing her eyes again and letting herself drift away into sleep. She wasn't lonely anymore, and she wasn't afraid. Tonight, she would sleep, fully at ease, knowing she was kept warm and safe in comfort's embrace.

* * *

**Next chapter: A government check-up!**

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BookLoverAF: I'm glad this new side of Nightmare is to your liking. I have to admit I kind of feared readers would have a hard time accepting it, given how she behaved before. Thanks for the review!


	58. A government checkup

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**58. ****A government check-up **

It was early in the morning, and at the house of the Outer Senshi, all was calm and peaceful. Hotaru was still sleeping, while her adoptive parents had just finished their breakfast together with their guests. Despite that many people being awake, the house was quiet, aside from the notes coming from the piano. Traveller was sitting at it, her fingers experimentally hitting different keys and listening to the beautiful notes that were produced. The notes Haruka had taken of her composition were placed on the hold of the instrument, but the Saurian of Teleportation ignored it. She did not have much experience reading notes yet, and she knew her own composition by heart. Besides, she wasn't really playing anything now, just experimenting with different combinations of notes, observing attentively what worked well together and what did not.

In the kitchen, Setsuna was reading the newspaper, reading the articles that covered the story of Avsa's attack. Her brows were furrowed in a frown, an expression of disapproval on her face as she continued reading. Haruka also had a newspaper in her hands, more precisely the sports section. Michiru was doing the dishes and Ignika was helping her. The Senshi of the Depths had said with a smile that he didn't have to help her, but the Child of Life insisted. And so the four of them were busy in the kitchen, listening to Traveller's experimenting on the piano with half an ear.

The serenity of this moment was rudely interrupted by the doorbell ringing.

Haruka raised her eyebrow. "Who could it be? So early..." She closed her newspaper and went to answer the door.

The person standing at the door was a brown-haired woman in her mid twenties, dressed in a pleasant-looking white shirt and a flawless office skirt which was obviously a part of a suit. The badge pinned to the pocket on her shirt stated her name and the organization she belonged to...

"Good morning to you." The woman smiled. "May I speak with the owner of the house?"

"Well, you're lucky, I am the owner. Haruka Tenoh." The Senshi of Uranus corrected, and then flashed the woman a dazzling smile. "I thought that with my racing career, I wouldn't go unrecognized by such pretty women."

The said pretty woman blushed. "Oh, pardon me, the list given to me stated that you're a woman... Must be a typo..." She cleared her throat. "Nevertheless, I came here on behalf of the government to gather information about any casualties your family has suffered to determine the amount of payments for your family, as well as the exact number of casualties throughout the city and the remaining population."

"I see..." Haruka said slowly. "A government check-up, eh?" This was bad. This was really bad. They had two Saurians in the house with no documents whatsoever and with next to no idea about this world... The Senshi of Wind needed to buy herself time and warn the others, while not let the official suspect anything.

Haruka smiled again. "Well, come in then..." She looked at the woman's badge. "Takatoshi-san. Or should I call you Akiko-san?" The Senshi smiled teasingly at the woman.

The poor woman, unused to such attention, blushed again and stuttered: "T... Takatoshi is fine..." then followed the blonde host into the house.

Back in the kitchen, Ignika frowned, and in the living room Traveller stopped playing. Both of them could smell the scent of a stranger coming in the house, and it worried them. Any contact with normal humans was a chance for their secret to be discovered, after all.

Setsuna frowned and went to check up on Traveller. As she exited the living room, however, she saw Haruka acting all gallant and flirty with an officially-dressed woman.

"Haruka. What do you think you're doing?" Setsuna said coldly, narrowing her eyes.

Haruka gave a start and turned to her, immediately removing her hands from the woman's shoulders. "Ah, oh, Setsuna, nothing, hahahaha..." She laughed sheepishly. "Akiko... I mean, Takatoshi-san is doing a government check-up and I was just..."

Setsuna got the message. "Government check-up?" Setsuna said the last words loudly so that Michiru would hear her from the kitchen, and then shook her head. "You should be ashamed, Haruka. Flirting with someone when you're married! In your own house! When your wife is right here in the kitchen!"

"P... Please..." Muttered Akiko, feeling so ashamed she could fall through the floor. "M... Meioh-san... H-Haruka, um, Tenoh-san didn't do anything... I..."

Setsuna eyed her coldly. "So I see. Nevertheless, not my business. Let Michiru deal with it." The Senshi of Time came to the kitchen door and said, sounding annoyed: "Michiru, she's at it again!"

"S... sh.. SHE?" The poor government official screamed. She practically jumped away from Haruka and looked at her in horror. "...so it wasn't a typo..." The brown-haired woman said meekly. That was the last drop for her.

She fainted and fell on the floor with a thud.

"Who is that woman?" Ignika asked, poking his head from behind the kitchen's doorway. He had followed the whole exchange between Haruka, Setsuna and the stranger, and had found it pretty amusing. To be honest, he could understand the stranger's surprise at Haruka's gender. Had he himself not had had Life powers, it would have taken far longer before he had noticed that, too.

"I'd like to know that as well," Traveller said, standing up from where she was hidden from view, behind the piano. "And why you were speaking so loudly, Setsuna-san."

Haruka sighed and rubbed her forehead. "It's kinda too complex to explain. All you need to know is that this woman came to check on all who live here to see if someone is injured and then report it to the higher officials. But you two have no documents whatsoever and aren't registered anywhere. And if that was found out and reported, all of us would be in big trouble."

Ignika frowned. Why would people asking if they were alright get them in trouble? He didn't understand, and told the woman with the short hair so, looking curiously at her, obviously asking for an explanation with his eyes.

Haruka sighed. "Like I said, it's complex. But in human society, every single human has information about him registered and documented in order to ensure safety, make searching for people easier etc, etc. If you don't have documents, you're a nobody. And government won't stand nobodies staying in their country. Should it be discovered, you'll be arrested, and even if you two can escape, the rest of us will be in big trouble."

"To put things short..." Said Michiru, who came from the kitchen and had listened to the whole explanation. "Traveller, take Ignika and teleport away before this lady comes to."

Traveller nodded slowly. "To where?"

This kind of caught Michiru off guard. "To someone from your family, I guess... There might be check-ups going on with them, too..." Michiru paused. "Check on Ami and Gravitas. Chameleon can conceal himself, Minako has a house, so if an official comes, their hosts have time to think of something."

"And when can we come back?" Ignika asked carefully, keeping a cautious eye on the fainted form of the government official.

Setsuna said: "When this woman leaves. We'll phone every one of your family's hosts, don't worry."

"Very well," Traveller said with a confident nod. She extended her hand to her little brother, who took it without hesitation. "This is troublesome, though," she muttered. "We have been seen in public before, haven't we?"

"Being seen is fine. Being unable to show documents is not..." Haruka said curtly. "Now go, I think she'll wake up soon..."

Traveller shrugged, and then the two Saurians vanished.

* * *

Silence, complete and total silence surrounded her. And that was how Gravitas liked it, bowed over her mathematical sums as she was. It took all her concentration, for these problems she had to solve almost all relied on the use of divisions. And she wasn't good at those. No doubt Ami had given her these to work on that problem, as a good teacher should. The Saurian of Gravity smiled faintly. Ami was a good teacher. She liked the things the blue-haired Senshi taught her.

"_Let's see,_" she thought, reading her task again. "_I need to divide the given sum over fourty-nine people, making sure each has the double of the previous, how much does each person get then?_"

Gravitas put her pen to the paper and started scribbling down sums, her brain working furiously. It was a difficult sum for sure, but she'd do her best. Yes, she was starting to see it now, how it had been done. Just a little bit more and…

The doorbell rang and Gravitas' thoughts were popped like a balloon. A stream of curses left the aloof Saurian's mouth and she threw her pen down in pure agitation.

Ami put away the book she was reading and looked at the Saurian with shock. "Whoa. Be careful when you say that, otherwise I might have to wash your mouth with soap."

Gravitas said nothing, merely threw an angry glare in her friend's direction. She'd been so close to finally getting a division right on the first try, until that stupid doorbell had to ruin everything! Didn't she understand why she was so mad? And wash her mouth with soap? Did she want to poison her? Gravitas knew what soap was, had used it before, and Ami had always told her to never even try and taste it. And now she herself threatened to poison her if she cursed again?

"Gravitas?" Ami asked worriedly. But then the doorbell rang again. Ami stood up from the couch and said: "I'd better go open the door... Hopefully it's not those pesky annoying salesmen again..." the Senshi sighed. "But anyway, stay here and be quiet, okay?"

Again, the Saurian of Gravity didn't reply, merely growled lowly and shrugged her shoulders. Her usually expressionless gaze was now burning holes in the table as she glared at it in silence.

If it weren't for the persistent person at the door, Ami would of course have talked things out and comforted the Saurian, but the bell rang again and again. So the Senshi of Knowledge went to open the door to see who had bothered them this early in the morning.

Behind the door was a tall young man wearing a simple shirt and blue office pants. The name on his badge stated: "Kenji Matsumoto".

"Good morning. You are..." The man checked the list in his hands. "Ami Mizuno-san, right?"

"Yes, that's me..." Ami said slowly. That man definitely wasn't a salesman, after all, those usually don't have information of who lives in the homes they visit. "How may I help you?"

"Me and my colleagues are running a government check-up to determine the sum to be paid to casualties of each family, as well as their number." The official explained. "According to this list, there are two people living in this apartment: you and your mother, am I correct?"

Ami nodded slowly. "Yes, that is correct. Mother has been abroad for a few weeks already, though, and I haven't suffered from the accident, as you can see." She was hoping that it would be enough, but knew perfectly that that probability was low.

"Unfortunately, you will still have to fill some forms..." The man gave Ami a few sheets of paper. "We need information about the remaining population as well, you see."

Ami nodded. "I see... Well, come in, Matsumoto-san, I'll fill those forms right away..." She hoped that Gravitas' curiosity won't get better of her and she'll stay in the living room at least until the Senshi brings the official to the kitchen...

Gravitas had indeed heard parts of the conversation and was mildly intrigued, in particular by the words she didn't understand. She made a mental note to ask Ami about them later. It was probably also better to remain hidden from view, she thought, because she did not want to risk blowing her cover by behaving quite unlike a normal human.

Not that it mattered, because the next moment, she was suddenly grabbed by the arm and teleported away.

* * *

Chameleon turned around on the couch again, trying to fall asleep again. He'd been trying to do so the past forty-five minutes, to no avail. His Saurian life rhythm to get up when the sun got up just couldn't be put aside that easily. And Makoto was still sleeping. She'd stayed up very late last night, watching something called a 'moo vee' on the television. Because he had to sleep on the couch, he hadn't had much choice but to watch as well, unable to fall asleep with all that noise coming from the box.

His host had said that the 'moo vee' was a 'romantic comedy', whatever that was, but he hadn't thought much of it. It was a pretty boring affair, he decided, just watching how a pair of humans tried to become life mates in a very clumsy way. The Saurian boy remembered well that humans had no mating season, but really, if that 'moo vee' was any indication of how they usually found their mates, he was surprised they hadn't died out yet. What was wrong with a good old mating season, he wondered.

Chameleon turned himself again, twisting himself in the blanket. Now he was getting hungry. And he still heard no noise in Makoto's room, so chances she'd be waking up soon to cook some delicious breakfast for him were slim indeed. He tried his best not to think of food, but it proved hard. He needed to think about something radically different. By pure accident, the Saurian of Chameleon's thoughts drifted back to that awkward meeting they had had before Avsa attacked, and how Nightmare had taunted him by calling Makoto his mate.

Ignika's only brother snorted. Makoto, his mate? Yeah, right. Typical Nightmare nonsense, he thought with a smirk. First of all, it wasn't the season yet, so he felt no urge whatsoever to make a move on _any_ female. Secondly, since when had his family ever participated in the season, anyway? And finally, Makoto was human, a totally different species with a totally different outlook on mating and things like that. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't court her, they were different species! Though, he had to admit, if she had been a Saurian, he wouldn't have minded. She was a good fighter, strong-willed and one heck of a great cook. She'd make a fine mate for any decent Saurian male, if she had been Saurian. But she wasn't, so he shrugged it off and tried to fall back asleep.

That's when the doorbell decided to ring.

Chameleon nearly jumped out of his skin, but quickly calmed down. It was the doorbell, he reminded himself. Makoto had explained it to him. It meant someone was at the door of the apartment who wanted in. Glad to have some distraction, the boy tossed the blanket off himself and jumped out of the couch. He had to wake up Makoto, because she'd told him to never open the door himself. Probably to not take any risks of blowing his cover, or maybe to prevent him doing anything rash or say something stupid. Smiling, he kicked open the door to Makoto's room, not aware that one normally doesn't enter a girl's room unless invited, and walked in.

Makoto was sprawled on her back, having obviously not have the calmest of sleeps last night. Chameleon grinned as he saw her hair so messed up like that, the blanket twisted all around her sleeping form. Despite the position she was in, she looked quite peaceful. Did he really have to wake her up just for a pesky visitor? Another ringing of the doorbell told him that yes, he had to.

"Sorry for doing this, Makoto-san," he apologized with a sigh, then firmly grabbed her shoulders and shook her carefully. To his surprise, Makoto just snoozed on, mumbling something in her sleep that he couldn't understand. Scratching his head, Chameleon tried to think of another way to wake her up quickly, because the doorbell rang again. One of her legs was completely bare, dangling over the edge of the bed slightly. That gave him an idea as he remembered how he woke up Nightmare once. Of course he had to run for his life later, but it had woken her up.

And so, he pinched his host firmly in the thigh.

Makoto yelped and sat up on the bed, woken up by the sudden pain.

"What the..." She mumbled, rubbing her eyes. As she opened them, however, she yelped even louder because Chameleon was on her bed, and before she knew it, she had already jumped back to the head of the bed, instinctively covering her breasts despite the nightgown already covering them. As Makoto realized that the nightgown she was wearing was a bit shorter than knee-length and left her shoulders, back and chest completely exposed, she blushed crimson red.

"W... Wha... WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?" Makoto screamed loudly, her eyes shut tightly.

"Waking you up because the doorbell is ringing," Chameleon replied casually after making sure his ears weren't bleeding.

"G... GET OUT OF MY ROOM!" Makoto screamed again, aware of what Chameleon said, but unable to overcome her embarrassment. Besides, she was supposed to quickly change before going to open the door, and she couldn't possibly do that in front of him.

Offended by her seemingly unprovoked hostility, he jumped back and snarled lowly at her. "Fine! Remind me next time not to help you out again!" And with that said he stormed out of the room and slammed the door shut, diving right back on the couch where he camouflaged himself to invisibility.

Makoto groaned. Just great! First he embarrasses her, and now he's angry! Not having the time to dwell on it or explain her behaviour to Chameleon, however, she quickly took her nightgown off and slipped on the yellow dress she usually wore at home. Then, not bothering that her hair was a mess or that her second slipper was missing, she went to finally open the door and glared murderously at the person standing there.

It was a short, plump man in his late thirties, and Makoto found herself glaring at the bald patch on his head rather than into the man's eyes.

"G... Good morning." The man said, startled at the way the door was suddenly flung open. He had already thought nobody was home. But he quickly regained his composure and said: "I'm Yoshi Saito, and I'm running a government check-up."

"What check-up?" Makoto said in a very annoyed tone.

"To determine the amount of payments for families who suffered casualties..." The man said quickly, feeling kind of afraid of this unusually tall strong-looking woman in a very bad mood...

"I have no family, I live here alone and I'm fine! Bye!" Makoto slammed the door shut. The bell rang again, however, and Makoto had to open it.

"B... but... But you gotta fill these forms still!" The poor official said.

"Fine, fine!" Makoto said, grabbing the papers. "Don't bother, I know where your office is, my friend works for you, I'll bring them in myself. Good bye!" She slammed the door shut again.

The poor man could only sigh, wipe the sweat from his balding head, and move on to the next apartment in the block.

* * *

At Minako's house, there was not a soul to be found. The doorbell rang for what must have been the tenth time, and yet still nobody came to open it. The government official ringing it was running out of patience, he had to do his job, after all. How could there not be anyone home in such a big house? According to the neighbours at least the daughter of the people living here was supposed to be home. Annoyed, he rang the bell again.

In the living room, Traveller materialized to take her youngest sister with her to somewhere else, only to find that the room was empty and that the doorbell was ringing here, too. She sniffed the air and strained her hearing, but could only come to the conclusion that there was nobody here, not downstairs at least. Not knowing Minako's house very well at all, and not wanting to intrude, the Saurian of Teleportation shrugged and left it at that. She could smell her sister upstairs, sure, but Minako was there too, so as long as they remained there and didn't open the door, Traveller saw no need to go intrude on the Senshi of Love's territory. With a mere fraction of her power, she vanished once more.

And while the doorbell kept ringing, a certain blonde girl and her black-haired guest were still deeply asleep in each other's arms, unaware of the brief family visit or the annoyed government official at the front door.

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**Next chapter: Question and answer!**

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	59. Question and answer

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**59.**** Question and answer**

Having shooed away the annoying government official, Makoto sighed, turned her back to the door and leaned against it. Taking her annoyance and embarrassment out on the man she didn't know helped her calm down somewhat. Which didn't change the fact she had yelled at Chameleon who obviously meant no harm when entering her room and waking her up.

She touched her thigh where he had pinched her and winced slightly. "It's gonna be a bruise…" Makoto muttered with a frown. Then sighed again and went to the living room.

In said place, Chameleon was still laying on the couch, still having camouflaged himself to invisibility and _still_ quite mad. He just didn't understand why Makoto had shouted so rudely at him for, or why she was so mad. Sure, he had woken her up and nobody liked having a good sleep interrupted, but did that warrant such a reaction? She wasn't Nightmare, for goodness sake! Why did she have to bite his head off? He thought she was a nice person, but maybe he had to adjust that image.

Makoto entered the living room. "Chameleon? You here?" She asked, unsure of how to talk with the invisible man.

Angry and feeling treated unfairly, Chameleon said nothing.

Makoto looked around rather helplessly, then came over to the couch, wanting to sit down and sigh and think of how to apologize to Chameleon. She didn't notice how the couch had bended in slightly at the Saurian's weight…

"GET OFF MY BACK!" the disguised reptile screamed as he switched off his powers so that his host could see that she had just nestled herself comfortably on his back.

"AAAH!" Makoto shouted, scared to death an immediately jumping off, then turning around and backing away till she hit the table, all while staring at Chameleon with wide eyes.

Ignika's only brother growled at the brown-haired Senshi and gave her a harsh glare. Then he turned himself around on the couch so his back was facing her.

Makoto, meanwhile, breathed deeply a few times to try to calm down and gather her thoughts. When she somewhat managed to do that, she said:

"Ch… Chameleon… I'm… I'm sorry for shouting at you earlier…" She looked at him, unsure of what to say next or if she was even doing it right. It was the first time she had to shoo a boy from her room, after all… The only male who had seen her dressed in her sleeping garments was her old sempai, and that was only when she willingly let him stay… But Chameleon wasn't like that. He was her guest, not her boyfriend…

Makoto's guest merely let out a 'hmph' and still refused to speak a word. Hidden from her view, his face was still twisted in an expression of anger and offence.

"I…" Makoto stuttered. "It's just… I-in human society it's frowned upon if a male that's not family sees the female almost naked… Um, I mean, wearing a nightgown… I… I was embarrassed…"

"You could have told me that before!" he hissed coldly. "Would have saved me getting my nose bitten off just because I was trying to help!"

"I… I didn't think it'll be needed… No, I haven't thought of it at all!" Makoto bowed her head in shame. "I keep forgetting you're a Saurian…" She said sadly.

And that was true. She often forgot Chameleon wasn't a human, after all… To her, he was a boy who lived with her, who loved her cooking, who was so cutely innocent about some things, carefree about others and suddenly wise at some points… He was a boy always ready to help her with housework, who shared evenings with her, ridding her of loneliness… But definitely not an alien. While that was exactly what he was… But despite that, she couldn't help it but treat him as a human.

"I'm sorry…" She said again.

Chameleon sighed and bowed his head. "It's alright," he said softly. He just couldn't stay mad at her for something like this. It was a misunderstanding born from their difference in species and culture, and now that it was cleared up and she had apologized, he didn't have it in himself to remain angry. He sat up and gave her a small smile. "I forgive you."

Makoto looked up at him. "Really?" She said, surprised. Since they have never argued before now, she didn't know that he was so easygoing. But that was a welcome surprise.

"Yep," he grinned. "As long as you make me a good breakfast."

Despite the shock earlier, Makoto laughed. "Sure thing! What say you of an omelet with bacon and cheese and then some cocoa and cookies for dessert?"

Chameleon's mouth watered, and he licked his lips while eagerly nodding. Smiling at his eagerness, Makoto hurried to the kitchen, with Chameleon following closely.

* * *

Gravitas reappeared in the main room of Ami's apartment, her face still bearing a scowl and her eyes still filled with anger, both at the fact that she had been disturbed in her mathematical sum solving, as well as the fact that Ami had threatened to poison her for cursing. Just a moment ago she had been with her youngest brother and older sister, hiding in some treetops. Her family members had wisely not asked what was wrong. So when Traveller went to check at the Outer's house if it was okay to come back, they had parted without words.

And now she was back 'home', ready to confront her host about the previously uttered death threat and to wrestle with her divisions some more after doing that. She felt her feet touch the floor of the living room, and quickly scanned the place, looking for her host, who was sitting in the couch with a book and was startled by Gravitas' sudden appearance.

Ami quickly put the book away and looked at her guest. "I'm sorry for having to answer the door before I could explain anything. I was startled when I didn't find you home, but then concluded that the others might have gotten similar visits, and guessed that Traveller took you away…" She paused. "Now could you tell me what's wrong?"

Gravitas decided to use the direct approach. "I demand to know why you want to poison me."

Ami's eyes widened. All she could say was: "WHAT?"

Gravitas' gaze darkened and she glared at her symbiosis partner again. "You said you would wash my mouth with soap if I cursed again. You told me soap is poisonous when you first told me how to use it. Now you threaten to make me eat it just for cursing. WHY?"

"Ah, that…" Ami laughed nervously. "Don't worry, I wasn't really going to do that… It's just a common threat for children to make them refrain from cussing… 'Cause swear words are considered dirty and all… And I didn't get a chance to explain with all the commotion."

Gravitas' expression returned to its usual aloofness in an instant. "Oh. I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Ami smiled. "But, please, do refrain from cussing. I don't like it when people swear in my presence…"

"It was an exception," the Saurian of Gravity replied tonelessly, after which she moved to the table where her mathematical sums were still waiting for her. "To express my distaste at being so rudely disturbed when the answer was dawning on me." She took her pen back in her hands, and then added, almost as an afterthought: "Chameleon told me that that is a normal reaction. I had no reason to doubt his words."

Ami nodded. "That's true, swear words can be used in such situations… But… it's best to think what exactly you say, anyway." She said, blushing as she remembered some expressions. "Some should be saved for more… Serious situations."

Gravitas raised an eyebrow. "They should? What kind of sitations?"

"Um…" Ami said, caught off guard somewhat. "W-well… I seldom curse, so I can't really say at the moment… But still, try to use milder swearing next time…"

"Very well," Gravitas decided with a shrug, and then she bowed herself over her mathematical problem again. She was pleasantly surprised when the solution she had started to think of before she was interrupted came back to her quite quickly. Smiling, she started to write.

* * *

Meanwhile, peace and calm had returned to the house of the Outer Senshi as well. Traveller and Ignika had returned to find the stranger from the 'government' gone, while Haruka had apparently left for what Michiru called a 'racing track', and Setsuna had wanted to check up on the Time Gates for reasons she did not explain. Hotaru had apparently slept through the entire ordeal and, tired as she was from the previous battle with the Immoral One, her parents had left her be.

Now it was only Ignika and Michiru, for Traveller had gone to join Setsuna at the Time Gates, despite the Senshi of Neptune's warnings not to do so. But her warnings fell on deaf ears, and not even an Outer Senshi possessed the power to interrupt with Traveller's teleportation powers when they had been triggered. Now that she had been to the Time Gates for real once, going there again was far easier to do. Ignika could only smile as he heard Michiru sputter. It seemed so uncharacteristically for the usually so calm and collected woman.

"I told you it was futile, Michiru-san," the Child of Life said happily. "Nothing short of a threat to my life could stop my sister from doing something when her mind is made up."

Michiru sighed. "True, I guess… Haruka is just as stubborn sometimes." The Senshi of Ocean smiled as she remembered some argues and happy moments caused by that trait of her beloved. Then she shrugged and said: "Well, as long as your sister is confident it'll be fine…"

"They're symbiosis partners," Ignika replied calmly. "I think Traveller just went there to see where Setsuna-san had to spend a millennium of her life on her own, what task she had there… I don't think Setsuna-san will mind that." Ignika smiled again, but that expression slowly vanished as the white-haired boy began to think of something. He realized that this was the first time he was alone in Michiru's company. He'd been alone with Hotaru, with Setsuna and even Haruka, but not with Michiru. And perhaps now was the time, he decided, to ask what he had always longed to ask since he knew the truth and past of the Sailor Senshi.

"Michiru-san, can I…" he hesitated for a moment. "Can I ask you something?" She was the best person to ask, he thought. Hotaru he didn't want to ask, the subject would be too painful and personal for her. Setsuna wouldn't give the answer he was looking for, he knew. And after what he had done to Haruka, he didn't really dare to ask something so personal of her.

Michiru, seeing the boy so suddenly serious, tilted her head and said: "Yes, Ignika, what is it?"

"I wondered… I mean… Since I've heard and seen the story of your previous battles, I've been wondering…" The Child of Life turned his head so he was looking one of his hosts right in the eyes. "Michiru-san, why do Sailor Senshi die?"

Michiru was taken aback by the question: "Why…? What do you mean, why?" She asked, not understanding what exactly the child meant.

"In all the battles I have seen in your minds, there was one constant, again and again: you die. Sometimes only one of you, sometimes all of you… All of you die, except for Usagi-san. Michiru-san, I don't understand. Why is this? Why do you Sailor Senshi die?" came the reply, and Ignika sat down in a chair, hugging his knees to his chest.

"I… I have never thought about it before…" Michiru confessed hesitatingly. Then took a seat herself, looking at the Child of Life. "Death and sacrificing ourselves had never been a question for us Outers… But that's not what you are asking about, is it?"

"No, it's not," Ignika confirmed quietly. "Though I've thought about that as well, I admit. There are many things that I wonder about, Michiru-san. But what bothers me most is what I just asked and will ask again. Why do you die? Why is it that no battle against evil that you Senshi fight can be won without at least one of you dying? All of you have died, all of you, except Usagi-san. And I don't understand why. Why do you not remain alive and besides her? Why are you all so eager to throw your life away? Is it because you know that you will come back? That's not good, Michiru-san, it's not healthy. Death should not be just a temporary inconvenience. Death is eternal, but you Senshi keep defying this law of life… Why? Why can you not simply remain alive and keep fighting? Why do you die, and die so many times?"

Michiru bowed her head. "I do not know…" She said, then, after a long pause, she added: "Perhaps… It's not that we Senshi die that is the abnormality… Maybe it's that Usagi doesn't… You see, it's…" Michiru fell silent again, looking at her knees and wrinkling her dress nervously.

"It is what, Michiru-san?" Ignika pressed on. Then, realizing he might be rude or to prying, he shyly and nervously added: "Or maybe it's none of my business… I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable, Michiru-san, I was rude."

Michiru shook her head. "Don't apologize… Just, it's been a norm for so long…" Michiru sighed. "It's just… Usagi is special… She has the purest heart of all, she is the Princess, the Queen, the Messiah…" The Senshi sat straight again and looked at the Saurian sadly. "And… Her love for the universe, her purest light, shines the brightest when shadowed by sadness… by deaths of those close…" Michiru gave a sad laugh. "She's always been the only one who could cast away the Darkness and stay alive… She and her daughter, Chibiusa…"

"Then why is there a need for you and the other Senshi?" the Child of Life inquired. "If only Usagi is capable of banishing the darkness that threatens this world, I fail to see why you are needed as a Sailor Senshi. No offence meant, Michiru-san. And if you say that it is so you can die and give Usagi-san the resolve to go on that way, then I find that very, very sad."

Michiru shook her head. "Usagi can't be everywhere at the same time… Someone has to protect Earth from minor threats… Keep the Princess alive until her full power is needed again to slay the mastermind…" Michiru sighed and leaned back on the chair. "Sad? Maybe. But it's our destiny. On her own, Usagi is weak, and it is us who weaken the enemy to let her deal the final blow… But when it comes to defeating the heart of evil, she is the strongest of us all…"

"But why do you have to die for that?" Ignika asked again. "Why? I can't press this enough, Michiru-san, because I don't understand. I can understand that Usagi is the most powerful, I have felt that. But I do not understand why it is necessary to die. Would she not be happier, and stronger as well, if you remained alive and at her side during those battles? Is there not, like Master Angonce told me eons ago, strength in unity? One cannot achieve his or her destiny without unity, Michiru-san, and united in death does not count."

"… In our universe, it is indeed 'united in death'… Our spirits, our strength, our powers… She takes them, unites them and uses them in her final blow… Perhaps not consciously, but I remember always hearing in whatever is left of myself after death… 'Everybody, give me your strength'…" Michiru sighed deeply again. "And thousands of millions years from now, there will be no Senshi and no villains. Only the ultimate evil, Chaos, and The One…" The next words were said with pride and obvious admiration: "Sailor Cosmos. She who will unite in her essence the strength, love and spirits of all Messiahs of the universe, and alone continue the eternal battle… Divine. Eternal. Ultimate…" Michiru finished in a whisper.

"How sad…" the white-haired child whispered, looking away and avoiding Michiru's eyes. "That the fate of this dimension must be one as bad as the one you described… It's sad indeed. I pity you and your universe, Michiru-san."

Michiru sighed yet again. "This universe may be for you to pity, but for us to live in and protect… And the end is still so far away…" Michiru fell silent again. "We can't abandon our fate just because one day we won't be reborn. No, we have to live on and keep our planet and our Messiah alive. If we have to die for it, so be it. We will, and without hesitation."

"And who says I'm going to let you…?" Ignika muttered, his words barely audible as he stared at his feet.

Michiru smiled faintly. "Who knows. You should better ask Setsuna about it… I have a feeling she didn't go to the Time Gates on a whim." She stood up, came over to the boy and tucked a loose strand of his hair behind his ear. "You and your family, and the evil that followed you are not a part of this universe. Who knows, maybe the laws will be broken… The sea did tell me of a great change coming."

"I won't let you die, Michiru-san," the Saurian boy replied, still quiet, while briefly glancing at Michiru from the corners of his eyes. He felt a bit uncomfortable saying these things, but he wanted to. "I won't let anybody of you die. Not now, not ever! You've made me feel something that I think is how it feels to have a mama, Michiru-san, and I don't want to lose that… ever!"

Michiru smiled and held the boy close to her. "Thank you, Ignika…" She said warmly. She didn't know if what she said was true, if the laws will truly bend due to the Saurians changing the flow of their history, but for once, she did want them to. If only for the sake of this eternal child…

"I don't want you to die, I don't want any of you to die," the little child continued, closing his eyes and shaking his head firmly, as if he wanted to banish the thought of loosing people to death that way. "Death is the end, it is natural, I know that. But I won't die, I will always remain! And when you are eternal, Michiru-san, you don't want to loose those things that are precious to you, because they are all that keep you sane. I'm scared. Scared of eternity. I'm scared that if I close my eyes, you will be gone when I open them. For that is how your lifetime will seem to me once I am beyond infinite years old. And I don't want that. I'm the Child of Life. Death scares me. It takes away those things from me that I need in order to survive!" Tears now ran down the Saurian's cheeks as he burrowed his face in Michiru's embrace. "So don't die, Michiru-san. You, Hotaru-chan, Setsuna-san, even Haruka-san and all the others, you've taught me what a home is like, and I don't want to lose that." Ignika clenched his jaws together as he held the Senshi of the Depths close to him, using all the strength he possessed. "Don't be so casual about dying, Michiru-san… Don't take it so lightly, don't find it so normal… It's scary. It scares me. I'm afraid of it. I'm frightened… I want to be able to close my eyes, and open them confidently knowing you, the others and my family will be there, will always be there…"

Michiru stroked his hair and held him close to her, comforting him. "Shh… There's still time." The woman said softly. "We know for a fact we'll be alive, well and eternal ten centuries from now, but not even Setsuna knows by what means. So, don't be afraid so much… We will be there for you for as long as we can." She whispered affectionately.

"You promise?" he asked between sobs.

"I promise. We all promise." Michiru said firmly.

"Thank you…" Ignika whispered gratefully, wiping his tears away. A futile action, for they were immediately replaced by new ones. "The others don't think of it yet, or don't realize it yet because they're not old enough… But soon enough I'll be more than a millennium old, older than the average Saurian lives. Soon enough my eternity will kick in visually, and by that time I… I want to be prepared… I want to be able to handle it… And I can only do that if I have my family, and my friends…"

Michiru just kept hugging the boy and bringing him all the comfort she could. "We will remain with you for as long as we can…" She said softly.

"I'm sorry…" the unfortunate being forever stuck in the body and mind of a child sobbed. "I'm sorry for being so selfish… Eternity is horrible, and I shouldn't ask anyone to share it with me… But I couldn't help it… I need it… I'm sorry… I should be satisfied that even my family wishes to bear this burden with me."

Michiru smiled. "Don't worry about it too much…" Then shook her head. "What were the Great Beings thinking when bestowing so much upon a child…"

A bitter smile appeared on Ignika's face and he looked up at the older woman with tear-filled eyes. "Not a day has gone by, Michiru-san, that I did not ask that question myself." The white-haired reptile disguised as a human sighed and rubbed his eyes. He was starting to calm down again. "But we mustn't doubt their wisdom, Michiru-san. They, too, know the burden of eternity, so I doubt that bestowing it upon me was a light decision. Maybe one day, I will ask Master Angonce for an explanation…"

Michiru shook her head. "You have seen it yourself, even the Great Beings aren't infallible. Even if we don't take Zyglak into consideration… Your life and your world developed not at all like they saw it should… If it happened like they planned, you still would have been carefree and innocent, like a child should be…"

"But then I never would have met you and Hotaru and the others," Ignika replied, this time smiling genuinely happily. "I know they aren't infallible. But sometimes, a mistake can have better results than when everything had gone according to plan. If the Great Beings hadn't made a mistake, I never would have eaten cake in my entire life!"

Michiru couldn't help but laugh at that. "Well, want to go eat some now? Nothing lifts the mood better than a piece of cake." The woman winked at the child, only half joking about the last sentence.

"Oh I'd love to!" Michiru's youngest guest eagerly answered, looking entirely his normal cheerful childlike self again. Then he frowned. "How come you always seem to have cake ready, though, Michiru-san? Shouldn't you run out at some point?" And then all innocently he added: "And cake really can affect a living being's mood? How does that work?"

Michiru rolled her eyes. "Ever noticed Setsuna going shopping once in a while? And whenever me and Haruka go to town, we always bring food back, too. And for especially lazy days, there's delivery service!" She explained happily. "As for how cake works… Sweet food causes happiness hormones production to increase. That's all about it. Now, wanna go test that?"

The millennium of old being eagerly nodded, his face one big smile and his eyes all wide and starry.

Michiru chuckled at his cuteness and lead the eager child to the kitchen.

* * *

**Next chapter: The price of eternity!**

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**Review replies:**

BookLoverAF: I admit, me and my co-writer had a lot of fun with that chapter. We keep finding humouress situations to put the Senshi and their guests in. Merry Christmas and happy holidays to you, too!


	60. The price of eternity

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**60. The price of eternity**

Traveller stood in the timeless dimension that housed the Time Gates. This was the place, she realized, where her symbiosis partner and her friend had spend a millennium of her life, all on her own, guarding some gate in absolute silence and solitude. It was maddening. The Saurian of Teleportation looked around and sighed. There was some sort of otherworldly beauty and feeling to this place, but she couldn't pinpoint what exactly it was. Nor did she find it captivating or interesting enough to think that it could serve as a successful distraction to keep one from going mad by solitude after a thousand years. She felt sad for Sailor Pluto. At least she herself had not been alone when guarding Life itself.

She moved quietly through the empty, timeless space, trying to locate the gates where her friend would surely be. The feeling that she shouldn't be here was constantly present in the back of her mind, but she tried to ignore it. She had been in other places where she shouldn't have been, what difference would adding one more to that list make? Finally, she found what she was looking for, and cautiously approached the solitary guardian of the Time Gates.

Sailor Pluto was busy looking through the Gates which were only half open. While travelling through time required the Time Gates to be open wide, looking at the past, present and future didn't. During the first few decades Pluto had spent bound to the Gates, she made a habit of looking through half-open doors so that she could close them quicker should an intruder come. Yet there were no intruders for millennia...

Today seemed to be an exception, however. Sailor Pluto turned around sharply, her rod at the ready.

"Who's there?" She asked sternly. However, when she noticed that it was no other than her symbiosis partner, she relaxed. "Oh, Traveller. Why are you here? Did you teleport yourself here on your own?"

"I did," the Saurian woman confirmed with a short nod. "I wanted to see the place where you remained lonely for thousands of years with my own eyes."

"I see... Thank you." Setsuna glanced at the Gates, debating whether she should close them now, but after some thought decided not to and looked back at Traveller. "And... How do you find it?"

"Beyond my understanding," Traveller replied quietly. She then frowned and asked: "Are you not going to chase me away or kill me, Setsuna-san? I thought that that was what you had to do to every trespasser here."

Setsuna glanced upwards. "As some people say, rules are made to be broken... I have broken enough fundamental rules in my life, one more won't matter." She looked back at Traveller and smiled warmly. "Besides, you're my symbiosis partner. I could call you a part of myself."

Traveller returned the warm smile, touched by the Sailor Senshi's words. "How did you do it?" she inquired slowly. "How did you stand being here alone for thousand years, Sailor Pluto?"

Setsuna shook her head. "Hard. As you know, there is no time here... It's hard to get used to it. I don't know how much time I have spent here. Years? Decades? Millenniums?" She looked away again. "But it was especially hard at the beginning. Unused to my role, I was constantly tensed, cautious, and afraid that an intruder might appear any moment... I calmed down over time, however."

"And you grew lonely," Ignika's oldest sister added softly.

"Yes." The Senshi nodded and sighed again. "It's hard when there's nobody to talk to... Nobody to share your thoughts with, your feelings, your pain... Nobody to... even touch..."

"You were the only one remaining," Traveller said. It was a statement, not a question. "All other Senshi were gone since this… silver millennium, collapsed. You alone remained. That's what I saw in your memories… And then finally, when you met your fellow Senshi again for the first time in eons… you stopped Time and died."

Setsuna smiled. "Yes... I don't regret that. And... It was good to see them and help them for the first time in eternity, and not remain a detached watcher..."

"But you died again. With this… Galaxia woman business. Everybody died then, aside from Usagi-san. How many times do you plan on dying, Setsuna-san?" the Saurian woman asked quietly. Her tone was strange. Neither harsh nor casual. It was as if Traveller merely asked the specific details about something she knew would happen.

Sailor Pluto sighed. "As many times as needed. No more, no less."

"Ignika knew you'd say that. That's why he didn't want to talk to you about it," Traveller said with a sad smile. "He probably is asking Michiru-san now, as we speak."

Setsuna bowed her head. "I see..." She sighed. "Michiru will probably tell him everything she believes... True or not, she will..."

"He doesn't want you to die. He won't let you. And I know my little brother. Like me, once he has his mind made up, nothing will stop him from carrying it through to the end." The millennium old being let out a deep sigh and shook her head.

"Maybe we won't have to die..." Setsuna looked back at the Time Gates. "When disturbances like this happen, the future stops being certain... The further the future, the vaguer... Now it's a complete mess, almost can't see a thing..." The Senshi of Time chuckled.

"He's not the only one, you know," Traveller continued, as if she hadn't heard what her friend had said. "I don't want you to die either. I feel too attached to you now to allow that to happen. Eternity is torture, Sailor Pluto. It is a burden I must bear because I made the choice to do so. But it is painful. Soon I will be older than the average Saurian, and fully start to feel the weight of my decision. The years will pass by, unrelenting and mercilessly, until a year becomes insignificantly short to me… Millions of years old I will become, and older still… And I will suffer."

The black-haired woman chuckled bitterly. "Setsuna-san, do you truly believe that I could bear living for eternity and beyond with the pain of losing you at some point? As you said, it is like we are a part of each other… If you die, cease to exist… I will continue living on, as only half a being. For years, thousands of years, hundred thousand years, millions of years and still many more… Forever in pain because I lack a piece of myself… Forever hurt whenever I think back of that fleeting moment in my life when I was complete… Setsuna-san, I know it is weak and selfish to say this, but… I cannot bear that. The thought of having to live for eternity without you at some point, I cannot stand it. It frightens me. Pains me. And so I won't allow it. It is horribly selfish of me to drag you into this pain with me, but I would rather spend eternity apologising than eternity hurting… I won't allow you to die. I will not let it happen."

Sailor Pluto smiled and came over to Traveller. "Thank you..." She said warmly and took her hand. Immediately she felt their bond resonate, feeling stronger upon contact. "There is eternity for us ten centuries from now... And I appreciate you're willing to be with me until then. I am also not quite mortal, in a sense..." Setsuna shook her head.

"Without my family, and without the few friends I have made now… I cannot bear eternity. I am not like the Great Beings, who bear it by being detached from the mortal plane. I am a mortal being who had her mortality taken away. I was not meant to live eternal. But I will, because I cannot leave Ignika on his own," Traveller replied, still sad. Then she smiled and squeezed Setsuna's hand lightly. "And it will be even easier when you are with me. I have no doubt Gravitas feels the same about Ami, or Ignika about all of you. When you are eternal, Setsuna-san, all you want is for things to never change when they are how you like it."

"I see... I can understand that..." Setsuna smiled back. "Living like I'm living now... Together with Haruka, Michiru and Hotaru, studying art, making clothes and doing shopping, living a normal human life... It was an unattainable dream for me. Now I have it, and all I want is for it to stay with me forever..."

"You understand," Pluto's symbiosis partner said happily. Her mood turned grim again in an instant, as she muttered darkly: "And that is also why I wish the future would never come. Especially the one you Senshi so aspire to, much as it pains me to say it."

"Why?" asked Pluto. "Crystal Tokyo is a blessing. An eternal crystal city, a planet recovered from all the damage mankind has dealt to it, and an eternal queen who will make sure it never happens again. A safe place because of all Sailor Senshi guarding it... What is so scary about it?"

"You won't be you anymore," came the simple reply. "Setsuna Meioh will cease to exist. You will be Sailor Pluto, guardian of the time gates, warrior of Usagi-san's court. The Setsuna Meioh I know, who designs clothes and goes shopping, she will not be there anymore. It will be the same with the others… The Michiru-san and Haruka-san who teach me piano in their house, they will be gone. Michiru-san will no longer go around the world playing her violin. Haruka-san will no longer go to the 'race track'. There will be Sailor Neptune and Uranus only, warriors of Usagi-san's court."

Traveller let out a deep sigh and burrowed her face in her hands, the words she had just spoken saddening her deeply. "Setsuna-san, I know you do not understand. But for me, world peace holds no meaning. When you are eternal, you grow detached from the world, for it will someday end, someday change… Even your world peace, even your Crystal Tokyo. Moments like those I have now, living in your house, being taught piano and watching my brother examine the plants in the garden… Those are far more precious and far more valuable to someone like me. And I don't want to lose them… But lose them I will, like I will lose everything I hold dear, except my family, to the ongoing stream of time."

Setsuna dropped her Garnet Rod on the floor and held the Saurian woman close. Yes, she hadn't thought of it before... She always took her future as an unavoidable fact. Never before had she thought losing the simplicity of normal life could hurt someone so much...

"I'm sorry..." She whispered.

"It's not your fault," Traveller merely replied with a sad shrug. A bitter smile was formed by her trembling lips. "This is the price I pay for my accursed immortality. I will never have a quiet, peaceful, normal life."

Setsuna bowed her head. She couldn't do anything about it, either... And one day in Traveller's endless lifetime, the Senshi won't be reborn again... Sailor Pluto hugged the Saurian tightly again. If only she could...

"Wait..." The Senshi of Time let go of her symbiosis partner and moved back till she stood at an arm length from her. "Let me try something..."

Traveller frowned. "Try what…?" Her face bore a frown of worry. She did not want Setsuna to try and do something radical and drastic like stopping time or something like that again.

Pluto smiled. "Don't worry, it's nothing dangerous... Relax as much as you can and clear your mind." She picked up her Garnet Rod and looked at her guest.

Somewhat put at ease by those words, the Saurian of Teleportation did as instructed.

"Close your eyes." Setsuna said warmly. The Saurian obeyed, and the Senshi of Time gently put a finger to her partner's forehead. Then she closed her own eyes and concentrated. A soft garnet aura began to form around her, her Pluto sign replacing her tiara and shining brightly. Sailor Pluto gathered her strength, her spirit and her memories in this energy. Then she made her light and her essense flow through her body into her hand and finally exit her being, putting a record of all that is Setsuna Meioh into Traveller's mind.

Setsuna withdrew her finger and quietly said: "In this timeline, this was done only to Hotaru by the spirit of Sailor Saturn... But I think I succeeded. Now, Traveller, no matter how many years in the future you live and no matter whether I am reborn or not, you can recreate me the way I am now. You can always restore my memories..."

Traveller stood in awe of what the Senshi of Time had done just now. She had effectively given her nothing short of a record of her soul in its current state. The Saurian woman could feel the warmth of it all, memories and knowledge laid to rest within her mind, for her to keep and treasure until she had need of them.

"I… thank you…" she stammered amazed. But still she carried a sad smile on her face. "But it won't change anything, will it? Even if I give these back to you, what awaits me in your future is and always will be Sailor Pluto, guardian of Crystal Tokyo. Even if I give these back to you… It will be as memories only, as you can no longer be this person in the future."

Setsuna shook her head. "One day, this future will end. One day, there will be no more Sailor Senshi. And then, if you find the one who can host these memories, we can live normally again." The Senshi of Time paused. "You don't even have to wait that long... The other Senshi... They're completely different people from who they've been in the Silver Millennium. The only thing that connects them to their former selves is their powers. So that's why... You can always make another me."

"But even they will be absorbed by their duty, and their current selves will cease to exist," Traveller rebuked. "Ami-san will no longer study with Gravitas. Makoto-san won't cook for Chameleon anymore. Minako-san will no longer… whatever it is she does with Nightmare. And so it will be for us. And though it may end one day…" Traveller didn't finish that. She merely shook her head and sank down on her knees, holding her head between her hands. "Why is it like this…? Why is this family of mine condemned to remain without a simple, happy life?"

Setsuna knelt down to her. "I don't know... Really, I don't know..." She hugged the woman before her. "I'm sorry... I can't do anything about this fate... If it was possible to deny my duty and forsake my powers, I gladly would have done it... But... I don't know if it's possible..."

"It is my punishment," the thousand year old woman muttered, clutching one hand before her eyes to catch the tears that were falling from them. "It has to be… To punish me, a mortal creature, for achieving the immortality that should never have been mine, I am incapable of keeping the life I like from vanishing…"

"I wonder if the Great Beings realized that when they gave eternal life to Ignika..." Setsuna said grimly in a low tone.

"I don't know…" came the reply. Then a strange, almost desperate, idea came to her, and she looked up at her friend with tear-stained eyes. "Let us ask them, Setsuna-san," Traveller declared with a whispering voice. "Let us go to master Angonce and ask him."

Setsuna was taken aback by that option. "You sure? You were cautious about going there uninvited before..."

"I cannot teleport there, but perhaps if I try, master Angonce will grace us with allowing us entrance… Or he will send Crast to ask why we tried, and then we can request an audience…" The Saurian of Teleportation sighed again and wiped her tears away. "But it is all I can think of… Ignika cannot help me here, as he faces the same problem… I can only hope that master Angonce is willing to listen and share his endless wisdom with me…"

Setsuna nodded. "I'm with you then. Do you think we should warn Ignika?"

"We should take him with us, he still needs to apologize for attempting to use a Life Nova Blast," came the answer. "And perhaps ask Ami-san and Gravitas, too? Perhaps we can try and learn more about symbiosis during this audience then, too…"

Setsuna smiled. "I agree." She got up and closed the Time Gates with a wave of her rod. "Let's go." She said shortly.

Traveller nodded, took Setsuna's hand and triggered her power, making the two women disappear from the timeless realm.

* * *

**Next chapter: A sisterly morning!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: I was wondering where you had gone! =p I suppose you're right about Ignika's sister, but seeing as Gravitas has the Saurian form of autism (somewhat), I suppose she can be excused. ;) And as for your statement about Sailor Moon's main weakness, I fully agree! Gods, I agree! I can't get over how much I agree! I love the characters of this manga, but I have to admit that the storylines themselves aren't always my cup of tea. I just hate how all Senshi aside from Sailor Moon herself get basically treated as cannon fodder. They're there to die, to put it bluntly. I absolutely loath Sailor Stars for this, in which everyone gets killed except Sailor Moon (some even off-screen, if I remember correctly!). I hate it so, so much, it ain't even funny. I suppose one might ask: "Why are you a fan then?". Because I love the characters! They're such good characters, they deserve better than what they got! That's why I made myself swear to do no Senshi-killing-sprees in this fic. They've died enough, and you're right, it becomes cheap. The problems and dangers to make it suspenseful here will be of a different kind than death, if that's not too much of a spoiler. Thanks for the review and sorry for my rant. ^^"


	61. A sisterly morning

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**61. A sisterly morning**

Minako woke up. She was lying on the floor, which was of no surpise to her, she was always as active in her sleep as when she was awake, yet that didn't interfere in the least with her ability to completely ignore any outer influences that could wake up a normal person. Three hours had passed since the annoyed government official left the papers in the mailbox, but the Senshi just kept sleeping.

Sighing, Minako decided that resting on the floor was uncomfortable, so she got up and stretched herself. Just as she was about to pick up the blanket from where it fell and put it back on the bed, her glance fell on Nightmare.

Nightmare was lying in the center of the bed, curled up in a ball and hugging herself. The folds on the bedsheet made it evident that she had turned a few times in that position, her feet now facing the head of the bed. The Saurian of Fear was smiling widely and happily, and one could imagine she was still warm and safe in her egg. All it took to make the illusion complete was putting the rest of the bedsheet over her...

Minako smiled, warmed and touched by the sight. Ever so gently she removed a loose strand of hair from the girl's face and gently tucked it behind her ear.

The Saurian of Fear took in a deep breath and wrinkled her nose as her sharp senses picked up Minako's actions. Instinct kicked in, her brain going into active mode and immediately commanding the sleeping girl to wake up. With a groan, Nightmare reluctantly opened her eyes, her eyelids seemingly heavy as stone. But when the first thing she saw was the sight of Minako's warm smile, she smiled as well, her displeasure at having woken up vanishing like snow under the sun.

"Onee-chan…" Nightmare whispered happily, her voice low and still a bit tired.

"Good morning, imouto-chan!" Minako said cheerfully. "How was your sleep?"

"Very good… I slept like a rock," the black-haired girl answered with a smile. "Don't remember the last time I slept so deep and uninterrupted… I feel refreshed." Yawning, the Saurian of Fear pushed herself up on her knees and stretched her arms and back while cracking her neck. "How about you, love dove? I hope having me here was no problem for your sleep…"

"No, not at all!" Minako smiled. "I always sleep like a rock, and often oversleep because of it. Yet for some reason I find myself on the floor or in some weird position every morning." The blonde shrugged.

Nightmare grinned, then flung herself at the blonde, dragging her down on the bed. Minako shrieked, causing Ignika's youngest sister to giggle as the two wrestled with each other for no apparent reason, until Nightmare ended it by pinning her 'sister' down to the bed. "I've got you!" she declared with a smug grin. "Never let your guard down, love dove!"

Minako pouted, but then giggled. "You're not quite right." She explained. "When you're with friends and family, you can and should let your guard down. They'll never harm you after all, you're safe." Minako smiled at her sister.

The younger girl raised an eyebrow. "You never know a Saurian of Shapeshifting has infiltrated in your family, Minako. Being alert at all times is an absolute must for survival, no matter where you are. That's how it's always been for me, for my family."

Minako shrugged. "Okay, you're right. Humans can't shapeshift, so I haven't thought of that. Now could you please get off me, hmm, Nightmare-chan?"

"Nah, I like it here," Nightmare teased, sticking out her tongue playfully.

Minako chuckled. "Okay, stay that way, I don't mind. But who's gonna cook you breakfast then?" She looked at the Saurian girl teasingly.

"Meh, I'm used to missing breakfast," the Saurian of Fear retorted, just as teasing. She was actually amusing herself, finding this strangely friendly kind of bickering to be very entertaining for some reason. That, and she liked the bed and being close to Minako while in it, it made her feel the strength of their symbiosis bond pulsate strongly in her veins.

"Aww..." Minako pouted. "So you'd rather starve your sister? I'm not used to skipping meals!"

Nightmare merely rolled her eyes and then let herself drop down on top of the Senshi of Love, wrapping her arms around her awkwardly in a sisterly hug. "Sorry, onee-chan, I was just having some fun," she apologized.

Minako stroked the girl's hair gently and said: "I know that, I was playing along." Then she returned the hug.

Ignika's youngest sister purred slightly under the affectionate attention, and she snuggled closer to the blonde Senshi of Love. "Was that normal human-sister-ish behaviour then, love dove?"

"Yep, perfectly normal." Minako smiled. "At least from what I know, I've never had a sibling."

"It's nice to do," Nightmare confessed, embarrassed a bit by admitting to like something harmless and nice. "It's strange, new and unusual… But I kind of like it…"

"I'm glad." Minako smiled. "I enjoy it, too. But, really, should we go make breakfast now?" She looked at the alarm-clock and whistled. "It's almost noon! You've missed the Death Note episode by six hours!"

"WHAT?" Nightmare's jaw dropped and her eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Her hands flew into her hair in panic. "NO! STUPID! WHY DID I SLEEP SO LONG?" If she hadn't been sitting on top of her blonde sister, the Saurian of Fear would probably have been running circles in the room in panic and despair. She started to hit herself on the head with her fist. "I can't believe this! Oh what am I going to do now?"

Minako chuckled and laughed softly. "Oh, don't worry that much, they'll show the very same episode in the evening."

The panic attack disappeared in an instant, being replaced by a hopeful, uncertain look. "They will?"

"Yep." Minako smiled. "I told you that before, the very first time you watched it, remember?"

Nightmare frowned for a moment, and then nodded. "You did," she confirmed. The Saurian of Fear let out a deep sigh of relief. "Great Beings, that was a scary moment… I wouldn't be able to stand missing an episode! I'd be missing an important part of the story then, making me incapable of following the rest of the episodes… That'd be horrible!"

"I see..." Minako said. "I guess it will." She decided not to tell her that they could always buy a DVD with all the episodes, as well as ones with both OVAs, and the movies... Let them all be a surprise for her. After all, they make a perfect present...

Speaking of presents. "Hey, Nightmare." Minako looked at her sister curiously. "Does Voya have seasons?"

"Sure it does," the Saurian of Fear answered simply, as if the answer was so obvious the question shouldn't even have been asked. "Depending on where on the planet you are, it can differ, but generally, it has a dry and a raining season, with winters and springs at the poles, too."

"I see. Earth has four seasons: spring, summer, autumn and winter. We're in late spring now." Minako explained. "And what season were you born in?"

"In the dry season of course. That's when the ground is dry and warm, and ideal for eggs to be laid in," Nightmare replied. She looked at Minako curiously, wondering where she was going with this.

"Hmm... Somewhere around summer then?" Minako said thoughtfully. Then she decided to explain: "You see, we humans have a tradition to celebrate one's birthday. Remember I explained you how calendar works? My birthday in on 22nd of October, i.e. in autumn."

"Yes, I remember…" came the quiet, thoughtful reply. Nightmare frowned, deeply lost in thought. After a few silent moments, she said: "It's hard for me to figure this weird time system you humans use, but I think that, if we overlap our years… I was born either in what you call… 'joo lie' or 'au gust'."

"I see!" Minako said happily. "It'll be nice to find out your family's birthdays as well, we can pick whatever exact day we want!"

"Why celebrate the day you were born at all?" Nightmare asked, not familiar with the concept. To her, or other Saurians, it wasn't really anything special. Just the day she had crawled out of her egg to face the cruel world and life ahead of her.

Minako smiled. "Because each new life is a blessing. You reptiles probably don't feel it, but to a human woman who carried her child inside her for nine months, went through all the pain of childbirth and heard her child cry for the first time, alive and well... It is a day to remember and cherish. And for you, it's the day when you grow older. Many responsibilities and rights are given depending on age... It's a point you count your lifetime by."

"I'll live so long I'll eventually lose count, love dove," the Saurian of Fear shrugged. "If I'd have this 'birthday' this year, I'd be turning five hundred and thirty-one years old that day. Really, growing a year older has barely any significance to me, as nothing about me has changed or will change no matter how old I get."

Minako chuckled. "Right. But there's another thing that makes birthday a special day."

"And that is?"

"The celebration!" Minako explained happily. "We celebrate it by having a party! Or at the very least eating cake and a lot of other special food, and giving presents to the one who's birthday it is." She grinned widely.

"Cake?" Nightmare snapped to attention immediately upon hearing that single word.

"Yep! A cake. With candles, as many as you are old. You get to make a wish, and if you blow them all out in one try, it'll come true! Or so we believe." Minako explained.

"Why put five hundred and thirty one candles on a cake? Isn't that a bit much to blow out in one try, too?"

Minako sweatdropped as she imagined that. "Ehm... I haven't thought of it... Besides, humans never need more than two-digit numbers, which can be simply shown by number-shaped candles..." She sweatdropped even more when she imagined a '531' on a cake. For some reason, that just seemed weird.

Nightmare yawned and stretched again. "Anyway, love dove, didn't you want breakfast? I'm getting hungry myself. I want those chocolate 'see ree als' again that you gave me before! Those taste great and sweet!"

"No problem, imouto-chan! Let's go!" Minako got out of the bed and opened the door, but then got an idea.

Minako turned around, said: "Race you there!" and dashed off.

"Hey!" Sailor Venus' new 'sister' cried out. "No fair!" She then quickly stormed out of the bedroom after her host, who was already running down the stairs. Grinning, Nightmare skipped taking the stairs all together and merely jumped down over the railing, landing on the floor below before Minako did, and raced towards the kitchen.

"Hey!" Minako cried in return. But that was okay, she didn't waste time by running down the stairs either, she simply used the rails to slide down. Which didn't save her from losing, unfortunately. When she came to the kitchen, Nightmare was already there.

"Aww, you beat me!" Minako pouted playfully.

"Well, of course I did," Nightmare retorted while rolling her eyes. She stuck her tongue out again. "I'm a Saurian, I'm faster and stronger than you by nature."

"Heh, that's true. But I knew it'd be fun for you to do." Minako came over to a cabinet and took the cereals Nightmare wanted from one of its shelves.

Eagerly awaiting her breakfast, Nightmare took place at the kitchen table, her mouth all but watering. While she waited, she looked around trying to find something, but she failed to locate it. "It seems the cat still isn't back," the Saurian girl said.

"Maybe he has spent a fun night?" Minako waved her hand. "He'll come back eventually. Bet he will be surprised by our new relationship." She put the cereals into two bowls and took a bottle of milk from the fridge.

"He probably won't be the only one…" Ignika's youngest sister muttered. This thinking about other people suddenly reminded Nightmare of something, and her facial expression turned grim. She had something to ask her 'sister', but was unsure of how to, for the question was about something that was very difficult for the stubborn Saurian of Fear. Futilely, she searched for the right words.

Minako, meanwhile, had finished fixing the cereals and put them on the table. As she took the spoons from a drawer, though, she noticed that something was bothering Nightmare.

"Something wrong?" She asked, giving her the spoon.

"N… not really wrong, no," Nightmare answered nervously. She took a deep breath and added: "Say, onee-chan, how do you…" Her voice faltered and she fell silent. Gritting her teeth, she tried again. "I mean… What I'm trying to ask is… Well… You know… How do you… I mean… How do you humans apologize politely?"

There, she had asked it, now let the love dove laugh if she wanted to, at least she had asked. And gotten her cheeks aflame, again.

"Well, it depends on the situation..." Minako said and sat down. "Who do you want to apologise to?" She already knew the answer, but decided to ask anyway.

Nightmare munched on a spoonful of cereals and swallowed them first, before answering: "I… Well… I think I should… You know, apologize to those wimps, I mean, the girls from the volleyball training… For how I behaved yesterday… And before that… I mean, I want to be able to keep playing, you know…"

"I see..." Minako said thoughtfully. "Well, that'll require quite a serious apology."

Nightmare became visibly nervous and uncomfortable.

"Okay, look here." Minako stood up. "When apologising for something very serious, you bow like this." Minako showed her how to do it. "Lower than when greeting or apologising for something minor. Then say your apology as politely as possible and fully admit your fault. And one more thing. When apologising for something serious, do not stand straight until the person you're apologising to allows you."

Nightmare slowly nodded. That bowing part didn't seem too hard… She'd practice it after she finished her breakfast. But apologizing? She had no idea how to do that. "But what should I say?" she asked quietly, avoiding Minako's eyes. "I've never apologized before… I have no clue as to what an apology should sound like."

"Hmm... What would I say in this situation?" Minako thought aloud. Then bowed again and said: "I deeply regret what I did on the previous training. I apologize for acting harsh and improper, as well as for hurting one of your team members. I promise never to make such actions in the future." Minako stood straight again. "Something among those lines."

The Saurian of Fear gagged. "I can't say that! It's hard enough _asking_ how to apologize, let alone saying that! Can't I simply bow and say I'm sorry?"

Minako shook her head. "You just bow and say 'I'm sorry' when you did something as minor as colliding with someone and making their books fall when you're in a hurry. And here, you not only challenged them to an unfair fight, smugly thinking you will win, but also hurt one of them. A simple sorry just won't do."

A sigh escaped the disguised reptile's lips. "Forget it. Just forget this whole idea, and forget I said anything. I'll just… play volleyball with you here in the garden. I can't apologize. I'd just make matters worse."

Minako frowned. "It's your choice, imouto-chan... But I'd be very happy and proud of you if you did." She sat back at the table and started eating her cereals.

Nightmare just looked away, ashamed. She was feeling highly uncomfortable about this whole apologising business, and what Minako said didn't help much to make her feel better. And yet some part of her still wanted to try and apologise, because it was the right thing to do. She almost scoffed. Since when did she care about the right thing? Since yesterday, she answered her own question. Frustrated with her incapability to reach a decision, she focussed all her attention on her chocolate cereals and started scooping them up to her mouth with her spoon, munching on the food in bitter silence.

"You know..." Minako finally said. "I'm probably asking too much of you, but... The girls at the volleyball club are the only normal humans you have a direct contact with... They don't know of your powers, they don't know of your past... They're like a blank page, and you can make whatever relationship you want with them, maybe even become friends... So, if I were you, I wouldn't discard chances to make peace with them just because it's hard to apologise for your mistake."

"Even if I do apologise, they already dislike me, anyway," came the lifeless reply. Nightmare listlessly munched on more cereals. They didn't taste so nice anymore.

Minako reached over to her sister and grabbed her left shoulder firmly. "I will help you. I know those girls, they can change their opinion if you try to change. First impression is a strong thing, but even that can be overcome. If you apologise sincerely and properly, it will be a good start. They'll change their opinion, you'll see."

Nightmare raised her eyes to meet Minako's. Her gaze held only a hint of hope, as if she was afraid to feel hopeful at all. "You think so?"

Minako nodded. "Yes. I do think so. And I will do my best to make it so." She smiled assuring at her sister.

The Saurian of Fear sighed. Something about that smile and tone of her sister was just so persistent and confident that she couldn't help but believe what Minako was saying. Again she took in a deep breath, letting it out again as a sigh of surrender. "Very well," Nightmare declared, though not at all enthusiastic. "I will try and apologise to those girls. When should I do so?"

"I think the next training will do just fine. We just need to wait for Miyuki to announce it." Minako smiled, feeling proud for Nightmare. Yes, overcoming oneself and making a step in the right direction was definitely a good thing. Little sis will get friends before she knows it! It just takes a bit of work. Or a lot of.

"Okay," was all Nightmare said. She focussed on her breakfast again. Strangely, the cereals tasted nice and sweet once more.

* * *

**Next chapter: The wise and the accursed!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Oh gods, thanks a ton, I had effectively banned that moment from my memory until you reminded me of it again! XD I hate, hate, hate, hate, haaaaaaaate Sailor Stars! It's not nice to hate, but I find that last story arc of Sailor Moon so damn bad. Ugh. Poor characters. Now I feel bad in my stomach thinking about it. =/ My greatest regret I've always had with Sailor Moon is that there was never any moment where the Senshi stood together and faced the big bad as a team instead of Sailor Moon doing it on her own (with or without power up from the others). It won't be so here, let me tell you that much. Symbiosis was partly introduced to give every Senshi independantly (plus a Saurian OC) a chance to shine and be important. And it looks like I'm ranting again, sorry! But still, it's great to know there are people out there who agree with my views on Sailor Moon. It helps. Thanks for the review and until next chapter, where Angonce reappears!


	62. The wise and the accursed

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**62. ****The wise and the accursed **

"I am sorry, Master Angonce. I should not have attempted to perform a Life Nova Blast and threatened this world that way. I have disobeyed the rules you gave me, and for that I apologize," Ignika apologised sincerely, sitting on one knee bowed before the Great Being to show he was sincere and honest about his remorse and regret. The white-haired child had closed his eyes now, and waited in silence for the response of his 'father'.

"Given the circumstances, I can understand the desperation that you felt back then that drove you to such a rash decision," Angonce replied calmly in his ethereal, beautiful voice. "And seeing as disaster has been avoided either way, I forgive you, my son, yet you must promise me to never try this again, no matter what the circumstances."

"You have my word, Master Angonce," the Child of Life promised immediately.

Angonce smiled faintly, and placed his hand on Ignika's hand in a parental, calming gesture. "Understand that I make you vow this for the good and safety of us all, Ignika," the Kind explained quietly. "Even though the intentions behind it were pure and noble, the results of unleashing your element in such a fashion are so unpredictable and possibly disastrous, that they could very well end up doing more harm than good. Had you managed to complete the attack, you might have very well done more damage to us all than Avsa the Devourer."

"I fully understand, Master," Ignika replied obediently.

"Then rise, my son, it is in the past," the Great Being finished. The disguised reptile at his feet immediately obeyed and stood up, straightening his pants as he did so. Angonce's gaze drifted from Ignika at his side to the other four guests waiting patiently while seated in the largest couch in the room. "After all," Angonce continued with a knowing smile on his divine face. "You came here for matters more important than apologies, did you not?"

Traveller, Setsuna, Gravitas and Ami, who had come with Ignika on this visit, wordlessly nodded. After Traveller had declared her desire to see Angonce again to Setsuna, they had gone to Ignika to inform the boy of their intentions. Thinking this was a good opportunity to discuss symbiosis with the Great Being as well, Traveller had asked Ami and Gravitas along, and both of them had no objections. Getting to the Great Being, however, proved to be a rather interesting experience.

The Saurian of Teleportation had at first attempted to teleport herself to Angonce's mansion, but as she expected, she found her way barred and her powers insufficient to break through the blockade. Her attempts had not gone unnoticed to the Great Being who had put up the barrier, however. He had felt the disturbance, traced down its origin and then sent Crast the Repulsive to go and see what was wrong. After a lot of explaining with trembling voices full of disgust, the Repulsive had managed to gather that some Senshi and some members of Ignika's family had wanted an audience with Angonce the Kind, who had granted that request without delay.

And so they were in the presence of the Great Being again, Ami and Setsuna's true nature as Senshi once again having appeared without either of them willingly transforming. As before, it had simply happened, the omniscient presence and will of Angonce seeing through all disguises and dispelling all illusions.

"So let me hear it," Angonce said kindly. "Though I can guess the reason myself, it is merely polite that I let my visitors state their business themselves."

Sailor Pluto bowed respectfully to the Great Being. "With all due respect, Master Angonce, I think it is best that Sailor Mercury and Gravitas state their business first."

The divine immortal being merely nodded understandingly. Whether he knew why Pluto wanted the other pair to speak first or not, none could say. But the Great Being did not ask for an explanation, and turned his attention to the Senshi of Water and the Saurian of Gravity.

"Very well. Tell me then, please, Sailor Mercury, Gravitas, why you require my aid." He observed the two women quietly with his golden eyes, a gaze that seemed to be able to look straight into their very soul.

Ami bowed as gracefully as Setsuna did a few moments before. "Master Angonce. As proven by experience of two pairs already, the symbiosis causes a strong emotional bond to form between the individuals. However, the power symbiosis holds remains sealed. Gravitas and I believe that power can be activated willingly through the bond, yet we do not dare to try and do it on our own. By your leave, master Angonce, we would like to conduct a research of our powers under your wise supervision."

Angonce remained silent for a moment, and his face bore a beautiful thoughtful expression. He seemed to be going over something in his mind, and then, having reached an apparent conclusion and decision. "An intriguing proposal, certainly," he then said with a divine nod. "And I agree that being able to use this magnificent power at will would be a great asset in your battles. Yes, I think research is a wonderful idea, and I think I have the things required to do so downstairs."

Ami smiled, her eyes shining with the genuine happiness of a true scientist discovering and researching a completely new field of science. "I am very glad and grateful for it, Master Angonce." She bowed respectfully again.

Gravitas bowed her head as well, out of respect, though she did not feel the same kind of excitement Ami did. She did want to be able to use the power of symbiosis at will, of course, not in the least because of her own reasons. And those reasons were quite simple, and touching in their innocence. Gravitas remembered the symbiosis well, and the warmth and flood of emotions that came with it. She had been able to feel, see and experience all of Ami's feelings, and she wanted to be able to do so again. She wanted to be able to feel normal by feeling emotions if only for that short moment when their symbiosis was activated. She wanted that so badly, it didn't matter what she had to do for it. She was even willing to do this 'research', though she knew little of what to expect.

Angonce the Kind glanced at Traveller and Setsuna. "However, I think chances of success for discovering the secret will increase considerably if both you, Sailor Pluto, and Traveller of course, help your fellow symbiosis pair and myself with this research."

Setsuna was kind of caught off guard by this suggestion... On one hand, she knew it would be a great help for everyone, themselves included, and she did long for the warmth of their symbiosis... But they had come to find out the truth behind the Great Beings' decision to grant Ignika eternal life and childhood. Had they considered the consequences, the strain and burden they place upon the Child of Life by taking away his death and any chance of normal life, or had they simply acted out of pure intentions and logic? She looked at Traveller, wondering what she would say on the matter. If they research symbiosis now, will they still have the strength to ask and to be able to pay attention and understand?

Traveller had thoughts similar to Setsuna's. Truth to be told, she did want to research the bond she now shared with the guardian of the Time Gates, and learn how to wield and use it whenever she wished. Yet she also longed to get her question about Ignika's immortality answered, as well as an answer to her own fears about her own future.

"Master Angonce, I would be honoured to study this bond of ours with your help…" the Saurian of Teleportation began hesitatingly, not feeling at all comfortable with not accepting a Great Being's offer right away. "But I… I do not wish to be impudent, but…"

"But you came first of all to be freed of some of your own, painful troubles," Angonce finished kindly for her. He smiled comfortingly at the oldest sister of the Child of Life. "I am aware. And I have no qualms about talking with you and Sailor Pluto about this first, unless Sailor Mercury or your family has any problem with this."

Gravitas and Ignika immediately shook their heads, of course, and so all attention went to Ami, patiently waiting for her to say her opinion.

Sailor Mercury shifted uncomfortably under the attention. "I... Of course I have no problem with letting Traveller and Setsuna discuss their problems... I am eager to start, that's true, but I dare not take your divine attention from my friends..." She looked at the floor shyly.

"Then it is decided, I will lend my ear and advise to the best of my abilities to Sailor Pluto and Traveller first. Ignika, would you be so kind to take Sailor Mercury and your sister to my private library? You can read the alphabet of the Great Beings, so you can read the name plaques on the doors," the Great Being explained, gesturing at the door of the living room, indicating that it would be kind of them to leave now. "All volumes in my library are free for you to use and read," he then told the Senshi of Water and her disguised friend.

The said Senshi frowned at first, not understanding of what use a library would be to her if she can't read the Great Beings' language... However, the next moment realization dawned on her. Master Angonce had been on Earth for 500 years! And, perhaps, maybe, if he kept an eye on the development of human science and philosophy... There could be absolutely unique manuscripts there, the kind that is kept in museums in huge glass cases!

"Thank you, Master Angonce!" Ami bowed, barely containing her excitement.

For Gravitas, the mere thought of going to a library and be surrounded by books again was enough to get her incredibly excited and she was clearly eager to storm out of the room. Only her manners and respect for the Great Being kept her where she was. She, too, thanked the divine being with a deep bow.

Ignika had to make a lot of effort not to laugh upon seeing the antics of Ami and his sister. Knowing their eagerness, he politely excused himself and then took the two women with him out of the room. Angonce followed them with his eyes, and only when the door was closed did he return his attention to the two remaining guests in the room.

"Now we can talk for as long as needed," the immortal man said calmly. "Well then, Sailor Pluto, Traveller, would you be so kind as to tell me what it is that ails you both?"

The happiness of the fun moment vanished as Sailor Pluto was reminded why they came here. Her face turned grim, and she took Traveller's hand to feel more secure about what she was going to ask the Great Being.

"Master Angonce... The question that ails us may be beyond our understanding, and it might be rude to ask this of you... But I, as the Guardian of Time, and Traveller, as the Guardian of Life, need to know..." Setsuna fell silent, gathering the resolve to speak the question.

Traveller squeezed Setsuna's hand, letting her friend know she was still there with her. Yet the Saurian of Teleportation had closed her eyes firmly and bowed her head, somehow unable to look at the divinity sitting before her. She steeled and prepared herself for getting a lecture from master Angonce about how she should not meddle with the affairs of beings as wise as Angonce's species.

Yet the Great Being said nothing, he merely calmly waited with a knowing smile for Sailor Pluto to gather her resolve and finish her question.

Finally, Sailor Pluto raised her head, and looked the Great Being straight in the eyes, standing tall and proud.

"Master Angonce... Why have you given Ignika immortality?"

If the Kind was at all surprised by the question, he didn't show it. He merely bowed his beautiful head and continued smiling, though that smile now had a hint of sadness to it. He had known from the beginning what she would ask of him, in fact, he had been waiting for that question to come for a long time.

"For many reasons, Sailor Pluto," the Great Being then answered truthfully, staring straight back in the green-haired woman's eyes, his gaze all-knowing and all-seeing, almost making her loose her balance. "Fear not, I will provide you with an answer. But that answer ties in with the true matter that pains you both. Am I not right, when I say that what you really wish to know is not what you just asked me, but something else, closely related to it?"

Setsuna slowly nodded. "It is so." Then, after a few moments of silence, added in a low voice: "Eternal life is a heavy burden for many reasons. And one of them pains Traveller and Ignika especially..." She put her hand on Traveller's shoulder and looked at her, waiting for her to tell the Great Being of her pain and fears.

Traveller by now was crying, as the weight of the realization she had come to at the Time Gates was pressing on her full-force again. Thoughts of living eternally without Setsuna at her side spooked through her mind and made her flinch. She felt ashamed to show such weakness before a Great Being, but Angonce looked neither offended nor amused. In fact it was quite the opposite, for his golden eyes were full of compassion.

"It is the burden of the ages, is it not?" he asked in a whisper, his own voice now strained surprisingly with pain. The immortal being closed his heavenly eyes and let out a deep sigh, remembering the ages he had lived through. The countless amount of years he had seen pass by. "The pain of living forever, while you had at one point in your life achieved true happiness, only for time to rip it away from you, is that not what pains you, unfortunate soul?"

Traveller soundlessly nodded, silent tears running down her cheeks. "Master Angonce," she wailed almost inaudibly between sobs. Ignika's oldest sister then launched into a retelling of all she had confessed to Pluto at the time gates, ever so often being interrupted by her cries and sobs. She told the 'father' of her brother about the life she was leading now, the enjoyment she got from its simplicity and normality, and how she feared losing it. Losing it either by to Zyglak in the battle ahead, losing it to duty of the Sailor Senshi in the future, or losing it because of the death of those dear to her.

Angonce sighed a hauntingly beautiful sigh. He stood up and walked over to the crying woman, comfortingly placing a hand on her shoulder. Then he looked calmly at Sailor Pluto. "And what of you, guardian of Time? Do these troubles also pain you?"

The Senshi nodded. "They do, Master Angonce. I may not have lived long enough to realize it myself... But I know what treasure those simple things are. I have been denied them for most of my life, and yet... One day, they too, will be taken from me..." Setsuna looked at her symbiosis partner again. "Yet, what pains me even more... Is Traveller's pain. I can stay at the timeless realm and watch the past for eternity... Yet she has to live on... For thousands, for millions of years... Yet one day, it may I won't be at her side." Setsuna shook her head. "I don't care about myself. We Senshi can gladly throw our lives away for greater good... And yet, doing so when you know you'll leave behind a soul so pained... I can't do that."

"You are a kind woman," the Great Being said with approval. He gave her a kind nod of acknowledgement, then let go of Traveller's shoulder and started to quietly pace the room. "Eternity is not to be taken lightly. You have begun to feel its weight now, Traveller, and yet you are still so young. I fully understand your pain, be certain of that. However, I must inform you, young Saurian, that you have barely set a step on the long road that your life will be."

Traveller wiped her tears away, but new ones came to replace them immediately. Angonce's words were kind yet did not avoid stating the harsh truth. Indeed, she was still young. A mere thousand years, when she would live to see billions pass by. The Great Being was right, her current lifetime was so insignificant, and yet it already hurt so much.

"How do you bear it?" she managed to choke out, her voice rough and shaking. The young woman blindly reached out to the Senshi of Pluto besides her, finding her hand and holding it firmly for support. Setsuna did not hesitate to squeeze her friend's hand lightly, letting her know she was there with her. "How _can_ I bear it, when all I have to look forward to is loss and pain?" Traveller threw a look of pure desperation at the divine being in the room, desperately hoping that his divine voice would utter words of wisdom and council, words that would take her newly discovered pain away. "Master Angonce… how do you bear it?"

"I detached myself," came the immediate reply. The words were spoken on a tone that seemed nearly emotionless, like Gravitas usually spoke. Yet they were enough to make the two women in the room suddenly see the divinity in a whole different light. Suddenly he seemed so distant. Nothing less divine, but distant. His eyes still looked at them kindly, understanding of their problems, yet at the same time he was removed from them, as if their was an invisible wall between him and the world.

"Me and my brethren were born immortal into this world. We bore this burden by detaching ourselves from it. The world changes, we undying ones do not. My home is like a barrier between the world and me. Within these walls, there is no time, and nothing will change. It looks here now as it did five hundred years ago," Angonce patiently explained, his tone still containing little to no emotion. He gestured at the curtained window. "In here, the changes of the outside world do not touch me. They are of little to no concern to me. I am detached from it all, to spare myself the pain from losing all that changes as time goes by."

Setsuna bowed her head. "Yes... But that way is unavailable..." She, who had been forced to detachment by the orders of Queen Selena, knew that better than anybody else. She had spent... Years, decades perhaps by her own feelings in the timeless realm, yet she perfectly knew she could not, would not bear a thousand, a ten thousand, a million years of loneliness... Loneliness and helplessness... "Is there another way?" She inquired.

"There is nearly always a way for everything, Sailor Pluto," the Great Being answered sharply, carefully choosing his words so that he did not accidentally indicate that there was also a way for his own mistakes to be corrected. On a kinder tone, and after casting a slight smile in Setsuna's way, the divinity continued: "But you are correct, detachment is not an option for Traveller. She was born mortal, and already grew attached to this world before the curse of eternity was placed upon her."

Ignika's oldest sister was still crying quietly, but upon hearing the words spoken by her brother's 'father', a new question arose in her. After taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down enough to be able to speak, she asked: "Is it…" Another sob wrecked her body and interrupted her. Steeling herself, Traveller tried again. "Is it because you and your brethren were detached, that you could place this curse upon Ignika too, master Angonce?" Had Traveller been in her normal state, she probably would not have dared to speak those words, words that questioned the reason of a Great Being's actions. But now, with her cursing and despising her immortality, she managed to get the question past her lips.

"The decision to grant immortality to Ignika was based primarily on logic," the incredibly old man answered truthfully. "We wanted life on Voya to be supervised until the planet's natural end came, which, by our calculations, would still be over more than seven billion years. Seeing as the element of Life can not be passed on from father to son because it requires an enhanced body, the obvious course of action was to grant immortality to the Child of Life. But we were fully aware that it was a curse, not a blessing, make no mistake." Upon saying that last sentence, Angonce looked pained and regretful for a moment. But only for a moment, and soon enough his previous expressionless, divinely handsome face returned.

Setsuna wasn't looking at the Great Being. Her head was bowed, her gaze fixed on the floor, and her heart filled with pain. The pain that was obvious to the Great Being, the pain he felt himself... The pain of losing someone precious... She knew, she perfectly understood that by logic, there was no other way but to make Ignika immortal. And yet other questions haunted her mind as well – had they thought of this pain? If yes, had they or hadn't they taught Ignika how to deal with it? Why?

"We were aware of what we did, Sailor Pluto," Angonce whispered softly, his back turned to the two women and his stature slightly slumped as he let out a hauntingly beautiful sigh. "But our desire to bring good, born from our lack of inner darkness, as well as the logic pointing to that course of action, convinced us to carry it through. Did we feel regret at cursing another living being with the same burden we carried? Of course we did. Did we teach him how to deal with the hardship ahead of him? To the best of our abilities, yes. Ignika could not, after all, bear the burden the way we do, by detaching himself. And we had no experience or knowledge of other ways. But calm, logical thinking gave us the answer. Traveller, have you ever wondered why Ignika spent the first days after we had departed searching for you, his sister, right away?"

The Saurian of Teleportation hiccupped, then frowned, taken slightly aback by the question. "Instinct?" she tried, unable to think of any other reason. Truth to be told she had never thought about it, merely accepted it as something that had happened. Had she, after all, not spent the first five centuries of her life searching for the family member she instinctively knew she had?

"Instinct, yes," the Great Being confirmed with a short nod. "The bond between siblings is strong indeed in the Saurian race. And doubt that it was that that spurred Ignika on, I have not. Nor do I hesitate to say that at the same time, Ignika was also heeding our advice. When you cannot detach yourself and have to carry a burden for all eternity, then find someone to share the load with. Those were our words to him. I told my son that eternity would be harsh and unforgiving, but that he could bear it by pulling strength from his bond with others. That is why he desired a family so badly."

"If you are attached to this mortal world, and you have none at your side to support on…" Angonce began, thoughtfully pacing back and forth besides the couch. He was philosophizing out loud now, and his words were heavy, dark and ominous. "Then what is life but an endless time of loss and sorrow? Those blessed with mortality can put hope from the knowledge that one day, their pain of loss will end when they themselves end. But us, the accursed immortals, do not have such luck. Time passes by relentlessly, taking thing after thing away from us, with no hope of the losses ever ending one day. If you are immortal, attached and alone, life is no more or no less than a river of sorrow that has no end."

The silence that fell was heavy and hard to bear. Setsuna held Traveller in her arms and cried as well. Will her own life, the life of a Sailor Senshi of Crystal Tokyo, be the same? A chain of never-ending losses? Why? The others will suffer the same fate... Even Small Lady, even Hotaru... She didn't want them to. It was too heavy a burden...

"Is there no way out...?" Setsuna asked quietly, her voice hoarse and broken.

"For Traveller, the way out is clear," Ignika's 'father' answered calmly. "Her family has kept her standing until now. But it is no longer enough. As she told you and me herself, what she requires is the simplicity and peace of her current life, the life with you and the other Senshi, without having to fear or worry about ever losing the comfort and strength it gives her."

"If only I could..." Sailor Pluto said quietly. "If I could abandon my duty, pass it to someone else... I would have gladly followed Traveller into eternity... but..." She looked at her hand. "I don't know if that's even possible..."

"Are you asking me for an answer on that question, Sailor Pluto, or are you merely wondering aloud, expecting none?" Angonce asked, his tone even. Without waiting for a reply, he continued: "Should it be the first, I can safely say that as far as I am concerned, the possibility is certainly there. It will require some thought and adaption on the part of you and your fellow Senshi, but a solution is not fantasy. By your permission, I would share this idea that has developed during the course of our talk, and leave it with you to think about. Should it be that we survive Zyglak, you have enough time to think it over, and once you have come to a decision, you are always welcome in my presence to share it with me."

The Senshi of Time looked up at the Great Being, her eyes full of sudden hope and uncertainty. Did she hear it right? There was a possibility?

"What is your idea, Master Angonce?" Setsuna asked, squeezing Traveller's hand tightly.

"I am of course quite aware of the history of you Senshi and the future you fought so hard for, namely Crystal Tokyo. I understand that it is your duty and desire to see that future come to be, and protect it and your princess," the Kind answered while seating himself in his couch again. "However, one thing that is not clear to me is why in this future there is a need for your current selves to vanish in favour of your Senshi personas. Now, too, it is your duty to protect your future monarch, and yet you are not Sailor Pluto the entire time, are you not? So I do wonder why exactly this needs to change in the future."

Setsuna shook her head. "Our current selves are merely a... convenience." She admitted. "It is only until Usagi becomes Neo Queen Serenity that we have to conceal ourselves as normal humans..." She bowed her head. "The late Queen Selena gave us this disguise to protect ourselves and her daughter. We can't live as our Senshi personas in this timeline, so that's why we live as humans." Setsuna paused. "But our powers and abilities are very limited that way... Forbidden to transform in front of other humans for the sake of nobody finding out about our secret. Forced to use wands as means of transforming ourselves... Forced to fight evil as secretly as possible..." The Senshi of Time shook her head. "All those inconveniences will be gone in the 30th century. Usagi will be Queen, the absolutely powerful monarch, and we will have no need to hide our roles."

"I understand that, Sailor Pluto, but what I do not understand is why you would choose to forsake them when you are not forced to. I am aware that once Neo Queen Serenity takes her rightful place on the throne, she will have to play her part all the time, and thus she needs full-time protection," Angonce replied reasonably. Not once did Setsuna get the feeling that the Great Being was reprimanding her or hinting that she was missing something obvious. He was merely having a conversation, a debate with her, almost like an equal.

"What I do not understand is why you think of it as necessary to have all Inner and Outer Senshi at your Queen's side at all time," the Great Being continued. "By my power, I could easily freeze your current home in time and space, shield it from the oncoming Ice Age like I will shield my own, and prevent it from ever falling into ruin. What prevents you from continuing to live there as you do now with Traveller in the future, if only occasionally? Why is it not possible for you Senshi to take, for example, turns in who will be present at the palace and who will not? And even if you are not present when danger arises, do you not live with a Saurian of Teleportation who could return you there instantly?"

Angonce closed his eyes for a moment and smiled sadly. "Is it not possible, Sailor Pluto? Could you not come to see your duty at the Palace as a 'job', so to speak, and when the evening falls return home to Traveller as Setsuna Meioh? Or is it not possible to spend a day at the Palace for your duty, and the next let another Senshi do so while you are home as Setsuna Meioh? Is there something that prevents you from doing so? It could be, as I know not the future in such detail, so I am merely asking you."

"I... I haven't thought about it..." Sailor Pluto admitted, her voice shaky and her eyes a bit wide from the realization. "It's no wonder, though... It's been less than a month since the Saurians arrived..." Setsuna shook her head. "I'll need to look into the future carefully... But it doesn't seem impossible." She looked up at Traveller and smiled, her eyes shining.

"That is what I thought," Angonce said calmly, pleased. "Would this be acceptable for you, Traveller, if the Senshi at your newfound home still did their duty, for example during day, but came home at evening and night to live and spend time with you as their human counterparts?"

"Anything would be fine…" Ignika's oldest sister replied meekly, feeling her heart surge with newfound hope and excitement at this suggestion. A suggestion that seemed so absurdly simple she wondered why she, or the Senshi, hadn't thought of it herself. "As long as I would not completely loose my new home, and my new friends…"

Ignika's 'father' nodded, glad that his proposed solution was accepted by the young Saurian, then turned his attention to Traveller's symbiosis partner once more. "And what of you, Sailor Pluto? Heedless of the fact if it is possible or not, could you live – forever – with this proposal of mine? Could your fellow Senshi, for that matter?"

"I will be able to." Setsuna nodded firmly. It was indeed a way out. It was hope that things could be solved well, that nobody would have to be in pain. "But it is a matter of choice... Personal choice of the other Senshi. And there is still time to think it over before the Ice Age comes."

"Indeed," Angonce agreed. "Much still stands between us and your well-deserved future, Sailor Pluto, not in the least the threat of Zyglak. But should we survive, and I can only hope that shall be the case, then you have all the time you need to reach a decision. And once you do, I will be here to hear it." Satisfied, the Great Being from another dimension clasped his hands together. "I hope my words were wisdom to you, and that I have managed to ease your fears, if only somewhat."

"Yes…" Traveller managed to stammer, and she cried again, but the tears were those of gratitude this time. The Saurian of Teleportation fell on her knees before the Great Being, and bowed so deep her forehead touched the floor. "Thank you, Master Angonce, from the bottom of my heart, I thank you for your wisdom and your kindness…"

"You have, Master Angonce, and I too am deeply grateful for that." Setsuna replied and bowed to the Great Being deeply as well. Yes, she was happy now. The future was uncertain, the fog created by the disturbance still couldn't be seen through, but at least she, and all the other Senshi, as well as the Saurians had hope. A hope for a happy ending.

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**Next chapter: The treasures of Angonce's library!**

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	63. The treasures of Angonce's library

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**63. The treasures of Angonce's library**

Ami leaned back in the big and unbelievably cosy armchair and let out a content sigh. "This is the best place in the entire universe!" She thought.

At the first glance, the Great Being's library didn't differ much from any other personal library, except for the great number of bookcases. However, it was much more comfortable and convinient for reading and studying than any other library in the world. All the furniture, despite being or at least looking wooden, was designed so that using it was as easy and pleasant as possible, which Ami experienced herself when she sat in the armchair and later took a seat at a table to take some notes. When Ami tried to reach a high shelf, a floor panel rose from its place and lifted her upwards. At first, she thought Gravitas did it, but the Saurian was just as stunned as Ami. But she had to admit it was more convinient than using a ladder, for all the bookcases reached the ceiling, and those were very high. But the thing the Senshi of Knowledge liked even more than that was the small orbs that acted as lamps. They were simply floating in midair, and one could position them in whatever way one wanted.

"Wish I had one of those back when I was little..." The Senshi of Water thought, happily remembering the times when she read stories in her bed, fully covered by the blanket, in the light of a flashlight. "I wonder if Master Angonce lets me take one back with me... It's obvious I can't take any books."

Ah, books. Those were more of a wonder than any of the convinient things. Ami was right when she hoped to find the original copies of many works of Earth's greatest scientists and philosophers. But she had never expected to find them _all_. Thousands of books and even original manuscripts were neatly sorted and lined up on the bookshelves. All the scientists she knew were there. The only problem was the language barrier. Master Angonce didn't have to limit himself by Japanese and English, he had all the books in their original language. And while Ami could understand a few things in German and French, she'd never be able to read Greek or Latin... It was truly a pity.

The Senshi of Knowledge was also surprised by the Great Being's collection of literature. It seemed he had collected all the greatest works in every genre, even children's books were present. But still Ami felt pleased that the Great Being had read Dostoyevski and Tolstoy, Isaak Azimov and Robert Heinlein, William Shakespear and Bernard Shaw, J.R.R. Tolkien and so many other famous writers... Apparently, he had found them worthy of being in his library.

"This is a truly wonderful place." The Senshi said aloud.

"Indeed it is," Ignika agreed from where he sat in an armchair. Next to him on the table where a small amount of books he had picked from the bookcases to check out. "It is a true honour that master Angonce allows us access to all of his books. Back when I was living under the Great Being's tutelage, I was only allowed to touch a select few books."

Gravitas said nothing, though from the fascinated expression on her face it was clear she agreed. The Saurian of Gravity had her nose in a thick, heavy book about gravity and was almost halfway through it, even if most of it went completely over her head. She had no idea that the power she controlled was such a complicated mathematical problem that 'physicians' and 'scientists' still struggled to understand to this day. Her eyes greedily scanned the pages, and Ami was reminded of that time when Gravitas had first been introduced to books. The expression her friend wore now was the same as when she had come home to find the Saurian in the couch surrounded by books. Sailor Mercury couldn't help but smile.

"Ami-san, what's this book about?" Ignika asked innocently, holding up a copy of the original print of "On the Origin of Species" by Charles Darwin. The book was written in English, and as of such, Ignika could not read it, for he knew not the language.

Ami raised her eyebrow. "Is intuition a family trait here?" She wondered aloud. Then smiled and explained: "This book is called "On the Origin of Species" and is basically a scientific study and theory of evolution by Charles Darwin."

"Oh, that's interesting," the Child of Life replied with a nod. He then turned the book upside down and in all possible directions, frowning as the language kept making no sense to him. "Too bad I can't understand this language… Why do you humans have so many different ones, anyway?"

"Well, that's because different ethnicities lived isolated from each other for most of the course of history." The Senshi of Knowledge explained. "Thus different circumstances around them and different ways of life caused different languages to form. Some are similar to each other, some differ completely... There are certain families of languages that derive from one of the older ones, but nobody can trace the pattern down to a single mother tongue, if it even existed."

"But doesn't that make communication between the same species hard?" Gravitas wondered aloud, looking up for a split second from her book of gravity.

Ami nodded. "It does. But since ancient times there had been people who explicitly studied the languages of their neighbour peoples, for the purpose of trade, mostly. And as transportation and communication developed, more and more languages needed to be learnt." Ami paused, thinking. "But as far as I remember, there was always a common language that almost everybody could speak during the course of history. Usually it was a language of the nation with most power and territory. Nowadays, the universal international language is English, and if you know French and Spanish as well, you can communicate with no problem in almost any country all around the world."

"I see… Another thing I wonder about is why our Saurian language is the same, or at least similar enough, as yours so we can understand each other," Ignika muttered, scratching his chin. "It strikes me as odd."

"Indeed, and I've been thinking about it." Ami admitted. "I also wonder how Sailor Starlights could speak our language, and they're from another solar system. I do have a theory that might explain it, though."

"Destiny?" the white-haired boy tried, for that's what he believed, though he had a feeling Ami was going to prove him wrong.

"Mmm, might be so..." The Senshi reluctantly agreed. "But I think it has to do with the workings of dimensional travel. The Starlights arrived to our planet system via very long-distance teleportation, which, as far as I know, is going through a sub-dimension, and yet knew our language perfectly." Ami paused. "So my theory is, when you travel dimensions, you just automatically adapt to the language you need to speak. Furthermore, the similarity of our languages may be a mere illusion, while in reality what you say and what we hear are completely different things, and visa versa."

"That just sounds weird," Gravitas said emotionlessly from behind her book, which she was now two thirds through. Ignika had to admit he kind of agreed with his sister. How could anyone just automatically adapt to a language by dimensional travel? That just made no sense. But he didn't say it out loud, not wanting to offend Ami. He just decided to keep it at destiny.

"I know, I was just playing around with thoughts." Ami laughed. "But really, a lot of things in science make no sense until you find out how it works. And we Sailor Senshi defy a lot of laws of science, and a lot of things about us make no sense whatsoever. Like how come our uniforms are always intact no matter how torn they were in the previous battle?" Ami laughed softly again. She really was in a cheery mood now.

"Good point," Gravitas conceded, still focussed on her book. "Magic?"

"Yep. Until we can study and explain it, that is." Ami grinned. "So why not say that the absence of language barrier is magic, too?"

"Fine with me, I do not really care either way," the Saurian of Gravity shrugged, turning a page in her book. She sounded as aloof as ever.

Sailor Mercury got up from her armchair and went to the farthest end of the library. She hadn't looked there yet, but from what she gathered, there stood the volumes on subjects such as Astronomy and geography of different planets and solar systems. Those would be fascinating to read, or at least look at the pictures, for Ami probably wouldn't know the language.

The row of bookcases was just as fascinating as the rest, and Ami stood thinking what to choose for a long time. That was until one particular set of books caught her attention.

Most of the books in the library were either leather-bound or, the more recent tomes, had the covers of red, dark-green, black, grey or brown with golden print, or the most recent editions had colourful covers with pictures. This set's cover was pure white with a light metallic-grey print. Ami also couldn't identify the material the cover was made of, even when she touched it. It seemed smooth, almost like plastic, but must have been much more flexible if it could serve as a book cover. The books were quite big and thick, and each was marked with a special symbol above the book name.

Ami took the leftmost book, marked with a symbol that looked like three dots with two 3-like shapes around them. Strangely enough, despite being so big, it wasn't heavy at all. She opened the book at a random page, and gasped. The illustration that happened to be on this page was breathtaking.

It was a planet, looking much like earth, but bigger, and its surface seemed to be divided into different elemental territories. An enormous ocean spanned a great part of the southern reaches, while the north was rich with lush, dense jungles. Trapped in between was a span of desert around the equator. There were mountains as well, with one particular large range being black and having many spiked peaks. To the west of those, bordering between the desert and the jungle was a great white mountain range, while part of the ocean flooded into the desert as an oasis. Most peculiar about the desert were the gigantic constructions which seemed to be made of metal spread all over the sandy area. If Ami didn't know better, she'd say they were humongous parts of a machine of some sorts.

While the planet itself might not look that alien and bore many similarities to earth, it was the beauty and the accuracy with which this drawing was made that touched her, similar to the paintings that decorated the hallway. It was divine perfection one could only expect from a Great Being. Sailor Mercury's eyes drifted down to a string of characters scribbled neatly beneath the drawing. They were all circles of equal size, but within those circles were different patterns. It was an alphabet, she realized, but not one she could read.

Ami closed the book and hurried back to Ignika and Gravitas. Once she was there, she saw that Gravitas had finished her huge book and was now searching for another one to read.

"Ah, I see you finished. Found out anything new?" the Senshi asked her symbiosis partner while laying her own book on the table.

"Yes, I found out that I have a lot to learn," Gravitas replied calmly. "Especially these theories about reality and… relativity. This man named Einstein, he seemed particularly intelligent."

Ami smiled. "Those who knew him said he was quite a weirdo. But his theory is indeed fascinating and has revolutionized the way humans see the laws of the Universe." Then she turned to the Child of Life. "Anyway, Ignika, could you please take a look at this book?"

Ignika had already done so before Ami had even asked. He had recognized the symbol on the book, for back when he was young and still being taken care of by the Great Beings, the books he had been allowed to read had all carried this symbol as well. "It's a book written by a Great Being," he whispered in awe, ever so gently opening the tome. His fingers traced some of the lines written down in the volume.

Gravitas, who had just whispered to Ami that while fascinating she hadn't understood a single thing in the book, most of it going over her head, now looked at her little brother, eyes shining with excitement. She took in the sight of the tome with a mixture of awe and utter fascination and desire. What knowledge could be written down in a book made by a Great Being? She couldn't even begin to imagine.

Ami looked at the child reading the book, clearly with awe and fascination. As much as she hated to disturb him, she had to ask: "Ignika, what is this book? Have you read it before?"

"No, I haven't read this one before… But it bears the symbol of the Great Beings," he replied, pointing at the three dots with the three-like swirls around it. "I do not know what it stands for, only that the Great Beings made great importance of this symbol."

"Mmm..." Ami hummed while nodding. "I guessed that it might be a book by a Great Being... There's no material on Earth that would feel so..." Ami searched for the right words. "So smooth, pleasant to touch, and yet so very light but sturdy... What does it say, Ignika?"

"History of Spherus Magna," the Child of Life answered quietly, taking a sharp intake of breath. This was a book about master Angonce's home. He skipped through some pages until he came across the drawing Ami had studied before, and then he pointed at the words underneath it. "Spherus Magna, hundred and twenty-five thousand years ago." The millennium old being trapped in a child's mind and body looked at his companions. "This book was written only recently."

"Recently as in... how many centuries ago?" Ami asked. If it was written in the last 500 years, then the author is no other than Master Angonce himself.

"One hundred and seventy eight years ago," came the answer, but not from Ignika. No, the answer was spoken by an ethereally beautiful voice, ageless and divine. It was Angonce's voice, and the Great Being stood in the doorway, a melancholic smile on his lips. Behind him stood Traveller and Sailor Pluto, who looked inside with keen interest. "I wrote it, as you guessed, Sailor Mercury," the divinity continued. "The previous tome that chronicled this tale unfortunately did not survive being read by Crast, and I had to rewrite it."

"Umm... Why didn't it? Aside from the bladed limbs?" Ami asked rather sheepishly. She tried to imagine Crast here, in the library, reading, but failed. And immediately regretted thinking of the Repulsive again.

"Ah, Crast need not touch a book to turn the pages, Sailor Mercury, he can do so with his mind," Angone replied kindly. "And that happened to be the problem... He concentrated a bit too hard, and made the book implode, unfortunately. It was the last manuscript from Heremus I still had left, too. Most unfortunate, but it cannot be helped."

Ami nodded, frowning. Losing the last thing that reminded you of a long-lost friend... That was sad, indeed. But then... Ami's mood brightened up. If they manage to defeat Zyglak, it would be safe for Master Angonce to meet his brethren again. And to do that, they needed to research symbiosis. That she was certain of.

"I admire your collection of books, Master Angonce. Although some... Surprised me." Ami admitted.

"Did they now? Which ones would those be? My collection of what you call 'manga', per chance?" the Great Being said, amusement clearly in his heavenly voice, and he looked at Sailor Mercury almost mischievously.

Needless to say, everybody's eyes went wide at that.

"Umm... Well... I, apparently, hadn't come across that bookcase yet..." Ami said, blushing. "I... I was talking about children's books... Why would you be interested in them..."

"For my studies of your cultural, literal and biological development, of course," the ancient creature answered friendlily. "I have been researching your species ever since I arrived here, and already have written a couple of tomes about my research. Before this whole invasion began, I was occupying myself with a study of the evolution of your literature, and when doing so it is only natural that I posses a representation of every form you posses."

"I see." Ami nodded. "Master Angonce, I'd love to talk to you about our literature and how you find it one day... But, you have come here because it is time to get to the research, have you not?" She was reluctant to leave the library, but was still eager to discover how to control symbiosis as well.

"Indeed, we should get to that. I have aided your fellow Senshi and Traveller, now it is time to fulfil your request," the Great Being agreed. He mentioned the occupants of the library to follow him. "Come, allow me to guide you to my laboratory."

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**Next chapter: The research - Part I!**

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Review replies:**

BookLoverAF: I hope this chapter lived up to your expectations! Thanks for the review. =)

SoulLoss: Yeah, it's pretty deep stuff. I enjoyed writing about this, to be honest. Tackling such issues like immortality takes a lot of thought, making it a challenge, and I like a challenge once in a while. So many people dream of not dying, but if you think about it, immortality is... well, forever. You'd live to see the end of the earth, end of the solar system... End of everything! Loss upon loss upon loss. And seeing how some of my characters have that to look forward to, I wrote this chapter. Good thing for them I'm all for happy endings. ;) Thanks for the review!


	64. The research : part I

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**64. The research – part I**

Angonce the Kind led his five guests out of the library and down the hall to the spiral staircase at the end of it. This was strange, as the staircase only led to the first floor, where Angonce and Crast had their private rooms. The confusion of the guests was quickly taken away, however, as Angonce touched a candleholder that hung on the wall. A small part of it slid away, revealing a hidden switch. The Great Being flipped it, and suddenly the floor gave away and revealed that the staircase also spiralled down to floors beneath the earth. Sparing a moment to comfort his guests with a smile, the divinity then descended into the hidden halls and quarters of his house.

As soon as all had gone down, the floor above them slid to a close again, hiding the secret passage once more. There were no lights on the ceiling, but it was not needed, as the walls of the staircase were covered by glyphs that gave off a soft green glow. Ami recognized the circles on the wall as the characters of the Great Being's alphabet. Every now and then the text was interrupted by a crudely drawn image. Sometimes it was a humanoid figure in a pose like the Vitruvius man, sometimes it was a schematic drawing of a solar system or a planet and other times it was the symbol of the Great Beings.

"These glyphs and symbols…" Angonce whispered as he walked in front of the group. "They chronicle my inventions and research… The further down you go, the more recent the glyphs… As time went by, I often had to expand my research rooms to continue my studies…"

"I remember, master Angonce," Ignika chimed in respectfully. "Your brethren did this back in the fortress on Voya as well."

"Fascinating..." Ami whispered, looking at the beauty of the glyphs.

"A wall of knowledge..." Setsuna muttered.

This way of recording one's achievements and scientific discoveries was alien to them. Why do so? All human discoveries were commemorated in books, the internet, or in museums and monuments at best. However, they could see that this way of recording was consistent and obvious, which was an advantage... Should another Great Being want to know what his brother had been doing for the past several hundred millennia, all they would have to do is walk along the wall and read...

"Correct, Sailor Pluto," Angonce said, chuckling when the Senshi's eyes widened. She had not said anything and yet he had known her thoughts. "As Great Beings do not change locations until we move on to another world entirely, this is a convenient way to chronicle the happenings of our research. The knowledge is accessible to all of us at the same time, unlike a book which can only be read by one at the time." The ancient man smiled and added: "Also, this way is Crast-resistant."

"I see..." Pluto said quietly. "I take it we're in for a long walk?" She said, returning to looking at the glyphs.

"Not exactly, unless you are of the opinion we need my equipment for studying literature to research the symbiosis bond," came the even reply.

"Pardon me my rudeness..." Pluto apologized and fell silent.

Ami frowned. Equipment for literature? "But that's logical." She thought. "No need to read all those books when you can make a machine to read and analyze them for you. And that's no problem at all with a Great Being's mind." Still, she hoped that some books did catch his attention enough to read them personally...

"Oh, I do read them myself, Sailor Mercury. I have read all you've seen in the library," Angonce informed the blue-haired girl. The Great Being came to a halt next to a symbol that was a crude drawing of a humanoid being, drawing above a crude representation of Earth's solar system. "The equipment for my studies of your literature are used to, for example, date some of the texts I have, to restore damaged pieces or to translate old alphabets and dialects that would take too long to do myself. And speaking of which, allow me to say that I translated the hieroglyphics two hundred years before Champoleon."

The ethereally beautiful man then pressed the human-shaped glyph, and that part of the wall slid away, revealing an entrance to another room. Without hesitation Angonce went inside, the lights in the room illuminating upon detecting his presence. The light revealed a wide, spacious room, filled with equipment and machinery of all kinds and sizes, most of which none, not even the Senshi or Ignika, had ever seen before. The walls in this laboratory were also covered with glyphs, and when Ignika read them he found out that most were information and instructions and notes about the machines.

As Angonce led them to the centre of the room, where a round surface was floating, serving as a table capable of projecting holograms, they passed a few glass cases in which laid, to the Senshi's shock, human remains. A golden plaque with words in the Great Being's alphabet was attached to each of them. Intrigued, Ignika scanned the words.

"Australopithecus… Homo Ha… Habilis… Homo Erectus…" he read out loud. His curiosity got the better of him and he approached the glass cases so he could observe the bones within better. Intrigued, his sisters followed him.

Truth to be told, all of what they were seeing now was nearly overwhelming the two Saurian sisters. Ignika might have been used to Great Beings' technology, they were not. Human technology was a lot to take in, but as they stood here, surrounded on all sides by the equipment, they realized that human technology had nothing on this. All of it was so otherworldly for them, held a feeling of incredible wisdom and power, and Traveller and Gravitas felt small and insignificant.

"So... This is the laboratory for studying human beings..." Setsuna said, also feeling a bit overwhelmed by the technology.

"Umm... Pardon me for asking..." Ami meekly chimed in. "Did you conduct... Tests with live humans here...?" According to human morale, it was almost unthinkable, but still, Ami wanted to know.

"There was no need," Angonce assured the Senshi of Water calmly. "I am morally incapable of doing so due to my lack of inner darkness. For observation of live humans I sent Crast to do so for me, and later visualised his memories on the screen here. I admit to have studied true specimens of deceased humans eons ago to dissect them, but afterwards I have always restored their remains to a proper state and took them back for a proper burial."

Finally, the Great Being came to a halt before a machine that vaguely resembled a computer, and Angonce took place on a floating chair behind it. A light mental touch activated the ancient machinery, and a holographic screen appeared before Angonce's eyes. "Before we begin, let me apologize for the primitive equipment I have here at my disposal… But since the fall of Spherus Magna and our flight beyond the dimensional walls, I have been incapable of gathering the correct materials to create proper equipment."

Everybody's eyes went wide at that. "P... Primitive?" Ami stuttered. "Master Angonce, this is the most fascinating equipment I have seen in my entire life!"

The Senshi of Time nodded. "I cannot even tell how many centuries will pass until we reach that technology level, or even whether we will reach it at all."

"It is kind of you to say so, guardians of this world," the Great Being smiled sadly. He shook his head and sighed, then moved his fingers over a seemingly empty, undecorated white plate on the machine. It was as if he were typing on a computer, but there were no buttons visible, and nothing changed on the hologram screen. "And yet, believe me when I say that this is nothing compared to our days of glory on Spherus Magna."

"That is... Hard... To even imagine." Ami admitted.

"I am aware, and I have no way to show it," came the reply, and Angonce shut his eyes in pain. "Those days are gone. A loss to bear for eternity."

The Saurian family remained silent. The announcement that their current surroundings were primitive in the eyes of a Great Being made them all, Ignika included, feel even more small, insignificant, uncivilized and stupid than they already did. It was proven for them once more that the Great Beings were great and mighty indeed. But upon seeing the pained face of their host, Traveller felt sorry for the divinity, knowing that he felt the pain that he had helped her avoid. She knew there was nothing she, a pathetic Saurian, could do for someone as mighty as Angonce, yet she desired it, if only to make eternity bearable for him again.

"But let the past be the past for the time being," Angonce announced, wiping away his pained expression and suppressing the memories of his beloved home. "We came here to study this fascinating bond known as symbiosis, did we not?"

"Yes, we did." Ami said eagerly. Then came over to Gravitas and took her hand, leading her closer to the divinity. "What are we to do, Master Angonce?"

The Great Being finished his 'typing' on the machine, and suddenly all the rest of the equipment in the library came to life as well, holographic statistics, glyphs or images appearing above some of them. The Kind rose from his seat and went over to the centre table, bidding his guests to do the same. A mental command of the ancient man made a hologram of the first time Ami and Gravitas and Setsuna and Traveller had triggered their symbiosis appear.

"These images were taken from Crast's mind, for he was present when both symbiosis powers were awakened and used, even if you did not know he was there during that moment. I have studied them a lot, of course, and gained all the data I could possibly get from mere images," Angonce explained. A second mental command made words in the Great Beings' alphabet appear on the images of the events, displaying numbers, observations and statistics. However, aside from Ignika none could read them. Seeing their confusion, Angonce hurriedly switched to the written language of the Senshi. "My apologies," the divinity said. "But after more than two hundred thousand years, one grows used to using his own scientific alphabet."

"Amazing..." Setsuna whispered.

"All that data... From just images?" Ami said in awe as she began to read the text and study the charts. Most things written there were complex, however, and she couldn't understand much.

"Yes, however, do not be misled. Most of the information now on display is merely for record's purpose. One day I hope to write another volume for my library about this intriguing phenomenon." A slight frown appeared on Angonce's unbelievably handsome face. "For example, from these images, I have found little to no data or information about what makes it happen, or how it can be made to happen at will. What I need is more information, information that can only be gotten from studying you directly. By your leave, I believe we could learn much if you agreed to a detailed scanning of your bodies."

"Um, of course." Ami said. She wondered what a scan with Great Beings' technology would look like and feel. And also how much data could be gathered from that... Worth several dozens of pages, no doubt.

Setsuna merely nodded and asked: "Where do you want us?" She didn't mind being scanned at all. Besides, it could lead to an even more intriguing discovery about Sailor Senshi powers in general.

"Ignika, you know how these work, you will assist me, will you not?" Angonce asked, smiling at his 'son', while rising from the table and bidding the two symbiosis pairs to follow him and the Child of Life.

"It would be an honour to be your assistant again, master Angonce!" Ignika eagerly replied, his eyes shining and starry.

The Great Being led his guests to another part of the laboratory, not far from the glass cases holding the fossils of extinct human species. They arrived at another floating surface of sorts. It was translucent and made of what looked like blue glass. Upon touching it, however, Ami discovered it was not glass but an unknown soft, warm material. It was large enough for two people to be able to lie down next to each other comfortably. Under the surface were placed a special kind of lights, placed in a strict pattern, and wide screens were placed all around it to display the gathered information.

"Sailor Mercury, Gravitas, would you be so kind to take place and lie down on here? You need not worry, this will neither hurt nor feel uncomfortable. It will be no different than laying in your beds, I assure you," Angonce asked, making a motion with his hand at the apparent scanning apparatus.

Gravitas hesitated, having never been part of scientific experiments before, and she seemed rather reluctant to change that now. She looked at Ignika, uncertain and slightly frightened, but the Child of Life gave his sister an assuring, encouraging and silent nod. It was going to be alright, the action told her.

"Very well," the Saurian of Gravity replied tonelessly, her face showing none of her previous reluctance and fear. Wordlessly, she took place on the soft surface of the scanner, Ignika adjusting her position where needed.

Ami, meanwhile, took her place on the platform as well. She turned her head to look at Gravitas, who lay still, as if afraid to move. Ami smiled at her and touched her hand slightly, giving her a bit of comfort and assurance, and then lay as still as the Saurian, looking at the ceiling and waiting for the scan to start.

"Please refrain from physical contact until requested, please," Angonce announced. Then he made a mental command to the scanner, making a second surface identical to the one the Saurian and Senshi were placed on appear above the two. He then nodded at Ignika, and the boy eagerly touched a panel beneath one of the screens, making the lamps beneath the first surface light up, thus starting the scan.

Immediately information and statistics appeared on all of the screens, along with images of Gravitas and Sailor Mercury on all kinds of levels. One showing simply their skeleton, the other only their muscles, the other only their organs, nervous system and so on, each image being accompanied by line after line of data and information, all kinds of arrows and lines being drawn from the images to the text to clarify specific parts of the anatomy and so much more. Already Angonce was taking in the sight on the different screens, his eyes narrowed as he went fully into researcher-mode.

Ami was feeling a bit nervous being scanned like that, but since she was lying horizontally and didn't dare to turn her head, she didn't see all the data about her body filling the screens, and didn't have anything to do besides watching the pretty lights from the surface below them being reflected at the surface above. The scan itself felt... Strange and a kind of ticklish, like being touched by thousands of tiny little charges of static electricity.

Setsuna was observing the screens thoughtfully. Yes, this technology was way ahead of human. To be able to make such accurate models in such a short fragment of time... It was amazing indeed. She wondered whether the body scan will reveal something of the Senshi powers or the origin of symbiosis.

Gravitas was feeling the same feelings as her symbiosis partner and friend was, but she kept her mind calm and empty to avoid panicking. Nothing was wrong, she told herself. The Great Being knew what he was doing.

"Fascinating," she heard Angonce whisper, as the divinity was observing the bodily scans of Gravitas' body. The Kind mentally made the screen showing Gravitas' skeleton turn from vertical to horizontal, and the image became a fully detailed three dimensional hologram of the Saurian's bone-structure. "Your sister's bones are far stronger and heavier than a human's, and that in turn causes for stronger muscles to move those… Not only that, but her organs are arranged in a clearly Saurian way, and her heart and lungs are birdlike, not those of a mammal. Basically, you have tried to change as little as possible about your own and your family's inner structure, while still looking human… I'm impressed, Ignika. You've fine-tuned your usage of your powers indeed."

The Child of Life blushed a bit under the compliment, and he muttered a thanks.

"That is not to say Sailor Mercury's body is of no interest. Quite the opposite, in fact," Angonce continued, seemingly heedless of the others around him. The Great Being seemed to have slipped into a trance of fascination, one caused by all the new information and knowledge he now had access to. "I clearly see increased workings of the immunity system, giving much greater resistance to illness than an ordinary human has. The levels of stress and fatigue the bones and muscles can withstand are greater too. Speaking of muscles, those appear to be stronger in some way without becoming bulkier, allowing Mercury to keep a streamlined appearance and not have to sacrifice speed for strength. Very fascinating indeed. I must study samples of this muscle-tissue someday. And the workings of the nervous system are far, far quicker than ordinary. That probably explains the sharp reflexes. Fascinating, all of it… So much new information to study. Brilliant and amazing."

"Well, our physical capacities do exceed those of normal humans... It's nice to see those scientifically proven." Setsuna said. "However, those qualities aren't present in the human disguise, except for Makoto who still has her strength."

"For certain, I must one day commit a scan of both your human and Senshi bodies and fully study this phenomenon. But for now, we must focus on the Symbiosis…" Angonce muttered. He then addressed Gravitas and Ami, who were still being scanned. "Sailor Mercury, Gravitas, would you be so kind now as to hold hands? I wish to see if there is any sort of difference between when you are in contact with each other and when you are not."

"Of course, Master Angonce." Ami said and took Gravitas' hand. Immediately she felt the symbiosis bond get stronger, and before she knew it, she was smiling at her partner.

Gravitas squeezed lightly in Sailor Mercury's hand and smiled back. It felt good to be in physical contact with the blue-haired girl, Gravitas thought. It made her feel a bit of that warmth she had felt during the symbiosis again. And that was a feeling Gravitas longer for.

Behind the two women, Angonce gasped. "Unbelievable…" he said, staring at the screens. With a few mental commands to the machinery, he made it so that the scans of the women with and without holding hands were displayed next to each other. The Great Being pointed at a schematic of the two girls' nervous system. "Look at the increase in activity. It is as if they are subconsciously exchanging information and energy through physical contact. Not only that, but let us take a look at the amount of power within them."

This time Angonce did his next revision to the display manually, and his elegant fingers typed away on a blank white slate. Yet something changed, and an outline appeared of both Ami and Gravitas, with a glowing light where their heart was. The glow was bright and strong in both of them. "This is a representation of their power without contact… The brighter the light, the stronger the power. Now look what happens when I display the information from the scanning of their contact…" Angonce's fingers glided over the panel again, and the outline of the two girls changed so that it was now a rough outline of them holding hands. The results were immediate, and the glow inside both of them increased so strongly that it was no longer golden, but so intense it was pure white. Not only that, but the glow had spread from just around their core, their heart, to all over their body, indicating at the massive rise in power caused just by holding hands.

Setsuna's eyes went wide when she saw that, and it took all of her self-control not to let her jaw drop. Instinctively, she took Traveller's hand, feeling the same warmth and comfort as before.

"And... And when symbiosis happens... The light and warmth are overflowing in you... Surpassing the borders of your body..." She could only say, stuttering.

"Indeed," the Great Being confirmed. "That's what it looks like. During a symbiosis, the power can no longer remain within the joined bodies, and is unleashed in a powerful ability or attack that I think combines the powers held by the people who are joined. Even now, it looks like Sailor Mercury's and Gravitas' bodies are barely keeping all the energy and power stored within…"

Satisfied, Angonce mentally made the second surface above the two women on the scanner disappear, and made a gesture at Ignika to turn the scanner off, which the Child of Life quickly did. "I thank you for your cooperation, ladies. If you so wish, you can rise."

Ami sighed, relieved and sat up on the scanner, and then smiled assuring at Gravitas. "See? It wasn't bad at all." She told her guest and got off the scanner.

"I suppose not," Gravitas replied quietly, her tone a tiny bit shaken. She too climbed off the scanner, be it a tad more quickly than her friend did. Once she was off, the Saurian of Gravity immediately hurried to Ami's side again, grabbing the Senshi's hand and holding it. She needed the bond and comfort here in this alien, strange place where she knew she did not belong. The scanning itself already went far beyond her understanding. How could shining on somebody with lights produce all those images and information? Gravitas didn't understand.

Neither did her sister, who was standing closely to Setsuna and Ignika for reassurance. All of it was simply so overwhelming that it frightened her, but Traveller knew that it was now her and Setsuna's turn to take place on this… scanner.

Angonce, meanwhile, was showing the results to Ami and Gravitas that they had not been capable of seeing while being scanned. He was clearly impressed by the results.

"It is amazing indeed, Master Angonce!" Ami said, fascinated both by the technology and the results of the scan. "Now all we need to do is figure out the triggering mechanism and the way of controlling the power." She smiled at Gravitas and squeezed her hand, trying to give her more comfort. She could feel her strain, and tried to be there for her as much as possible.

"Indeed. But before that, I would like to take a scan of Sailor Pluto and Traveller as well, if for no other reason but to see if the results of said scan will be the same as those of yours, Sailor Mercury. By logic, they should be the same, at least basically, for of course every body differs," the Great Being answered. He turned to the other symbiosis pair with a questioning look in his eyes. "Do you have any objections to a scan, Sailor Pluto, Traveller?"

"I do not, Master Angonce." Setsuna replied. She then looked at Traveller, who seemed tired and surely was overwhelmed by so much new happenings. Setsuna didn't want her symbiosis partner to be uncomfortable.

Ignika sensed the discomfort of his natural sister as well, and he walked over to her and gave her a hug, which she returned after a few seconds. The Child of Life gave the disguised woman an encouraging smile. "It's okay, sister, it doesn't hurt. I've been scanned a lot when I was young."

"I know…" the Saurian of Teleportation replied quietly. "I just… Do not feel at ease here. I am out of place, I do not belong here. We…" she indicated at Gravitas and herself. "Do not belong here. We're mere, normal, plain Saurians… This… 'research', it is something for smart people like you, brother, or like Setsuna-san or Ami-san and Master Angonce. Not for unintelligent beings like Gravitas and me…"

Gravitas nodded quietly. No amount of studying she did with Ami would ever make her feel like she had a right to be in this laboratory. The Great Beings were just too superior and above them for that to happen… The Senshi at least lived in a world where they had their own technology. But they were just stupid talking reptiles, whose technological discoveries stopped at forging weapons and sewing tunics. "Traveller is right…"

Ami smiled at her guest comfortingly. "Don't forget you have a whole eternity ahead of you. And, please, believe me when I say it, with your talent and quick thinking and intuition you could learn anything in the world, and become a scientist no worse than human." She nodded to her, sure of her feelings.

"Another thing why you belong here, Traveller..." Setsuna added. "Is because you are Ignika's family and come from the same dimension as Master Angonce. And should you have been raised differently, you'd feel just as at ease here as in your jungle home."

"And if your friends cannot convince you, then allow me, dear Saurian," Angonce spoke, his voice wise and kind. "It is true that you and your race have not made the same discoveries about nature and existence as we or the human race have… But that is not because of a lack of intelligence. The Saurian race is smart, Traveller. The only reason you have not reached the same technological level as humanity is because you have no need for it. Your race is content with its current style of life, and has no use for theories about gravity or relativity." The Great Being walked over to the two Saurian women and placed a hand on each of their shoulders', giving them an encouraging smile. Being in touch with a Great Being felt no less incredible than symbiosis did, and Traveller and Gravitas felt their spirits being lifted. "As far as intelligence goes, you are both capable of learning all humanity can, and more. You have greater intuition, and your understand things much quicker. You are both smart, and can be even more so when properly tutored, which I have no doubt your Senshi friends will do."

Angonce smiled again, and gently guided Traveller to the scanner. "Do you think you can do it, Traveller? Force you, I shall not. But I ask, if not for my sake then for yours and Pluto's."

Ignika's oldest sister nodded. "I can. Thank you, master Angonce. And thank you, Setsuna-san." With those words spoken, Traveller took place on the scanner, and waited for her friend to do the same.

"Stop calling me Setsuna-san already." Sailor Pluto said, placing her Garnet Rod gently on the floor and lying down on the scanner as well. "It's a formal suffix, and we're too close to use formalities now."

"It's a form of my respect for you, as my friend," the immortal woman explained.

Setsuna smiled. "Thank you. But adding -san to the name is a polite way for calling almost everybody except for your friends and family, even complete strangers if you know their name." Then added, in a low tone. "It makes me feel as if there's still distance between us..."

"There is none," Traveller assured her symbiosis partner and lifetime friend.

"And that's exactly why I don't want you to call me Setsuna-san." She sighed and made herself comfortable on the scanner's surface.

Seeing that they were ready, Angonce made the second surface appear above them just like he had done before, and Ignika once again turned the machine on. The lights began to shine, and information about Sailor Pluto and Traveller flooded the screens. Angonce observed the differences between Gravitas and Traveller, for he was very interested in how the new bodies of the Saurian family functioned and if Ignika had made them all the same. Apparently, he had, for aside from the power they wielded and their age, there was little difference between the two. The differences between Mercury and Pluto were more obvious and greater.

"Interesting," the divinity whispered slowly. He manually changed certain settings, and the data of Mercury and Pluto was now displayed next to each other. "It seems the muscle tissue of Pluto is almost identical to Mercury's, except in the arms. Pluto's is apparently even stronger, and my theory is that it is because those need to withstand greater force when you use your power, guardian of Time. And though the immunity system, bone structure and nervous system are all ordered and designed identical, the aging process within Pluto seems to be halted or interfered with. Most intriguing."

"That might be the consequences of spending a long time in the timeless realm where the Time Gates are located." Ami explained. "It's impossible to measure how much time has passed for Setsuna while she was there, but in terms of the rest of the world, she had been there since the fall of Silver Millennium and up to... Three years ago."

"I am aware," Angonce informed the Senshi of Water. Satisfied with what was on the screen, he asked of Traveller and Pluto: "Now then, just as before, could you please join hands, Sailor Pluto, Traveller?"

Setsuna readily took Traveller's hand, and felt the bond grow strong and flow through them again, just like every other time they touched each other. Traveller returned the gesture, squeezing the hand that held hers and smiling at the green-haired woman. Now, she felt at ease and happy. With such a simple gesture, she was comforted.

The data of the scan of them in contact rolled on the screen, and the Great Being who had created the machine was once again typing away on the empty panel. He conjured up the images of the powers inside Ami and Gravitas with and without physical contact, then displayed the same images of Traveller and Setsuna right next to them. Though the shapes were different, the glows of power were not. Only Setsuna had a bit more power individually than Ami did. But the glows in the two images of physical contact were of the same strength.

"As we suspected, the power of the symbiosis is of the same magnitude in both pairs," Angonce said as he observed the images and data on the screen. "I think it is also safe to conclude that one of the conditions that has to be fulfilled in order to use symbiosis is that the two individuals have to be in physical contact with each other."

Ami merely nodded. After she had told the Great Being information he already knew perfectly, she didn't want to speak more than needed, just came closer to Gravitas so that not only their hands were in contact, their arms also touched.

Setsuna listened to the conversation paying only half attention, and was thinking of the talk earlier, about immortality. There wasn't much to add to the picture, but she still felt she needed to go over it in her head. The scanning process felt quite pleasant to her, and the warmth Traveller and their bond gave her comforted Setsuna.

Traveller was trying much not to think, and simply listened to her own heartbeat and Setsuna's that she could feel through their bond. She had been exposed to technology at the Outers' house, that was true, but never had she encountered technology like this. Technology that was to be used _on_ her, rather than she using the machine itself. It was not a very pleasant experience, even if it neither hurt nor felt uncomfortable. It was just the idea that didn't sit well with her.

Luckily, her trial soon ended, as Master Angonce had gathered all the data he could from the scan, and he switched off the machine. A second mental command made the surface above the two women vanish. "All information about symbiosis that could be taken from your bodies is now at our disposal," the Great Being informed his guests calmly. "I thank you for your cooperation, ladies."

Setsuna sat up and smiled at Traveller, then looked at the Great Being and said: "No need to thank us, Master Angonce. It is in everybody's interest that symbiosis is researched as thoroughly as possible." She then got off the scanner and helped Traveller down as well.

"You are quite correct, Sailor Pluto," the divinity admitted. "However, we do not have all pieces to the puzzle just yet. This scan of your bodies has only given us insight in the physical aspect of this phenomenon. It does not explain how and in what circumstances symbiosis is used. We need more data for that, and I think that it can be found within you as well, inside your minds. Now, I will completely understand if you do not wish to go through with my planned next step. Yet I will ask, because I think it will provide us with the vital last pieces of this symbiosis puzzle. Sailor Senshi, Saurian sisters, Would you agree to a scan of your minds?"

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**Next chapter: The research - part II!**

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	65. The research : part II

_Mistakes of the Great Being_

**65. The research – part II**

"However," Angonce said. "We do not have all pieces to the puzzle just yet. This scan of your bodies has only given us insight in the physical aspect of this phenomenon. It does not explain how and in what circumstances symbiosis is used. We need more data for that, and I think that it can be found within you as well, inside your minds. Now, I will completely understand if you do not wish to go through with my planned next step. Yet I will ask, because I think it will provide us with the vital last pieces of this symbiosis puzzle. Sailor Senshi, Saurian sisters, Would you agree to a scan of your minds?"

"A... Scan of our minds?" Setsuna repeated slowly. That didn't sound appealing. Although she knew that it was for the greater good, for finding out what caused symbiosis, a part of her was reluctant to do it. After all, everybody had secrets, and Setsuna had more of them than any other Senshi.

"H-how detailed will the scan be?" Asked Ami, who was thinking along the same lines as Setsuna.

"As detailed as you will allow it to be," came the divinity's answer. "More precisely, we would be scanning your minds for your own personal memories of your symbiosis, for the activities of your subconscious and consciousness and the general state of mind. If we know this, I am certain we will then hold the cards we need."

That did comfort the Senshi somewhat, and they knew they could trust Master Angonce when it came to precision of the scan, that he won't scan any memories unrelated to that, but still... They hesitated.

"I will allow it," Gravitas announced emotionlessly, her face carrying an almost disinterested expression. "I am not afraid to let others see what is in my mind, and I trust master Angonce's respect of our privacy." The Saurian of Gravity turned to her blue-haired friend and took her hand. "Do you not want to have symbiosis with me again?"

"Yes... I do..." Ami said slowly. Then she shook her head. "I'm sorry, Gravitas, I guess I was just kind of afraid. I agree to it, too." She assured her friend.

"I too will not back out now," Traveller said determinedly. Though inside she was a bit nervous about being 'scanned' again, they had already come so far, they could not stop now. And as for the secrets of her mind, ah, there was nothing there that she was ashamed of. Let them see it, should it be needed. Ignika's oldest sister took Setsuna's hands in her own. "If I do it, will you not as well, my friend? There is no need to be afraid. We can trust my brother's master on his word. And we can learn how to activate this wondrous bond between us again. Do you not wish that?"

Setsuna smiled a bit. "Of course I do. It's just that I have to be cautious when it comes... to the secrets of my mind." She whispered. "But there is no reason not to trust Master Angonce. I agree to be scanned."

"Most excellent," the Great Being said, pleased. "This way then, please. Ignika, you remember the process, do you not?" As he asked his 'son' that question, the ethereal, beautiful man led his guests to another section of his laboratory, where what seemed to be floating beds were waiting for them.

"I do, Master Angonce," Ignika answered with a nod, thinking back to the days when his growth and his body were observed carefully and scanned daily, to make sure nothing went wrong. "It's almost like sleeping. You lay down and relax, and the machine doest he rest. Though it looks different here than it did on Voya, master."

"Indeed it does," Angonce admitted with a smile, patting his son on the shoulder. "I suppose I was influenced by the design of human beds. It is just so practical and not to mention comfortable." The Great Being gestured at the two floating 'beds' and addressed the rest of his guests. "It is just as Ignika said. Pretend you are merely going to sleep. This equipment will then allow me to search your mind like searching a book in the library, and then I can call forth the information we need on the screens behind me."

The Senshi and female Saurians looked at the mind scanner with a mixture of suspicion and intrigue. It just looked so… normal. Just two beds floating above a glowing blue surface. There were no cables or any visual technology present to connect the beds to the computer-like apparatus behind master Angonce. Just how did it all work and function? What did its inner workings look like? Ami could barely hold her curiosity in check.

The divinity could sense Mercury's eagerness to know and it made him smile. Her desire to understand was not quite unlike a Great Being's, he thought. Perhaps one day, should they survive Zyglak, he would invite her to discuss and debate about science and technology, both his and that of humans. But for now, he would do what they had come here to do, research the symbiosis phenomenon. His fingers typed on another blank panel, adjusting the settings of the machine until they were suited for the minds of a Sailor Senshi and a Saurian. Once that was done, he beckoned for Gravitas and Sailor Mercury.

"Grvitas, Sailor Mercury, would you be so kind as to go first, again? The process will be the same as before, first a scan of your individual minds, and then a scan when you are in physical contact with each other."

"Alright." Ami nodded and lay down on the bed. She sighed and tried to relax as much as possible, even closed her eyes to pretend she was sleeping.

Gravitas said nothing, and merely took place on the other bed, sparing a moment to look at her friend, who was visibly trying to relax. Steeling herself, Gravitas did the same. Her eyes fell shut and her mind became empty.

Seeing they were ready, Angonce activated his machine with a small mental command, and from the blue surface beneath the beds a soft sea-coloured light began to shine straight up, seeping through the beds and covering the two women in a blanket of blue light.

Ami opened her eyes in surprise, but then closed them again. The light felt different from the other scanner. It was soft and kind of cool, as if she really was under water. Ami liked that, and relaxed fully. Gravitas, on her part, ignored it completely, and did not move or react.

Images were beginning to fill the screen, but they were not like those of the other scanner. Those had been orderly, obvious schematics of a human (or humanoid) body, with all the information that came with that. This was… different. The images on both screens – one representing Ami's mind and the other Gravitas' – changed continuously, and rarely even had recognizable shapes. Even the colours changed, though with Mercury they mostly remained a shade of blue, and those of Gravitas remained silver and grey.

"Their minds have been linked to my machine," Angonce explained to the remaining three guests. "For the moment, their minds are in a state of rest, not actively trying to think of something or having to perform actions. This is why we currently cannot see anything distinctive. The mind, even in rest, never sits still, and the change of shapes and colours shows that."

Setsuna nodded, observing the screens. She noted how the colours seemed to match the aura of their powers as well as their minds.

Traveller looked at her sister and then at the screen, and she frowned. "Master Angonce, pardon my rudeness, but may I ask why you need a machine to delve in their minds? Surely one as powerful as you has mental powers to do with what the machine now does?"

"It is true that I possess great mental capacities, like Ignika does," Angonce answered. "But if I read their minds, all I will get is the raw facts. This machine allows me to retrieve the raw facts and to turn it into usable information and the very same time. It saves us time and work, you see?"

The Saurian of Teleportation nodded gratefully. "I understand, thank you, master Angonce."

"Think nothing of it," the divinity replied. "Now, we should search for the memories and thoughts we need…" Concentrating, the Great Being began to give mental commands to the scanner of minds, telling it to search for any kind of information that was related to the symbiosis. To aid the machine in its search, Angonce gave it his own memories of the images he had seen of the phenomenon, which in turn came from Crast. Armed with this, the machine went to work, and before a minute had passed, clear, vibrant images rolled on the screen.

It showed the symbiosis of Gravitas and Sailor Mercury, both from their own point of view. Every thought, action or mental command made during this moment were taken from the girls' mind, analyzed and put into readable information or watchable images. The amount of information that rolled over the screens was staggering, far more than there had been with the scanning of the bodies. Seeing the astonished looks on his guests' faces, Angonce smiled and explained:

"This goes to show how much information, both vital and worthless, is stored within our minds. And this is only all their mind knows and thinks about the symbiosis. Imagine how much we would have to read and see should we display _all_ information these girls possess within their powerful minds."

"That is... Unimaginable." Sailor Pluto said. She watched the image on the screen intently, and wondered what the results will be, whether the results would be enough to activate it again. So far, it had only been activated in near-death situations...

"I have seen what I needed from this first scan," the deity of another announced calmly. His fingers typed away on the empty panel again. "Sailor Mercury, Gravitas, would you be so kind as to hold hands now, so we can see if there is a difference in what we receive?"

Gravitas' eyes fluttered open for a moment, and she turned her head to the side so she could look at her intelligent friend. Calmly, the Saurian of Gravity reached out with her pale hand to the Senshi of Water, waiting for her to take it and link them together again.

Ami smiled at her symbiosis partner and took her hand. The warmth flared inside them again, and the link became stronger.

"Interesting, very interesting…" Angonce muttered as his golden eyes keenly took in all that was displayed on the screens. "It is all very simple, it seems… Their minds became linked, and unleashing the power was practically child's play for their merged subconscious. All they did to use it was, unknowingly, will themselves to do it. The biggest difficulty is apparently the awakening process of the symbiosis. Seeing as this is such a long-forgotten instinct, it took their minds a long time before they figured out what exactly was going on whenever Mercury and Gravitas were in contact… Apparently facing death as they did during the battle with Jutlin the Corrupt revived the instinct instantly. And once it was awake, it was, as I said, merely a matter of using their connected minds to will themselves to use this newfound power."

The Great Being nodded slowly, understanding seeming to have dawned on him. "Yes, it is becoming clear now. In fact, I should not have been surprised at the brilliant simplicity of this concept, as nature so rarely makes things needlessly complicated…" Satisfied, the divinity switched off his machine. "I think I have a plausible theory for the workings of symbiosis now, and a scan of Sailor Pluto and Traveller's mind will either confirm my suspicions or prove me wrong, though I tend to lean to the first." Then he addressed Sailor Mercury and Gravitas, who had opened their eyes as soon as the blanket of light on them had vanished. "Thank you once again, ladies, for your cooperation. We are close to the solution now, thanks to your efforts."

Ami smiled as she got off the scanner. "It's all thanks to your marvellous technology, Master Angonce." She went over to Gravitas to help her off as well. "As Ignika said, all we had to do was to relax and let the machine to everything."

"But it was you who allowed me access to your minds, Sailor Mercury," Angonce replied kindly. "Sailor Pluto, Traveller, would you show me the same kindness and take place on the scanner, please?"

"Certainly, Master Angonce." Setsuna walked over to the bed. Seeing that the mind scanner indeed looked into the memories of symbiosis only, Setsuna could allow herself to relax, and when she lay down on the bed, she was even able to smile at Traveller.

Traveller had also taken place on the 'bed' and managed to return Setsuna's smile, though less heartedly. Yes, the Saurian had agreed to do this, but she was still nervous when it came to having technology used on her. She was not her brother, who had grown up undergoing this kind of tests. Still, she willed herself to be calm, and drew courage from Setsuna's and her family's presence.

Sensing her friend's nervousness, Setsuna said: "It's gonna be alright, Traveller. If Ami and Gravitas went through this with no problem, we can, too. Now just relax and let yourself go."

Ignika's oldest sister nodded, and did as she was told.

Angonce then turned on his machine again, and repeated the same process as before. A blanket of blue light covered the two women, and new images appeared on the screen. Just like before, with their minds in rest the images from Pluto's and Traveller's minds were just an ever-changing mix of colours, nothing specific. But then the Great Being made his machinery search for everything related to the Senshi of Time and the Saurian of Teleportation's symbiosis, and the images and data on the screens became clearer. It was an almost exact replica of the previous events, as a tidal wave of facts, information, statistics and images flooded the screens of the machine. Angonce took it all in in silence, observing everything his eyes saw with great care. Apparently he liked what he saw, for he smiled and nodded quietly. Then he asked of the two women on the scanner to join hands.

Setsuna reached out to Traveller and smiled at her, as if to tell her that all is going well. She knew she would comfort her even more when they touch, and longed to do so. Traveller gladly took the offered hand and comfort, and smiled back. The touch with her friend made her feel the strength of their bond, and that eased her greatly.

The Great Being observed the results on the screens. He was not surprised that those results were the same as when Gravitas and Mercury had connected. He had expected that, hoped for it even, and Angonce smiled. His idea was correct, it seemed, at least in theory. All that was left was testing it out and see if they had really discovered the secret. Satisfied, Angonce mentally shut off his machine.

"My thanks, Sailor Pluto and you too, of course, Traveller. The results I got from this scan were the ones I hoped I would receive, and I think the picture became clear to me just now."

Setsuna got off the scanner and helped Traveller off, too. "Well, I am eager to hear the results. And I think my friend Ami shares that feeling." Setsuna winked at the blue-haired girl.

Ami giggled. "Of course I am. It is such a fascinating subject and an amazing power! I can't wait to hear how it works!" The Senshi of Knowledge said, unable to hide her giddiness.

"Of course," the deity said with an approving nod. He then clasped his hands together. "Then let me present my theory. I think it is correct, but of course it can only be proven by testing it out." Angonce then began to pace back and forth, his face gaining a thoughtful frown on it. "Symbiosis is not uncommon in nature. There are many cases where animals work together for the benefit of both. I believe it is an instinct that lies in all of life, but humans and Saurians have merely forgotten it. But, as you all know, it can be reawakened. From the mental scans, I think this is done when the two partners experience extreme mental stress or trauma, such as a near-death experience, which both pairs did indeed go through. Once awakened, one of the conditions for actually using the symbiosis is that the partners must be in physical contact, the scans of your bodies clearly showed that."

Angonce paused for a moment as he ran over everything in his mind again, to make sure he made no mistakes in his explanation. "The physical contact doesn't have to be much, mere holding hands is enough. However, the contact goes beyond the physical aspect. Upon touch, minds, senses… it all merges, or rather, works as one, in perfect synchronization. In fact, from the body scans I could see that even your hearts beat at the same moment. The moment you come into contact is the moment that the power of the symbiosis flares to life in both of you, think of it as a volcano just beneath the surface of the earth ready to erupt. What it needs then, is a final push, so to speak. Before, this was done subconsciously. The symbiosis controlled you. It can be done again by your own will, I suspect, simply by _willing_ it to happen. Think of how you summon forth your normal power, then apply that to the symbiosis power. The main difficulty here is that you need to do so at the same time, _as one_. And that is not as easy as it sounds. On a subconscious level, it is much easier for two minds to work together and do the same thing together on the same moment, you are not aware that it happened."

The Great Being stopped pacing and now looked seriously at both symbiosis pair. "But for you to use it at will, you must be in physical contact, and then will the power to be used, _together at the same moment_. According to what I have learned, this seems crucial. Join your minds as one, work in perfect synchronization both mentally and physically, and then the power of the Symbiosis is yours to use."

After a long silence Setsuna said: "Indeed, easier said than done..." Being in physical contact was easy, but to join ones' minds? How could that be done?

Ami said thoughtfully: "So... To synchronize we need to think of the same thing at the same time? Or there should be a different kind of link, like telepathy? I don't quite understand..."

"To activate the symbiosis, you must both think as one that you want to unleash it. I have never undergone symbiosis, so I cannot tell you how exactly this should be done," Angonce explained. "You four have felt and experienced symbiosis, so you probably know better than me how linked minds and feelings feel."

Traveller and Gravitas slowly nodded, remembering the experience of being in symbiosis very well. They had felt and experienced what the other felt and experienced. But it had gone further, as memories and thoughts had been exchanged as well. It gave them an idea on how to do what master Angonce had described.

Ami and Setsuna tried to remember their feelings as well. Yes... During those moments, they kind of... Reached out to each other. Yes. Reached out and connected their minds. That's how it's supposed to work.

Just then, a sudden cold filled the air and the guests of Angonce felt their inner feelings struggle. Part of them wanted to remain happy and hopeful because of being in Angonce's presence, the other part wanted nothing more but to feel frightened, scared and lifeless. As they, filled with dread, slowly turned around, realization began to dawn on them. Suspicions were confirmed as they, to their horror, laid their eyes on Crast the Repulsive.

Angonce was not affected by the appearance of his dark half at all, and he calmly looked at the vile creature.

"Master, my apologies for interrupting your research," Crast said, on a tone that made it clear he didn't feel sorry at all. "But I have come to inform you that while you and your guests were here, several groups of Saurians have invaded Tokyo on different locations."

* * *

**Next chapter: Elementals in the moonlight!**

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	66. Elementals in the moonlight

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**66. Elementals in the moonlight**

"Master, my apologies for interrupting your research," Crast said, on a tone that made it clear he didn't feel sorry at all. "But I have come to inform you that while you and your guests were here, several groups of Saurians have invaded Tokyo on different locations."

Setsuna and Ami both gasped. At such an unfortunate time!

"We must hurry there at once!" Setsuna exclaimed.

"What locations did the invasions happen in?" Asked Ami, feeling no less worried than the other Senshi.

"All over the city, on seemingly random locations," the disgusting dark side of Angonce said on a bored tone. "They've been wreaking havoc left and right, as usual. Your precious little friends have already gone to face them. They tried to contact you, but your pathetic technology does not work inside these walls. Though why they would do so is beyond me. A few weaklings more or less won't make a difference." Crast then chuckled, a horrifying, sanity-shattering sound.

Setsuna shook her head. "We might be weaklings, but you have seen that our symbiosis is powerful enough to defeat an Immoral One."

"And thanks to Master Angonce, we now have a key to activating it on will." Ami nodded and took Gravitas' hand.

"Oh joy, shall I do a happy dance?" the Repulsive spat. Rolling his eyes, the monster skittered over to his Master, the only one he showed any respect. "Though from what I could sense, there was no Immoral One to be found this time around. I think it is merely an attack to cause chaos and panic just to annoy and bore us."

"That would be just like him, I agree," Angonce replied with a short nod, the 'him' referring to the incarnation of all Great Being's darkness known as Zyglak. The deity let out a sigh and turned to his guests. "I am afraid our research will be postponed. I understand you want to go help your friends and defend your home as soon as possible. I shall send Crast along to help. Unless there are any objections?"

"There are none," Crast answered in everyone's stead. His frightening, blood-red eyes glared at the five guests in the library, as if daring them to open their mouth and say otherwise. "Am I not correct, Sailor Senshi, reptiles?"

"Of course you are." Setsuna said, both frightened by his voice and annoyed by his words.

"Did this creature really emerge from a piece of your soul, Master Angonce?" Ignika managed to stammer, giving Crast a look of utter disgust and his mentor a look of disbelief. How anything or anybody could be so rude, repulsive and sickening as this monstrosity went beyond the Child of Life's capability to understand.

"That, he certainly did," Angonce replied with a smile. Then, to everyone's great shock, the Great Being placed a divine hand on the vile beast's shoulder in a gesture of friendship and appreciation. "It is true that his manners might not be the greatest…" Crast burst out in sickening laughter at this. "But he is a part of me, my darkness. Just like you all have darkness in your souls as well. And we must not shun that, but embrace it warmly and welcoming. If we do not… we end up with a being as Zyglak." Angonce had great difficulty saying that name while keeping his voice even. Though he was void of dark feelings, the mere mentioning of the name of that creature still left a bitter taste in his mouth.

The Senshi slowly nodded. Ami then said: "I do agree that no part of a human's character or a human's soul is bad and downright harmful, and it makes a wonderful topic for discussing... But, Master Angonce, we should hurry."

Gravitas nodded quietly, doing her best to not look at Crast as much as possible. Holding Ami's hand helped her bear the monster's presence, but only a bit. Regardless of that, however, she agreed with her friend. They couldn't tarry here any longer while the two other members of their family were probably out there and fighting. They had to go and help! Traveller felt the exact same way.

"Indeed, pardon my delay," the divinity agreed, in response to Mercury's statement. "But before you go, at least allow me to take away the fatigue and exhaustion caused by all the information and new technology you had to take in this afternoon." Before anyone could speak or protest, the Great Being had moved forward, placing his hand on all five of his guests' head one by one, and just by that simple touch, they felt the fatigue of their mind fade and their strength restored. As if they had just awakened from a refreshing sleep.

Ami smiled. She didn't even realize she was tired before the Great Being took it away. "Thank you, Master Angonce." She bowed.

Setsuna bowed as well. "Yes, thank you for that and for all you did for us today." She then took Traveller's hand and smiled at her. The Saurian of Teleportation smiled back, glad that they now knew what had to be done in order to use this special bond between them to its full potential. But even more so she was glad for that other thing the deity had helped them with. She followed the Senshi of Time's example and bowed, uttering a small word of gratitude.

"You are all always welcome, my friends," the Great Being replied warmly. "Now go, and may fortune be on your side. Crast, I am counting on you."

"And as always, I will not disappoint," the Repulsive answered shortly, before he teleported himself and the five guests away from the laboratory, to the battlefield.

* * *

In a flash of light, the group arrived at the park. Almost as soon as they materialized, Sailor Pluto activated her communicator.

"Anybody, come in. Pluto and Mercury here, Gravitas, Ignika and Traveller also. Report your locations!" Setsuna said sharply in the device.

Soon enough a reply came: "Uranus reporting. The groups are following: Venus and Nightmare, Chameleon and Jupiter, Sailor Moon and Chibimoon, and I'm with Neptune and Saturn. Mars won't answer the communicator. There are approximately seven points of invasion."

"Roger." Setsuna said. "We'll join the battle in a few minutes, as soon as we locate the remaining invasion points."

"I'm going to go help Sailor Moon and Chibiusa," Ignika decided quickly. He immediately turned to Sailor Mercury. "Ami-san, can you figure out where they are? And I think it would be best if you and Gravitas turned to one group and Traveller and Setsuna-san go for another. If Crast then takes the last one, we'll have covered them all."

"I'm on it." Ami opened her mini-computer and searched for the current location of the Senshi. A few moments later, she said: "We're in luck, Sailor Moon and Chibimoon are only two blocks away from here. Just go down that street..." Mercury pointed the direction with her hand. "Turn left when you pass that store, the one with a lot of neon lights, and go straight ahead. You won't miss them."

Having said that, she looked at the map again. "Now, there are two disturbances here and here." She pointed at the screen. "Traveller... Can you teleport without an image? I could search for one of a building, but..."

"Why go through all that needless trouble, brainiac?" the horrid voice of Crast the Repulsive came from behind them. "This is why you are such poor excuses for guardians. So incapable of controlling your fear of me you can't even ask me for help, while I could teleport each and every one of you to the given locations with the blink of an eye." The sickening monster turned his back to them and shook his head. "How pitiful… Why my master even bothers with you is beyond my understanding."

Ami sweatdropped. "Pardon me, Crast..." She gulped. "We're not used to you assisting us. And anyway, it was Ignika who asked me to find out where they are... The rest came automatically." The embarrassed and frightened Senshi explained.

"Get out of my sight," Crast spat, before he blinked and sent the entire group away, each to a different location. The Repulsive then yawned and scratched the back of his head with one of his bladed limbs. "Why do I always get the boring task of being transportation for these fools? And now I have to go and hunt some evolutionary mishaps not even worth five seconds of my time…" The beast then surrendered to his fate and shrugged. "Might as well get it over with. What I don't do to show my eternal gratitude for living…"

* * *

Eternal Sailor Moon jumped aside to let a couple of giant shards of ice sail right past her. The attack, courtesy of a white-scaled Saurian of Ice, was followed immediately by an earthquake from a Saurian of Earth. The future monarch of Crystal Tokyo managed to grab her pink-haired future daughter and escape the brunt of the attack by taking to the sky. But they were not safe there, either, as they still had three Saurians – of iron, plant life and sand – to worry about.

The Saurian of Iron created bands of steel that wrapped themselves around the future monarchs, the weight of the metal making them plummet to the ground. The Saurian of Sand placed his hand on the ground and turned the road beneath the fallen Senshi to quicksand, which began to drag them in, and the Saurian of Plant Life, finally, grew a net of vines over them to prevent them from getting out.

Sailor Chibimoon, whose wand was clutched in her hand and, thankfully, not trapped in the iron bands, cried: "Pink Sugar Heart Attack!" The cute pink heart-shape beams of energy rapidly flew in random directions, threatening to damage not only the Saurians, who dodged the beams, but the Senshi as well. But that was what the future Princess was counting on. One of the hearts hit the band that was keeping Sailor Moon's arms pressed to her body, giving her a chance to act.

"Moon Tiara Action!" Sailor Moon cried and threw the glowing tiara at her daughter so that it sliced her binds open without damaging the girl, then finished freeing herself by the same means. The two Moon Soldiers took off into the sky again, getting out of the sand trap, and landed a few meters away.

"Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss!" Eternal Sailor Moon cried, raising her wand and sending wide beams of golden light in all directions of the battlefield.

The Saurian of Ice reacted immediately, raising large walls of hard condensed ice around himself and his brothers. The ice acted like mirrors, and whenever one of the rays of light from Sailor Moon hit it, it was reflected right back at the one who had fired it in the first place.

"Damn it!" Sailor Moon cursed, quickly rising above ground again, together with her daughter. And that's where she saw an opening – the walls of ice were around the Saurians, but not above them. Sailor Chibimoon acted immediately:

"Pink Sugar Heart Attack!" She tried her best to direct the beams to fly at least somewhat towards the enemy instead of randomly.

The Saurian wielding the power of ice noticed the danger in time and turned his walls of ice into sharp icicles, which he fired at Chibimoon with a swing of his arms. As he did this, his metal-using brother created shields of Iron to block the incoming attacks from the Small Lady. The Saurian of Earth then moved forward and stomped the ground with his foot, creating another earthquake that shook the foundations of the buildings surrounding them.

Sailor Moon's eyes widened as she saw the icicles. Quicker than Mercury's mini-computer, she realized they can't dodge them. And both Chibiusa's and her own primary attacks were aimed at random directions, they might not destroy all of them... If only she could...

"Wait... Why can't I?" The future Queen realized. "It's worth a shot."

"Rainbow Moon Heart Ache!" She cried, raising her wand.

To her surprise, it worked. The heart-shaped energy beams that were now organized within a ribbon of white light kept spiralling around the Senshi, and shattered all the icicles when those came into the range.

If the Saurians were at all disappointed by the failing of their attacks, they didn't show it. The Saurian of Earth punched the ground on both of his sides, creating a quake that rushed towards and slammed into the already unstable buildings on both sides of the road, and made them topple over, right to the two Senshi. Knowing their foes would fly away, the Saurian of Sand blinded them with a sandstorm while the Saurians of Plant Life and Iron worked together to bind their foes tightly with vines and steel, so that they could not escape from being buried beneath the toppling buildings.

"Chibimoon, I'll disrupt their control. When they lose it, use your power to free yourself." Sailor Moon quickly shouted to her daughter. She hardly ever used this power, but now it could save them. Eternal Sailor Moon, the future Neo Queen Serenity took a deep breath...

And began crying.

She cried, howled and wailed, trying to make her screams as loud and high as possible. And it did give the effect she desired. The cries she was making were amplified by the red hair pieces on her odango, creating an ear-splitting, shattering sound wave. Chibimoon, being protected from those effects by her own hair pieces, meanwhile, used her raw power to reduce the plants to ashes and crack the steel to free herself. As soon as she did it, she came in between Sailor Moon and the Saurians, and used Pink Sugar Heart Attack, knowing that one of the beams would surely hit Sailor Moon's binds and hoping some of others will strike the Saurians.

While she was doing that, however, she failed to pay attention to all of her surroundings, and Chibimoon was suddenly encased in a thick block of ice that crashed into the ground, which was quickly being drawn in by quicksand made by the Sand Saurian.

But Sailor Moon was already free, and used Moon Spiral Heart Attack to blast the ice block into pieces, by some miracle having not dealt any damage to her future daughter. Immediately, she took off into the air and flew as fast as she can to grab her daughter and get her out of the quicksand. Chibiusa's hand clutched firmly in her own, Sailor Moon flew high into the sky to get out of the range of the falling buildings, only to find those were falling too fast.

"We won't make it. Summon him!" Eternal Sailor Moon commanded.

Chibiusa nodded, the Crystal Carillon appearing in her hand. "Twinkle Yell!" She cried.

The magnificent white winged horse that was Helios, the keeper of Elysium, heeded his Princess' call and appeared before them. Without much thinking, the two girls clutched to the Pegasus, taking hold of his neck, and let him carry them through the sky faster than any of them could possibly fly, barely making it out of the way of the toppling buildings.

Chibiusa, breathing heavily, ran her hands through their saviour's mane and said: "I thank you, Helios. You saved us."

Her future Prince's voice echoed in her mind as he chuckled softly. "That's what I'm here for. I will always answer your call... But next time, do it before you get in a lethal situation, hmm?" The boy in the form of the Pegasus said lovingly. Then vanished, leaving his Princess in the hands of Sailor Moon.

The attackers of the two girls had waited tensely for the dust to settle to see if they had been successful in killing their prey. When they saw mother and daughter relatively unharmed, however, they growled in frustration.

"We're wasting time…" the Saurian of Iron grumbled. "Let's unleash all our powers at full strength at once. See if they can get out of that!"

His fellow brethren nodded in silence, agreeing with that plan. They clanked their weapons together as a sign of their unity, then the five of them spread out, tossing out various small attacks of their powers to keep the enemy busy. As the reptiles had expected, Sailor Moon and Sailor Chibimoon had little effort dodging those, but it didn't matter, they just needed to get in place. Now they had them completely surrounded, and the time to strike had come. Each of the five invaders unleashed their powers at full magnitude.

A tremendous sandstorm was fired at the future monarchs, soon joined by a beam of super cold ice, an endless barrage of steel spikes and stone spires and a furious growth of strangling vines that lashed out and writhed as if alive and conscious while attempting to grab and strangle the two guardians of the earth.

Chibimoon gasped and clutched her future mother, scared, while Usagi was thinking rapidly, trying to find the solution. No, she couldn't do anything to avoid the attacks, either... Neither of them had a barrier attack, not even in their Princess forms... But still she activated Rainbow Moon Heart Ache, followed by her daughter's Pink Sugar Heart Attack. She couldn't stand just waiting for death. They had to do something, even if it was futile...

The rubble of the fallen buildings below them suddenly assembled itself into a towering giant, its hulking form casting a shadow over the invaders. It clutched its massive hand protectively around the two Senshi, shielding them from the relentless attacks even as the hand already began to crumble around them. The Saurians, seeing this new threat, quickly redirected their attacks on the giant. Even as the combined powers began to shred the giant to dust, the creature made from rubble viciously lashed out with his hand and backhanded each of the invaders into nearby buildings before collapsing.

"Sailor Moon, Sailor Chibimoon, are you okay?" came the familiar voice of Ignika from behind them. The white-haired child had arrived just in time to use his powers to create the giant to protect his friends, and now rushed over to them, Death Scythe ready in his hand.

The two Princesses descended from the sky and rushed over to the Saurian.

"Ignika!" Chibimoon cried and hugged the boy tightly before letting him go again. "You saved us!"

"We managed to hold off against their attacks, but so far the battle is a stalemate." Sailor Moon reported. "No major damage to any side."

"I'm happy to see you too, Chibimoon-san," Ignika replied shyly with a blush as he hugged her back briefly. The he turned to Sailor Moon with a serious expression on his face: "I see. It's good that I'm here then. We must take them down as quickly as we can. Haruka-san said Rei-san is not responding. That worries me."

Sailor Moon nodded. "What's the plan?" She simply asked, not wanting to waste any time.

"We must work together. Unity's the key to power, as our enemies know as well… We must take down the Saurian of Earth first, he's the most dangerous when it comes to causing major damage to the area… Can you concentrate your attacks on him? He may or may not retaliate with his powers… Now that I'm here, I can simply bring the stone to life… If he does that, I can finish him," came Ignika's answer, as he raised his Death Scythe protectively before his chest, for their enemies were crawling back out of the walls his giant had knocked them into.

Sailor Moon nodded. "One problem, though. All of our attacks are area-damage type and undirected... But we'll do our best. Can you try to prevent the Ice Saurian from reflecting our beams again?"

"No problem. I can bring all of their attacks to life, so their powers are rendered useless by my presence," the Child of Life said. "The problem is they might switch to melee attacks then, and you're both not capable of that… Heck, against five Saurians and in this body, even I'm not good enough to hold my own."

Sailor Moon smiled. "They can't get into melee range if we're in the air... Can they?" Chibimoon smiled as well. Ignika nodded in confirmation. "Excellent. Let's do it!" With those words, she held her daughter close and took off.

Barely had the two taken off, or the attacking Saurians unleashed their powers at them again, apparently forsaking safety and caution in favour of trying to overwhelm the Child of Life and take down the Senshi. But Ignika wasn't going to allow that. He unleashed his own unique power, turning earth, iron, sand, ice and plants to life and setting them on their creators. Even as the Saurians struggled to get rid of their powers turned wild, Ignika moved in and swung his Scythe at the Saurian of Earth, who blocked it with claw-bearing gauntlet, locking them in a contest of strength. A contest Ignika had no intention of fighting. He was the diversion.

"Now!" he screamed at the airborne Senshi, hoping they'd get the idea.

"Rainbow Moon Heart Ache!" Sailor Moon cried, opting to use the weaker, but much more focused attack. She placed herself and the spiralling ribbon of hearts so that its outer coil went straight through the Saurian of Earth, striking him with a continuous flow of heart-shaped beams.

Chibimoon wanted to add a Pink Sugar Heart Attack, but as she stood in the air with her mother, she realized it wasn't the only option. After all... Chibimoon glanced at Sailor Moon, who caught the glance and nodded. Without interrupting the attack, taking each other's hands, Sailor Moon and Sailor Chibimoon shouted a new incantation:

"Rainbow Double Moon Heart Ache!"

A second spiral ribbon began to unwind from the future Princess' wand, albeit spinning in the opposite direction than that of Sailor Moon. The two spirals intertwined, the contact between ribbons not disrupting either flow at all, and the Saurian of Earth found himself right in the spot where the two outer coils crossed each other.

Ignika jumped back to avoid the blast just in time, and the Saurian of Earth was smitten down by the combined attacks of Sailor Moon and her future daughter. The Saurian of Ice had tried to interfere by creating another mirror, but Ignika had smashed it before he had had the chance. The Saurian of Earth now laid unconscious in critical condition on the ground, downed. If he was lucky, he would hold on long enough for Ignika to devolve him at the end of the fight.

But devolving his enemy Saurian brethren was the furthest thing from his mind at the moment, as the Saurian of Plant Life and Ice engaged him in close combat. Thus the other two remaining invaders were free to trap the two Senshi in a sandstorm that disoriented them and threatened to throw them out of the sky. Worse, the Saurian of Iron added to the storm by throwing hundreds of sharp-edged, small metal objects into the storm, which shredded and cut through the Senshi's fuku's and flesh as they circled around in the maelstrom of sand and dust.

"Oh no, you're not gonna take us out with that..." Sailor Moon thought determinedly. Mustering all her physical strength, she flew towards the edge of the sandstorm. When she felt it threatened to sweep her away, she thrust her wand forward, casting Moon Princess Halation. Myriads of tiny pink pinpoints of energy spiralled out with such density they almost seemed to create a solid cone. The sandstorm and bits of iron were destroyed upon impact, and soon enough an opening appeared in the maelstrom, just enough for the two Senshi to fly out.

"Think you're smart, huh?" the Saurian of Iron growled lowly under his breath. He nodded at his sand brother, who created a sandstorm that picked up the grey and black reptile with the power over metal into the sky. The Saurian of Iron used his powers to shield himself from the biting sand, and then, when he reached the required height, jumped out of the sandstorm and at the two Senshi. Taken by surprise and injured as they were, the Senshi reacted a split second too late, and Sailor Moon was pinned to a building by spikes of iron through her hands. The pain was excruciating, and the future monarch screamed. Chibimoon tried to help her mother, but found her feet suddenly encased in a block of solid steel, which made her crash into the ground, where the Saurian of Sand was waiting. He attacked the child Senshi by letting a wave of sand wash over her and burry her alive.

Ignika saw it happen and cursed, wanting desperately to help his friends, but his own foes were keeping him busy. He had no choice then, he'd have to take risks and act quickly, Chibiusa and Usagi's lives depended on it. He made a wild slash at the Saurian of Plant Life, who dodged it with a back flip. With that foe out of his reach for a second, Ignika immediately used the momentum of his slash to turn around and attack the Saurian of Ice. He threw himself at his foe, a risky and desperate move that earned him a few ice shards embedded in his chest. But the Child of Life ignored the pain and got a hold of the Saurian. Triggering his powers, he sent an overdose of Life elemental energy into his enemy, whose body was not made to handle so much energy. The Saurian of Ice was disintegrated from the inside out by the energy and died with a scream of disbelief. Ignika closed his eyes and looked away, not liking killing even if it couldn't be helped. This cost him dearly, as thorn-covered vines impaled him from behind.

Under the sand, Chibimoon was still alive. She had used her raw power at an instinct, and it had crystallized the sand around her, leaving her in a cocoon of sorts, small and with little air. The power had also cracked the steel, but there was no place in the cocoon to get her feet out.

"Oh God, what am I to do...? I'll die here!" The child thought in panic. She wished she had more powers of her own... Most of her attacks were combos with her parents... The only one she had was Pink Sugar Heart Attack...

"Hmm..." The Senshi knocked at the wall of the cocoon. "Doesn't seem too thick..." She thought. She could stay in the cocoon and wait for death... Or she could make a desperate move. And just like her mother, she hated waiting around.

"Pink Sugar Heart Attack!"

The pink hearts flew in all directions, instantly shattering the cocoon and disintegrating sand on their way. Thankfully, the sand level wasn't much bigger than Chibiusa's height, and the future Princess managed to get out, breathing heavily. Immediately she got to her feet and rushed off to save her mother. Running up a big piece of debris and jumping high into the air, she shouted: "Twinkle Yell!"

Chibimoon began to fall down again, but it didn't matter, for the Pegasus broke her fall and carried her safely into the sky, flying towards her mother.

"See? I fulfilled your request this time, Helios." The Princess hugged her lover's neck.

"Indeed." The boy in the form of Pegasus laughed softly, flying as fast as he could towards Sailor Moon.

Ignika fought back against the pain of the thorn-covered vine through his chest and turned around slowly. He got a hold of the vine and yanked as hard as he could at it, making the Saurian of Plant Life, who held the other end, stumble slightly. The Child of Life cursed as he felt blood trickle down his chest and Life energy seep from him. He had to cover the wound soon, but his strength was already failing. Gritting his teeth, he swung his scythe and severed the vine from its creator, then he used his powers of control over all life to turn the vine inside him into harmless hair so he could pull it out. Now all that was left was heal the wound, but his enemy wouldn't sit still until he was done doing that.

Waving his staff, the Saurian of Plant Life unleashed the full force of his power, and wild plant life began to grow over the ruined street and debris at rapid pace. Monstrous trees, thorn-bearing vines and plants, and giant man-eating flowers grew everywhere, and the insane foliage all lashed out and writhed in attempts to grab their master's prey. One such carnivorous flower managed to grab Helios, and the shock threw Chibimoon off his back, where she was immediately caught in midair by vines covered with sharp thorns that wrapped themselves around her entire body and began to squeeze the life out of her.

The Saurian of Sand created a crescent blade made out of sand and fired it at the bleeding Sailor Moon, ready to sever her head.

Ignika saw it all happen and gritted his teeth. He had to do something, namely: closing his wound first. Praying to the Great Beings that they would hold out until then, the Child of Life erected a barrier around him that disintegrated anything that tried to get at the white-haired boy. With that done, the Saurian of Life began to use his powers to close the gaping, bleeding wound in his chest.

"Damn... DAMN YOU ALL!" Sailor Moon cried as she saw what the Saurians did to her daughter and her love. This made her angry. Oh yes, blazingly mad. To protect her daughter and her friends, Usagi was capable of anything.

Usagi yanked her left hand forward, making the iron spike go through her hand fully, leaving a gaping hole behind. Now the only point of support was her other pinned hand, and the Senshi hung on it. Thanks to that move, the crescent blade of sand missed, destroying a part of the wall instead. The Senshi was falling freely now, but she quickly oriented herself and flew away, a shard of the wall still pinned to her hand. But that was easily taken care of with a Moon Tiara Action.

Sailor Moon fired another Moon Tiara Action to slice open the vines that held Chibiusa captive, seeing as Helios has already vanished in thin air. Then she turned to her nearest foe – the Saurian of Iron.

"Listen you..." She said through clenched teeth, then shouted in cold rage: "I will no longer allow any of you to harm this city and my daughter!" Faster than lightning, she sped through the air towards the Saurian, coming dangerously close to him.

"Moon Gorgeous Meditation!" The Soldier of Moon shouted, sending the two shimmering walls of all colours of the rainbow towards the Saurian at a distance where he couldn't dodge them. But before the impact happened, Sailor Moon suddenly flew high again, successfully avoiding any possibility of close combat.

The Saurian screamed as the attack struck him, the fury behind it giving it even greater power than usual, and it broke through his defences and went straight through him, ending his life. His dead body fell to the ground with a thud. His two remaining brethren saw it and turned their angered gazes at the one who had killed him. The Saurians began to move in on Eternal Sailor Moon.

But Ignika, who had seen it as well and finished healing himself, wasn't going to let that happen. He lowered his barrier and jumped forward, striking the Saurian of Plant Life in the back with his scythe, giving him a painful, dangerous wound. Blood fell to the stones of the street. Snarling in pain, the Saurian whirled around and knocked Ignika in the head harshly with his staff, but the boy recovered immediately and used his power to turn the staff alive and strike its previous owner. Even as the Saurian tried to use his powers to fend off the living staff, Ignika fired a blast of pure Life energy from the tip of his scythe at his foe, knocking the second to last remaining invader to the ground, unconscious.

Now only the Saurian of Sand remained, and his face was twisted with a snarl of utter fury. He waved his hand and fired another crescent blade of sand at Eternal Sailor Moon. When Ignika moved in to stop him, the Saurian threw a blast of sand in the boy's eyes, making him scream in agony as he was blinded. With the Child of Life momentarily out of the way, the last invader approached Sailor Moon once more, growling lowly and angrily.

Eternal Sailor Moon dodged the blade by going higher in the air, and remained there. Despite her rage, she wasn't a fool to give her enemy a possibility of close combat. "Rainbow Moon Heart Ache!" She cried, trying to take out the Saurian of Sand the same way as she and her daughter defeated the Saurian of Earth.

To the future monarch's surprise, the Saurian didn't even attempt to dodge. He met the attack head on, and when it hit him, the part that was hit simply exploded into sand that trickled down to the floor. Once the attack had passed, sand appeared and filled the chunk that had been blasted out of the Saurian's body, which then returned to normal.

Sailor Moon gasped and flew higher into the air. She had never expected something like that. She never even knew it was possible. Rapidly trying to think up a plan, she fired a Silver Moon Crystal Power Kiss, in order not to leave herself open and have a chance at damaging the enemy. She only got the same effect, however, with her enemy turning into sand whenever he was hit.

"Sailor Moon-sama, don't waste your energy, it's useless!" Ignika shouted as he rushed over. "He's an elemental!"

Neither the Saurians nor Sailor Moon noticed another person watching the battle. The silent watcher was lying not too far off, covered by the remains of the plants and vines that were growing there a few moments ago. Forgotten by absolutely everyone, Sailor Chibimoon lay silently, observing the battlefield and looking for an opportunity to attack by surprise.

"Interesting..." The pink-haired girl thought. "So he can turn into sand... I could crystallize him like I did with my cocoon. Just need to wait for an opening..."

Ignika meanwhile carefully circled the Saurian of Sand, who was apparently an 'Elemental' as the Saurians called them. Saurians who had elemental powers and had mastered them to the point of being able to turn into their element to avoid next to all injury. The Child of Life knew that any physical attacks were useless now. The only thing he could use now was his mental powers. If his willpower was greater than the Sand Saurian, he could negate his intangibility… Or he could directly attack his mind. But Ignika wasn't powerful enough to shred other minds…

Seeing as the Saurian of Sand now stood with his back facing her, and that all his attention was turned to Ignika and Sailor Moon, Chibiusa quietly took off her boots and ran with all her speed towards the Saurian to get as close to him as possible before he notices her. When he did, the future Princess was in quite a close range from him, and fired a Pink Sugar Heart Attack. Not stopping to see how much damage she caused, the pink-haired Senshi flared a big portion of raw power, crystallizing all the sand that replaced the reptile's body parts.

The Saurian of Sand howled, and at first Chibimoon thought it was in pain and that she was succeeding. But she was wrong. It was a cry of anger. The Saurian's body suddenly, to her great surprise, exploded into particles of sand, crystallized or not, and then from the sand pile at her feet the reptile rose again, unharmed, his cold reptilian eyes placed on the young brave Senshi before him. Chibimoon gulped and tried to run back, but her foe was quicker and his clawed hand closed around her throat.

"Annoyance…" the Saurian growled harshly. "Die." He then triggered his power in another way the Senshi had not yet seen, as he used the drought of his sand powers to drain all moisture from Chibimoon's body, and slowly she was, to her mother's horror, drying and shrivelling up, like a mummy.

"NO!" came a sudden shout, and in a flash Ignika was there, slicing off the Saurian's hand with his Death Scythe, and the partly dried-up Chibimoon fell to the floor, coughing, wheezing and writhing in pain as her body cried for moisture. The Child of Life knew his enemy's hand would reform, but at least Chibimoon wouldn't become a mummy. "Sailor Moon-sama, get Chibimoon-sama to drink something, anything! And lots of it!"

Sailor Moon picked her precious daughter up and flew away, away from that place. Somewhere, not far from here, there was a shop... But Chibiusa, her little Princess, her dear daughter was in pain and needed liquid now...

Usagi's eyes fell on the iron spike that was still impaled in her right hand and gasped. Clenching her fist, she pushed it through until it fell out, leaving a bloody hole behind. Sailor Moon smiled, despite the pain, and placed her bleeding hand to Chibiusa's mouth. "Better like this than nothing." She said quietly to her daughter. The girl's eyes widened in terror, but she licked and drank her mother's blood nonetheless.

Ignika and the Saurian of Sand meanwhile stared at each other, tensed, waiting for the other to make a move. Fury was rising quickly in Ignika as he saw the damage these invaders had done, and the injuries they had inflicted on Sailor Moon and her daughter. Letting out a growl of anger, he charged, swinging his Scythe and cleaving a huge chunk of sand from his enemy's body, which immediately reformed. The Child of Life fired a blast of pure energy, but that had the same effect.

The Saurian of Sand tried to grab Ignika and do the same thing he had done to Chibimoon, but failed. He threw a crescent cutlass of sand at the white-haired boy, but Ignika dispersed it with his own power. Angered, and growing tired of this battle, the Saurian then did his ultimate, deadliest move. He turned into sand completely, and became a sandstorm that engulfed Ignika. The boy cried out in agony as he was blinded by the sand, and his enemy used this opportunity to slip inside Ignika's body. Sand seeped through Ignika's nose and mouth and into his lungs, choking and damaging and killing the boy from the inside out. Ignika wasn't even capable of screaming.

In the hellish pain that followed, the Child of Life could only act by instinct. The grip on his Death Scythe tightened as the boy's subconscious kicked in and activated his Life powers. Suddenly the pain was gone, and when Ignika tried to open his eyes to see why, he found out that he no longer had eyes to see with. Instead, he simply _saw_. He was aware of everything that happened, saw it as clearly as ever, yet he had no eyes or body. He was simply aware. He was energy. In desperation, his subconscious had changed his body to an elemental state. Ignika's eyes widened, so to speak, as he had no eyes, when he noticed this. He had become an elemental! The feeling was incredible. No longer was he a Saurian or boy wielding the power of Life…

He _was_ Life.

His mind struggled to gain control over this new form of himself. It was difficult for his untrained, childish mind. Ignika knew that if he didn't have the will to sustain his spirit in this form, he would not be able to keep the energy he had become tied to his spirit, and he would fade. He clenched his figurative jaw and focussed, willing his new body of pure Life energy to obey him. It was difficult at first, but soon he had enough control to move the flow of Life like he wanted it to.

Both Saurians had now become Sand and Life, and the two elementals clashed. The Sand entity struggled fiercely, but with difficulty Ignika's energy form managed to engulf the Sand Saurian, trapping it inside his cloud of Life energy. He was Life now, and he was no longer held back by the limits of his body of flesh. His mind reached out in tandem with his energy, forcing the sand that held the invader's spirit to bow down to his might and will. The bodiless voice of the Sand Saurian let out a howl of agony and defeat as Ignika overpowered his will, and turned the sand that held his spirit into a light, short sword with a sand-coloured hilt. The spirit of the last invader, now no longer having its physical material that kept it tied to this plane of existence, howled in soundless rage and faded away, its life extinguished.

The battle was over, and they had won. With a last strain on his mind, Ignika willed the energy that he was now to reform back into his human disguise. It was difficult, as turning Energy into Matter was something he had never done before, but eventually he succeeded, and Eiju Genkai reappeared, and fell to his hands and knees, breathing hard and utterly exhausted.

Someone landed right next to the boy. It was Eternal Sailor Moon, who had already delivered her daughter to a safe place, and now came back to help Ignika. But he needed no help, it seemed. The future Queen breathed heavily, glancing all around with her eyes, the rapid, stressful state of being battle-ready slowly letting go of her. Now that the danger has passed, all the damage, all the exhaustion, all the pain came back to her again. She fell to her knees, and then on the ground, next to the boy.

Without saying anything, Ignika climbed to his feet ever so slowly, and went to Sailor Moon. Using what he had left of his powers, he began to heal his comrade in battle. The holes in Usagi's hands closed, and the cuts and bruises she had received during the battle vanished as well, healed by the boy's power. "Sorry for doing a bad job of protecting you both, Usagi-sama…" he apologized quietly.

Usagi smiled and stroked his hair. "It's okay. We survived, and defeated them, that's what matters." Usagi turned on her back and sighed. "I'm glad it's finally over." She said, relaxing on the ground and smiling peacefully.

Ignika nodded quietly, still a bit dazed by the experience of turning into an Elemental. He walked over to the short sword he had made out of the Saurian of Sand's body, and picked it up, examining it in silence. It was a fine sword, feather light and sharp, and the perfect size for a child… He put it on his back and turned to Eternal Sailor Moon. "Usagi-sama, can you take me to Chibiusa-sama, so I can heal her, too?"

Sailor Moon nodded and got up from the ground. Picking the child up, she took off and carried him to the shop where she left Chibiusa. The girl was finishing yet another big packet of juice...

Ignika smiled as he saw the young Sailor Senshi filling herself with drink after drink. She did it with her usual eagerness, and that eased him. She was going to be fine, but he reminded himself that she had been lucky, for having the water sucked out of your body was anything but a small matter. As soon as Sailor Moon set him down, the Child of Life ran over to his friend.

"Chibiusa-sama, are you okay? Are you in pain anywhere?" he asked, worried.

"No..." Chibiusa put down the finished packet, and smiled at Ignika slightly. "Just some cuts here and there, and very tired." She then looked at Usagi: "Seriously, mom, did you know what we'll be going through when sending me into this timeline?"

"Ask Setsuna, I dunno." The future Queen shrugged. But then sighed and smiled at her daughter. "But I'm sure I didn't. Otherwise I'd never let you go here. I don't want you to be harmed, especially not like this..."

"I'm sorry…" Ignika apologized again, bowing his head. "I should have fought better, and informed you all beforehand of the existence of Elementals… But they're so rare I didn't think it necessary… Stupid of me, I'm sorry."

"It's okay, Ignika." Chibiusa smiled sincerely at the boy. "You did your best, and we all know it, right, Usagi-okaasan?" The girl looked at her future mom with a twinkle in her eye.

Usagi smiled back and nodded. "Absolutely right, Usagi-ojousan." With that said, the future Queen swept her daughter into an embrace and they fell on the floor, laughing happily at being alive, well, and still together.

Ignika blinked. "More weird words added to the name?" he muttered in incomprehension. Still, the sight brought a smile to his lips, as he knew why they were laughing and why they were happy. Surviving a deadly battle and living to fight another day… It was a good feeling indeed. The Child of Life let out a deep, tired breath. He hoped his family was doing okay… But he was too tired to go and help them for now. Turning into his own Element had robbed him of all strength. As he looked at Chibiusa, an idea hit him. "Chibiusa-sama, we have to go look for the others… But before that, I want to give you something."

The pink-haired girl stopped laughing and looked at the boy curiously. "Oh? What would that be, Ignika?"

The boy took the sword from his back and offered it to the pink-haired Senshi. "For you," he said. "I know you normally use a wand… But it would comfort me a bit if you had this, if only as a last resort or something…" He turned the short sword over in his hands. "I made this myself just now, it's a fine sword, and it's light, so, please, accept it." The Child of Life offered it again, with his both hands this time.

Chibiusa's eyes widened. "Yourself?" She hesitatingly took the sword, and found out it's indeed very light. She gave it a few swings. It suited her hand perfectly...

"Yes… When I became Elemental, I defeated the Saurian of Sand by overwhelming him and forcing the sand that was his body to change into what I wanted, the result you're holding in your hands…" He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "It was the first thing that crossed my mind."

Chibiusa's eyes widened even more. "You became an Elemental?" The next moment she rushed over and hugged the boy. "Thank you... for saving me, for the sword, for everything..."

"I did, by accident," he muttered, then returned the hug. "You're welcome, Chibiusa-sama. It's my duty, since it was me who put you all into danger in the first place."

"Speaking of danger..." Sailor Moon frowned. "We need to go find the others..."

"You're right, Usagi-sama," Ignika admitted with a nod. He let go of Chibimoon and checked himself for injuries one last time. When he found none, he summoned his Death Scythe to his hand and turned to the pink-haired Senshi besides him. "You are sure you're alright, Chibiusa-sama? You're not in need of healing anywhere?"

"Not really, but I'll appreciate it if you do." Chibiusa smiled. "Cuts can also be annoying."

Ignika nodded and quickly went to work, using his power to bathe the youngest Senshi in healing energy, making her cuts and bruises from the fight before heal and vanish. Once he was done, Ignika lowered his Scythe and smiled. "That better?"

"Yep, all better. Thanks." Chibiusa smiled back. "And now let's go."

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**Next chapter: Symbiosis sisters!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: That's alright, they were experimental chapters on my part to showcase the different side of the Great Beings, the scientist side, with technology and technological terms and babble of such level they're beyond human comprehension, as opposed to the "benevolent, omnipotent, shadow-less god" side I've portrayed so far. These are the only chapters that truly focus on the technology and technical side of things of the Great Beings in this story, if my memory serves me correct. So no worries, you won't have to skip through more chapters! Thanks for the review!


	67. Symbiosis sisters

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**67. Symbiosis sisters**

"Love dove, duck!" Nightmare warned as she made a slash through the air with her Terror Katana, firing off a crescent blade of fear energy at their seven foes. They had been up against nine Saurians all by themselves, but Nightmare's experience in battle had allowed them to decrease that number to seven. But the odds were still against them, however.

Sailor Venus fell on the ground as requested, and waited for the crescent to fly over her. As soon as it did, she jumped to her feet, and fired her own elemental beam, created with the blade of the kusarigama she modified her Love Me Chain into. It caught up with Nightmare's beam and flew a meter below it towards their foes. Nightmare had taught her to control her element well, oh yes.

Unfortunately, one of the invading Saurians was also a Saurian of Fear, and he quickly dispelled Nightmare's attack, while two of his brethren, a Saurian of Fire and Plasma, combined their powers into a single attack that clashed with Venus' beam and stopped it before it could do any damage. The fourth invader, with the power of disintegration, slammed his twin-bladed staff into the ground, opening a crevice in the road that threatened to swallow the Senshi of Love. Nightmare wanted to help her, but she was attacked by one of the strongest Saurians in existence, a Saurian of Diamond, capable of turning his scales into diamond, making him resistant to nearly all attacks.

Nightmare's attacker lashed out with a diamond-covered fist, and the girl tried to stop it with her sword, but she could not cut diamond and was hit in the jaw, flying backwards. The sixth Saurian, who wielded electricity, used the opportunity to fire crackling bolts at the black-haired girl, but she responded fast enough to get out of the way. The final Saurian, who used gravity, was busy trying to prevent Minako from escaping the crevice by making her body heavier than stone.

Minako did fall into the crevice, but managed to plant her kusarigama blade into its wall. Then she fired a homing Venus Love and Beauty Shock at the Saurian of Gravity, making sure she put enough power into it not to be dispelled easily. As soon as she felt the Saurian's control fade and her body return to normal weight, she began to get out from the crevice.

Minako's guest had meanwhile gotten back steadily on her feet, and spared a moment to throw an approving glance at her 'sister' for getting out of that tough cookie herself. The Senshi of Love's control over her power and physique had increased marvellously thanks to the Saurian girl's excessive training. Nightmare tightened her grip on her Terror Katana and charged at the Saurian of Diamond again, who blocked the way to her blonde sister. The shining colossus raised his fist and attempted to punch her again, but Nightmare was quicker and lighter and she flipped over him, causing him to punch the road and shatter it instead. Ignika's youngest sister landed on the Saurian's broad shoulders and triggered her power, making her foe fall to the ground snivelling because of utter terror. She wanted to kill him with an overdose, but was stopped when somebody blasted fear at her!

Snarling, Nightmare blocked the attack with her katana and dispelled it, then glared daggers at the enemy Saurian of Fear. "You made a mistake, buddy," she hissed dangerously. "Nobody uses my own power against me!" Screaming, she shot a beam of her own energies at him, which he dodged. Nightmare then charged right at him, and the two Fear wielders clashed, their weapons – her katana and his sword – locked. Both snarled at the other and bared their teeth.

"Get her, Terror!" the Saurian of Electricity yelled. "We'll take care of the Senshi!"

Terror nodded and proceeded to engage his female adversary in melee combat, their weapons clashing time and time again as the two combatants expertly used their swords. Nightmare had her jaw clenched, as she noticed quickly that her foe was a good swordsman, and worse, he was a Fear-user like her. They were evenly matched, and she knew he'd prevent her from going and helping Minako. Which was bad, because her sister could really use that help now that she was facing six Saurians on her own.

The Saurian of Fire, who went by the name Ember, set the very stones aflame, creating a circle around Venus that trapped her inside the heat. Worse, the Saurian of Plasma and Electricity now unleashed their own powers at her. With nowhere to dodge, she had no choice but to jump over them. But in the air she was just as vulnerable, and the Saurian of Diamond moved in with surprising speed for such a large figure. He jumped and then punched a diamond-covered fist in Minako's stomach with all his might.

The hit made Minako spit out blood, unaware of anything but the pain. However, the instincts and reflexes Nightmare had developed in her still worked. So when the unfortunate Senshi began to fall to the ground, the Saurian of Diamond found himself falling together with her, pulled by the chain that was wrapped around his neck. Minako collided painfully with the ground, and lay on her back with the Saurian on top of her, standing on his fours above her. Becoming more or less aware of the situation, the Senshi put her heeled foot on the Saurian's chest and pushed him away with all her might, the chain still tight in her grip, choking him.

The Saurian wheezed and growled, trying to pull away at first. When that didn't help, he simply rammed his knee in her stomach, causing her to scream and gag in pain, and drop her foot. The reptile than picked her up and swung her away by her own chain, right at the Saurian of Electricity, who shocked her with sparks of high voltage before she was crushed into the ground by an increased pull of gravity.

"Onee-chan!" Nightmare cried out in panic. It was all she could do, for the next moment she had to raise her katana and block another strike of her opponent's sword. She had to get rid of him first, then she could go help her blonde friend.

The Senshi of Venus groaned in pain. She couldn't even lift her hand off the ground... Then again, she wasn't powerless. Gravity didn't work on energy.

"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!" She cried, firing two of them at once, directing them at both Saurians who attacked her. Her control was good, and the attacks struck home, disrupting the power of Gravity. The Senshi got to her feet again, her kusarigama in hands.

Nightmare smiled faintly as she saw her sister get out of her predicament all by herself. She really had been trained well. That just left her to deal with this nuisance of a Saurian so she could go help the blonde. She just hoped Minako would hold out until then…

Sailor Venus, meanwhile, Shocked the Saurians of Diamond and Electricity and charged at the Saurian of Gravity. Being crushed into the ground every time wasn't fun, and she needed to deal with this foe before attacking any others.

"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!" She cried, before backing the heart-shaped beams up with several crescent blades of her power. She was ready for a real battle now, Nightmare had made sure of that.

The Saurian of Gravity managed to dodge and dart between a few of the beams, but one pierced his shoulder and another his right thigh, causing him to sink through it in pain, and incapable of avoiding Venus' crescent blades. They hit him full force in the chest, knocking him on his back with a slashed open chest, blood running out of the wound.

Nightmare, who had finally managed to draw blood from her enemy as well, retreated her blade from nicking her foe's arm and shouted at her sister: "Venus! Finish him off, now! Kill him!" She had seen the attack, and it had once again made her pleased with her sister, who was becoming a warrior strong enough to correctly handle her formidable powers. She had that Saurian of Gravity down to the floor, she had to finish it before his brethren could help him… She couldn't think about it anymore, as her opponent attacked her again, brushing her cheek with his blade, making a small cut that bled. Growling, Nightmare threw herself back in the fight.

Venus gave a start when she heard that word.

Kill.

Not defend herself, not attack a mindless youma, not wound her foe... Kill. Make a conscious choice to do it... Should she?

Should she kill her enemy? The wound he suffered now was not lethal enough to kill him instantly on its own... He might still use his strength to help the others, or to go into a Nova Blast. Because of him, the battle might be lost. Her heart fought against it, her soul screamed at her that it wasn't right, that killing is bad. But what good would she be if she spared her foe and died in this battle because of it? What would Usagi do? And Nightmare?

Us or them?

Them.

Sailor Venus knelt down before the Saurian of Gravity and Shocked him, the energy beam hitting his unprotected flesh. The open flesh could not protect the Saurian as well as scales could, and gave away immediately. Venus' Love and Beauty Shock pierced the Saurian straight through the chest, and the shock and impact, as well as part of his heart being disintegrated, killed him on the spot. His hands fell to his side, and his eyes were white and glazed.

He was dead.

Venus just sat there, staring in his dead eyes. Feeling completely numb and dead inside.

A part of her was screaming at her, with a voice very like Nightmare's: "Get up! Get up, you love twit! The foes won't wait! You're leaving yourself exposed here!"

But her first kill was just too hard. She had Shocked herself no less than her foe.

One of the Saurians saw that and used this opportunity to charge at her. Venus didn't move. He came closer and closer, ready to strike... Only a step away, Venus sprang up to her feet, turned around and blocked the Saurians's weapon, not looking into his eyes.

Nightmare did a few swipes at her foe with her katana, who dodged them all. Clenching her jaw, she jumped over a swing of his tail and parried a stab from his sword. She wanted to finish this quickly now, so she could go over and support her sister, who clearly was in need for it. Doing one last slash to keep Terror at bay, she jumped back a bit and then fired a beam of pure fear at her foe. Seeing this as a challenge, Terror countered with a beam of his own, and the two energies of fear clashed halfway, neither seeming to be stronger than the other.

Inside, Nightmare smirked, seeing an opportunity. She pretended to struggle, and then slowly allowed Terror's beam of fear to overpower hers, coming closer and closer to her. Seeing this, and thinking he was winning, Terror increased the power behind his attack. Just a little more, and then the disguised Saurian would be hit and victory would be his! The attack was now not even an inch away from Nightmare.

"You're dead, woman!" Terror shouted triumphantly.

Ignika's youngest sister smirked in reply. "You wish." Suddenly she unleashed all her power, opening all gates that held her back. With a swing of her blade she fired a literal tidal wave of fear, which completely overpowered Terror's attack as if it weren't even there. The red, haunting wave of energy washed over the male Fear user, and struck him with terror and fright, freezing him in place as he began to panic and be afraid for no reason. Nightmare already had seized the opportunity, breaking into a sprint towards her enemy, then almost effortlessly slit his throat as she passed him. As her enemy fell into the dust behind her, the young Saurian girl stood proud and scoffed.

"Amateur," she sneered at the dead body, before running away to join her sister, who was managing to keep the melee attacks from the Saurian of Fire at bay for now. How long that would last was the question, however.

She jumped and kicked the Fire Saurian away from her sister, then blocked a few more blasts of plasma and electricity with her own powers. She grabbed her sister by her shoulder and shook her lightly. "Onee-chan… Are you alright? Get yourself together!"

"Mmm... Fine..." She said quietly and smiled weakly. "It's just a first kill..." She put her hand on top of her sister's, welcoming the warmth and comfort of their symbiosis bond. "I'll be fine."

"I'll give you all the time to feel bad and cry later, after we get out of this alive," Nightmare replied sharply, getting in a battle stance again. "You've done great so far, so don't let me down now."

Minako nodded determinedly. "I won't." She said and tried to smile better. Yes, whatever inner turmoil she's in, she'll never let Nightmare down. She promised to be her sister, after all.

"Good," Nightmare said with a curt nod, her eyes observing the remaining five Saurians now circling them. Fear and Gravity were out, that left Plasma, Fire, Disintegration, Diamond and Electricity to deal with. Of those, the Saurian of Diamond was arguably the most dangerous, but also the hardest to take down. They'd have to save him for the last. Next in line then was Disintegration, whose power could really mess this place up. "We need to take down Disintegration next," the Saurian of Fear whispered to the Senshi of Love. "When they fire their attacks again, we'll use the commotion to strike. Aim for the Saurian of Disintegration. If we hit, I'll move in and finish, you keep the others off my back till then… And try to avoid Diamond at all costs."

Minako nodded. "Roger." Determination for winning the battle and not letting her sister down pushed away the pain and the shock of her first kill. Now she could take it all out on them...

The Saurians fired their powers, as Nightmare had predicted they would. "Now!" she yelled at her sister as she ran to dodge the attacks, firing her powers of fear at the Saurian of Disintegration as she did so.

"Crescent Beam Shower!" Sailor Venus fired her attack, sending multiple, focused long rays of energy at her foe. She made sure the beams haven't even touched Nightmare's powers, circling them instead. Their target managed to dodge, and the attacks struck the ground, causing an explosion that blew the Saurian of Disintegration to the ground. Nightmare moved instantly, leaping and coming down on the enemy with her katana first, killing yet another one of their foes.

The moment following that, she was struck in the back by a blast of plasma that seared her skin and set her shirt on fire. As she yelped in pain and turned to face her attacker, a fist of diamond knocked her in the jaw so hard she was sure it almost broke, and she saw stars before her eyes. The Saurian girl fell to the ground and didn't move.

"Nightmare!" Minako cried. She fired Venus Love and Beauty Shock at the Saurian of Diamond, hoping he would turn on her and not try to finish Nightmare off. Yes, her shirt was burning, yes, Minako desperately wanted to rush over to her sister, but she couldn't allow herself that yet, otherwise she'd meet the fist of the Diamond Saurian, too, and then they're done for. But now she could win some time.

Seeing that the Saurian was out of the battle for now, the remaining invaders all turned on Sailor Venus. Her attack bounced right off the diamond shell of the Diamond Saurian who charged at her with surprising speed and agility. The Saurians of Electricity, Plasma and Fire meanwhile surrounded the Senshi of Love and fired blasts of their power at her.

Minako jumped high into the air to avoid the impact. As the powers were about to collide, though, she got an idea. Turning a part of her Love me Chain, the one that formed the kusarigama's blade, into pure energy, she threw it in the way of the colliding powers. The moment the powers reached each other and were about to explode, Minako threw the kusarigama's weight with all her strength at the Diamond Saurian.

As she expected, Love Me Chain had become a part of the energies that were about to explode, and when she threw the weight, they followed the pull of the chain. The Saurian of Diamond found himself running right into his brethren' combined powers.

The combined energies colliding with the diamond figure resulted in a fierce explosion that blew the Saurian away a great distance, sending him crashing into a nearby building, straight through the wall. His diamond coating ensured he was unharmed, but the impact had rocked him, and his eyes, not protected by diamond, had been hurt by the flash of light from the explosion. This left only three more Saurians for Minako to deal with.

As those three turned their attention on the Senshi of Love again, however, Nightmare – who had been conscious all the time but needed time to recover from pain and shock – jumped to her feet suddenly and tackled the Saurian of Plasma, who had his back to her, to the ground, running him through with her sword from behind, ending his life. Two more Saurians then.

The black-haired girl was breathing heavily, her shirt having burned off leaving her upper body exposed and burned, and her jaw was bleeding. Since she could still talk and move it, however, she thought that it was miraculously not broken. It hurt like hell, though, and she snarled angrily at the remaining foes, sending a crescent wave of fear at them.

"Bastards…" she growled.

Minako fired a Love and Beauty Shock at them and summoned a new Love Me Chain before rushing over to Nightmare. "Glad you're alive, imouto-chan." She grinned at her sister.

"Couldn't be better, onee-chan," came the blunt reply. Nightmare sucked in another deep breath. "Minako, can you use your chain to tie em together? I don't feel like prolonging this fight much more, less you want me to drop on the stones and leave you to deal with that diamond bastard alone."

"Not a problem, Nightmare." The Senshi smiled and rushed towards the Saurians. Since those two were running at quite a close distance to each other, it didn't take much effort to throw the chain around them, locking the loop with the weight, and making them fall to the ground.

Nightmare nodded approvingly, and wasted no time bathing the two of them in fear of lethal doses. Soon enough their minds broke and their hearts stopped out of nothing more than pure fright. They had finished all but one of the invaders just in time, since the final foe suddenly came bursting out of the building he had been knocked into by the earlier explosion. Not a single scratch was visible on his diamond skin, and he let out an angry snarl when he saw his dead brethren.

Ignika's youngest sister cursed and she leaned onto Minako for support, her wounds getting to her. "Damn… I'm hurt worse than I thought… And that bastard's the toughest yet…"

Minako supported her sister and held her hand. "We'll make it, Nightmare. We have to. We haven't failed each other... But we can't fail our friends, either." Minako smiled at her sister cheerfully. "Besides, the next episode of Death Note will show an important plot point. You wouldn't want to miss that, would you?"

Nightmare actually laughed at that and squeezed Minako's hand. "Sure wouldn't…" She turned her attention to their enemy, who was eying them with eyes full of cold fury.

The Saurian of Diamond growled and clenched a diamond fist. "I am tired of this fight…" he hissed angrily. He punched the road then with all his might, which was greatly enhanced by his diamond toughness. The sheer strength of the punch created cracks all over the road, and the invader dug his hand in one of them. To the horror of the two girls, he began to pull out a giant chunk of the street, the size of a double-decker bus. It had to be more than a ton of steel, concrete and asphalt, and yet this one being could lift it, thanks to his diamond joints allowing him to withstand the pressure it put on his body.

"Try and stop this!" he shouted as he threw the enormous block right at the two sisters, with insane speed for something of that size. There would be no time to dodge.

Minako and Nightmare stood together. They knew they can't dodge it, and yet weren't afraid. Some kind of a strange confidence was forming in them... Warmth spreading through their bodies... And the next moment Minako laughed, realizing what it is.

"You ready, sis?" She asked her sister, her voice filled with happiness and excitement.

Nightmare nodded with a smirk on her face. "Ready as can be. No way out, do or die, what's not to like?" She squeezed Minako's hand again, as if to make sure she was still there. "You're with me, aren't you, onee-chan?"

"Of course I am. And will always be." Minako said confidently and with a broad smile on her face.

Ignika's youngest sister nodded again. "Then let's do this!" She felt the strength surge in her, just like that time before, that faithful day where she and Minako had become sisters. She knew what was happening, and fully surrendered herself to it. She felt the warmth, presence and comfort of her sister, and it strengthened her, the grip on her hand tightening even more.

Minako nodded. "Let's!" She surrendered herself to the warmth, too, and did her best to send her sister as much comfort as she could, while receiving a lot of bravery, determination and desire to protect in return. She faced the danger, knowing they could handle it.

The two sisters raised their hands as one, unleashing the power of their symbiosis that had been awakened inside of them days before, but had not yet been used. They could feel the power surging through their bodies, a warmth that flooded their being and very soul, and they knew in that instance for certain that they would survive. The glow of golden light coming from them became so intense it seemed to be white, and their opponent was blinded despite the chunk of road in the way of the light.

"Voya Terror Shock!"

A giant-sized beam of energy began to in front of them. It had a shape of a heart, albeit turned on its side, pointing forwards like an arrow tip. The beam was white at the edges and gradually changed colour to ruby red closer to the middle. The beam increased in size rapidly, until it matched the size of the giant chunk of the street thrown at them. The two girls fired it, and it went straight through the threat, disintegrating it completely. Now the Saurian of Diamond would feel the full wrath of its power...

The Saurian expected excruciating, burning pain, but it never came. As soon as the centre of the beam reached the point where the Saurian was standing, it began to decrease in size rapidly. Soon it was all gone within the Saurian. And that's where it exploded.

The Saurian howled in pain and clutched his head, rolling on the ground as he was tortured by the pain. But it wasn't physical pain, oh no. It was emotional pain, a thousand times more intense than normal human emotions. And it wasn't only the intensity that made it so torturous. The two opposites, Fear and Love, switched each other's effect every split second. Soaring love one moment and deep-rooted panic the other... The Saurian couldn't handle that for long.

And he didn't. His nerve system couldn't handle the extremely fast-changing polarity of emotions, and he died when it ceased to function, destroyed utterly and completely.

Nightmare let out a deep breath once it was over, speechless by the power they had unleashed. Love and Fear combined in such a powerful, destructive way, she had never thought it possible. And yet their symbiosis had done it, and it had utterly crushed their foe and won their battle. Suddenly, the black-haired girl groaned and fell to her knees, feeling the pain of her wounds returning again.

Minako's eyes widened and she fell on her knees next to her. "Imouto-chan!" She cried. Strange, why hasn't the symbiosis healed her sister like it healed her when being awakened? Was it only a one-time power? She grabbed her sister's hand and held it firmly.

"I… I'm okay…" Nightmare replied, her voice a bit strained. "We should… try and find Ignika… That manwoman said they had arrived, right?"

"Yes..." Minako said. But she still didn't get it. Did her sister have to suffer now? Why hadn't the healing activated? It should have! Minako was pained and panicked, worried about her sister.

"Can't you use that… devise on your arm to ask where he is?" the Saurian of Fear asked as she laid down on the ground to give her body some rest, despite it hurting her burned back.

"Yes... I can..." Minako said and activated her communicator. "Come in, anybody! Venus here. Nightmare needs Ignika, and fast!"

"Roger." Usagi's voice came. "We're on our way, Ignika will trace your life signal."

Nightmare managed to smirk despite the state she was in. "I bet he won't believe I got hurt. It's usually Chameleon that needs healing, or Gravitas sometimes since she still doesn't get what pain is every now and then. Me, I'm usually careful." The Saurian let out a soft sigh. "Then again, I usually don't take on nine Saurians at once. I'm bound to get hurt sometime."

Minako smiled and tucked a loose strand of her sister's hair behind her ear. "Hey, don't let it bother you..." Then she frowned. "It's my fault... You asked me to cover your back, and I..." She sighed and didn't finish the sentence.

"Meh, I don't blame you at all, onee-chan," Nightmare assured her blonde older sister. She placed her head in Minako's lap once she had tugged the girl to sit down. "It was my fault for getting a bit careless. But it was a risk I had to take. Every opportunity we got to get rid of an enemy had to be grabbed, and so I did. And you did too. I'm proud of you, onee-chan. You fought well." She gave her older sister an encouraging smile.

Minako nodded and smiled back, stroking the girl's hair. "Thank you. I have an excellent teacher." She complimented her sister.

Nightmare smirked triumphantly. "Of course you have. I told you that my training would pay off if you stuck to it."

"Yes, and I'm glad I did." Minako smiled. She wanted to say something else, but at that moment, Sailor Moon had arrived, descending from heavens with the Child of Life.

Ignika gasped as he saw the state Nightmare was in, and he immediately rushed over to his youngest sister. "Nightmare! Great Beings, what happened? Are you alright?" He knelt down next to the fallen Saurian of Fear and immediately began to use his power to heal the burned flesh and the other wounds the girl had gotten during her fight.

"I'll live, little brother, now that you're here," Nightmare assured him. She smiled at Sailor Venus again. "Thanks to love twit here I avoided getting hurt worse."

Venus smiled back and nodded: "Yes, we had to face nine Saurians on our own, but Nightmare did her best, and we defeated them together."

"I'm glad," Ignika muttered, focussed on his healing task. Slowly but surely Nightmare's burns vanished and was replaced by healthy skin, and the pain in her jaw subsided as Ignika healed the crack in her jawbone she had gotten from the diamond punch. Soon enough the golden glow of Life energy faded, and Nightmare was back to full health, and her chest and torso totally exposed. "There, all healed."

Minako smiled. "I'm glad." Then she undid her transformation briefly and took the tight-fitting t-shirt she was wearing that day off, transforming back instantly. She handed it to her sister. "Here. You can't walk around with your breasts exposed..."

Nightmare raised an eyebrow. "I can't?"

"You can't." Minako nodded firmly. "Now wear it. Or you need help?"

Ignika's sister shook her head. "No, I can manage." She pulled the shirt over head and put it on, giving the blonde a wink, to indicate she was just joking. Ignika saw this, and frowned. None of Nightmare's family was yet aware of the symbiosis bond that had formed between the two, and seeing Nightmare so calm and playful towards the Senshi of Love confused him.

"Minako-san, are you in need of any healing?" the white-haired boy asked, putting his confusion behind him for now.

The Senshi of Venus looked at herself. "Mmm... I got quite a nasty punch from the Saurian of Diamond, so please check my stomach... And the rest is fine, more or less. Just cuts and bruises."

"A Saurian of Diamond?" Ignika whispered in awe. He let out a low whistle. "Talk about bad luck… And I thought me, Usagi-sama and Chibiusa-sama had it bad against an Elemental…" The boy then triggered his power once again and directed it at the Senshi of Love, commanding his energies to heal the wounds her body had sustained.

"An Elemental?" Nightmare repeated, shocked. "Sheesh, this attack really is nearly as bad as having an Immoral One on the rampage… Probably done on purpose, too."

"You don't say..." Sailor Moon chimed in. "We should probably look for others... Who knows what they have encountered."

Nightmare nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you're right blondie. If I were you, I'd be worried about that black-haired girl who lives at that shrine-y thing, since she didn't answer communication."

Minako nodded. "Yes. Me and Nightmare will head there, and you check on others, they might need healing, too..."

Ignika agreed with that, and turned to Sailor Moon and Chibimoon. "They're right. Let's try and find the others, Usagi-sama. We should gather everyone and then head to Rei-san's place, I have a bad feeling about this."

"Alright." Sailor Moon nodded, took the two children in her hands again, took off and flew away.

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**Next chapter: Fruits of labour!**

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	68. Fruits of labour

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**68. Fruits of labour**

Gravitas lifted herself and Sailor Mercury off the ground using her powers, allowing the attacks fired at them by their six opponents to pass right under the pair. All things considered, the Saurian of Gravity thought it was good that they were outside, since that allowed for no hindrances using her powers. On the other hand, Ignika's middle sister thought, perhaps their enemies could have picked a better spot to fight than the rooftops. There were so many cables and stone spires scattered all over them that it made for a hard battlefield indeed. She gently lowered them back on the roof, hidden behind a chimney for a few moments.

"Are you alright?" she asked her blue-haired friend, slight concern obvious in her voice.

"I'm alright." Ami nodded assuring. "Now who are we up against?" She asked, not bothering to use the power-analyzer.

"A few annoying ones…" Gravitas replied in her usual monotone. "A Saurian of Shielding and Speed, two of Water, one of Duplication and last but not least… A Saurian of Quakes."

"I see... Gotta take the Quakes one out first, else he'll collapse the building. And then the Saurians of Water." Ami quickly decided.

"That would be logical," the Saurian of Gravity agreed with a quiet nod. "The question is if the Saurian of Shielding will allow us."

"We'll see." Mercury said and activated her visor.

She hadn't even lowered her hand yet from doing so, or the chimney they were hiding behind exploded when it was hit with a shockwave, created by an airquake made by the Saurian of quakes. Gravitas quickly raised her shield and pushed Mercury behind her to block most of the debris, but couldn't prevent that the force of the explosion threw the two of them backwards. The silver-haired girl steadied the two of them with her power, before taking a quick look around. There was no Saurian in sight, and she cursed.

"They are playing hide and seek," she growled lowly. "And the wind is against us, I cannot smell them… Do you see anything, Ami?"

Ami switched the mode of her visor. "Yes, I see them." She said. "Two Saurians hiding behind that satellite dish, one hiding behind the door to the attic, one behind that chimney and the last one is..." She didn't get to finish her last sentence, as the said last Saurian attacked them.

It was the Saurian of Speed, who had used his powers to attack them before even Gravitas' senses had picked him up, and the Saurian of Gravity could barely raise her shield to block the swipe of his long, steel-enforced claws. She used her powers to crush him into the roof, but before she could finish how he had sped away again, and their enemies were hiding once more.

"This is frustrating…" Gravitas hissed in mild irritation.

"You don't say." Mercury smirked. "Well, let's even out the field. Sharbon Spray!"

The battlefield was immediately covered with thick fog, which hindered the Saurian's sense of smell a bit, also.

"Now they can't see us either, but you can sense them." Ami winked at her partner.

Gravitas was about to smile back at her partner, were it not that a tremendously powerful shockwave knocked them off their feet the next moment, shattering the walls and roof of the building, which immediately and swiftly began to collapse. The silver-haired, disguised reptile activated her powers by reflex and grabbed Sailor Mercury, levitating them in the air to avoid the debris. Two jets of high-pressure water came out of the dust and fog the next moment, though, and one of them hit Gravitas square in the chest, the force of the stream slamming her backwards, through the chimney of the next house until she finally came to a crashing halt on the roof after that one.

Because of the shock, she had dropped Sailor Mercury upon impact, and the Senshi of Water plummeted through the cloud of dust and fog towards the ground beneath, where the building was still collapsing. Worse, something slammed into her back in mid fall: the Saurian of Speed, who used his powers to negate his fall. The force of the blow nearly broke Mercury's back, and it sent her crashing down into the collapsing building painfully.

Mercury cried from pain, but tried to get up. Looking around, she found herself on quite a huge chunk of the skyscraper, and thankfully, there were no more pieces of debris to fall on top of her. However, she had to secure herself somehow before reaching the ground, so Gravitas could pick her up...

Mercury ran towards the edge of the debris chunk and quickly cast Shine Aqua Illusion, freezing several smaller debris pieces together. Having jumped on the icy platform, she froze the next patch, and kept going until she reached the building. She froze the platform she was standing at to the building's wall, and waited, ready to deflect any attack that could come.

Two roofs away from her, Gravitas crawled back on her feet, silently cursing as her chest throbbed from the blast of high-pressured water it had received. She was mostly afraid for her friend, Ami, though, and she ignored any protests from her body as she took back her shield and prepared to rush towards the collapsing building. Her senses warned of coming danger, and heeding those, she quickly let herself fall to the ground again, allowing two more jets of water to pass over her. Snarling, the Saurian of Gravity jumped back up, coming face to face with the two Saurians of Water, one female, the other male.

The disguised girl wasted no time on words. She had to get back to Ami and fast. So, she quickly used her power to crush her opponents into the roof, but they still had the strength to fire more water at her, which she had to dodge, allowing them to escape her powers. The two spread out and dodged between the satellite dishes, chimneys and cables, firing high pressured water streams at Gravitas any chance they got. Finally having had enough of it, Gravitas decided to push her power one step further.

She crouched down and placed her hands on the roof, then lowered the gravity field around it drastically. Everything aside from the roof and herself – chimneys, satellite dishes, cables, invading Saurians – suddenly found themselves floating above the roof they had been standing on firmly just a moment before. The strain of doing something that extreme hurt her mind and would no doubt give her a headache later, but Gravitas pressed on. Standing up, she spread her arms and hands and tied her powers to them. Letting out a loud snarl, she clasped her hands together with great force, and the gravitational field tied to them followed her example.

All that floated in midair thanks to her powers was pushed together at her command, and her unfortunate attackers found death by being crushed between all the rubbish Gravitas had levitated off the roof. She wanted to be certain of her victory, though, and pushed her power even further, increasing the gravitational pull of the ball of rubble, causing it to be crushed together even more, until it was but the size of a watermelon. Her mind screaming, Gravitas shut off her powers, and the ball of debris fell to the roof and through it, its size belying its true mass. But Gravitas didn't care about the ball that was going loosely through the different stages of the hotel she was standing on. Nor did she care about her mind screaming at her. She cared only about Ami's safety, and rushed back to the collapsed building.

Her hurry was not misplaced, as Sailor Mercury found herself under attack by the Saurian of Speed, who was moving so fast she couldn't see him. He was zipping around her like a fly, lashing out and slashing her with his claws every time he got close.

Ami cried in pain, and tried to cast a spell, but was always interrupted by an attack. Finally, she got to finalize her casting:

"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!" The streams of water flowed in various different directions. However, Mercury bent them to her will and made them intertwine until they formed a round shield around her. Should the Saurian attack again, he'd get hit by one of the flowing streams, she was sure of it.

She was right, too, as the invading reptile tried to get in another strike, only to be struck himself by the protective currents around the Senshi. Snarling, he backed up a little, then climbed back up the walls to the top of the roof to try and think of another approach. Unfortunately, Gravitas was waiting for him, and a quick strike with her razor-edged shield reduced the number of invading Saurians by one more.

The silver-haired girl wasted no time talking, and quickly used her powers to levitate her symbiosis partner up to the roof, before the remaining three Saurians attacked again. She couldn't see them, but she knew they were there.

"Whew, thanks. Who does that leave us with?" Mercury quickly asked, scanning the battlefield with her visor, still holding her harp at ready to cast Mercury Aqua Rhapsody.

"Shielding, Duplication and Quakes," came the reply. "But I don't know where they are."

"One is at the next roof. The other two are..." She didn't get a chance to finish, as the said two Saurians showed themselves by attacking the girls.

It was the Saurian of Quake, who slammed his fist through the air with a punching-movement, cracking the air like a mirror and creating a shockwave that slammed into the two partners with devastating force, knocking them flat on their backs with bruised ribs, while around them chimneys and satellite dishes were levelled by the force of the blow. The other Saurian was the one of Duplication, and he copied his brother's powers perfectly, slamming the air and creating a second shockwave, this one cracking and shattering the roof Gravitas and Ami had been knocked down on.

Gravitas coughed violently and spat up blood. Having a shockwave pass through her chest was definitely not an experience she wanted to go through again. Or savour from up close. If either of them were hit by such a 'quake punch' from up close, or worse, if it made direct physical contact, they were done for. Quake was one of the most devastating powers given to the Saurian race, Gravitas knew. No surprise then that they usually were rare.

Mercury stopped coughing, her chest pained by the possibly broken ribs, and looked at her partner lying next to her. "Gotta take them down now before Shielding Saurian arrives." She took her guest's hand, knowing she would understand. "We can't deal with three of them."

"We can't deal with two Quake Saurians…" Gravitas wheezed. "One is deadly enough… two are just simply lethal…"

"It'll be worse once it becomes two Quake Saurians behind a shield." Mercury said determinedly. "And we have Symbiosis. If we don't use it or it fails... We'll die either way. But if we do, we have a chance for victory."

"They won't sit still long enough for us to try it…" Ignika's middle sister objected. She sighed and slowly crawled back on her feet. "I'll crush them into the ground and you fire your water blades at them, okay? If that doesn't work, we'll try to see if our labours in the laboratory have born any fruits…"

Mercury nodded, getting up on her feet again. "I'll freeze them, too."

Gravitas helped her partner to her feet, cast a quick glance at their opponents, who had retreated to the roof on the other side of the gap left by the collapsed building. Growling, the Saurian with the silver hair triggered her powers and crashed her foes into the roof. "Now!" she shouted at her blue-haired friend.

"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!" Sailor Mercury cried, the Mercury Harp appearing in her hands. The mighty torrents of water flew forward to strike the Saurians, guided by Ami's skilful music. Not interrupting the spell, she cast another one: "Shine Aqua Illusion!" Now the streams would freeze the enemies upon contact, or at least Ami hoped so.

Only, her attacks never made contact with the intended target. The third and last invader had appeared out of nowhere, and had activated his powers, throwing up an impenetrable shield around himself and his brother, preventing Ami's attacks from hurting them.

Mercury smirked. She had thought of that possibility. Her water freely flowed over the Saurian's barrier, covering it completely. She increased the power of both her spells, and pretty soon the Saurian's shield was covered by a thick dome of ice. Of course it wouldn't stand a chance against the Quake Saurians, but...

"Now!" Mercury took her guest's hand, reaching out to her with her mind and soul, begging her to reply and start the Symbiosis.

The dome of ice was shattered by a mighty quake, and Gravitas and Ami were crushed down into the ground the next moment by a serious increase of gravitational pull, as if Ignika's sister were using her powers on the two of them. The disguised reptile snarled as she struggled against the unnatural gravity. "That lowlife duplicated my powers!"

She triggered her own powers to negate the artificial gravity, but since her powers were duplicated, the strength was the same, so she couldn't increase or decrease her attempts, she'd just be duplicated. Gravitas wanted to start the symbiosis then, were it not for both of their arms to suddenly get frozen to their bodies thanks to Ami's powers being duplicated this time. Worse, the Saurian of Quake set off another shockwave, one that would totally obliterate them in their frozen state: shatter them like the popsicles they were now.

Ami cursed in her mind. "Damn it!" Gravitas was so close, Ami wouldn't even have to reach out far to touch her... If they weren't crashed into the ground at the moment by incredible gravity...

"Then again..." the Senshi thought, looking at the Quake wave coming at them. "Sailor Moon had defeated supergravity in the battle with Rubeus..." She gave her symbiosis partner a determined look. "I can!"

Slowly, very slowly as it seemed now that the shockwave was coming, Ami turned to her side. After taking some deep breaths, she rolled over to her stomach. Just a few centimetres now...

Gravitas growled again, sweating as she struggled to have her own powers prevail over the duplication ones. She was a Saurian of Gravity, damn it. As if she was going to let some Saurian of Duplication, who could merely copy her powers and experience, get the best of her! Letting out a chilling hiss, Gravitas let all control of her powers slip, and since she was not actively doing something, just letting the power that was in her go loose, that could not be copied, and she managed to conquer the artificial gravity with great ease now. Anger giving her strength, the Saurian turned human shattered the bonds of Ice that held her arms to her body, and promptly picked up her friend, her partner and fellow warrior into a tight embrace. If this didn't count as physical contact, nothing would, she thought.

Using her gravity powers in a strange way, namely to alter the form of space and time around her friend, Gravitas held Ami in a protective cocoon like that, just as the shockwave hit. The quake went straight through the Saurian of Gravity, breaking her already bruised rips, and her face twisted in pain. But she kept concentrating as hard as she could to keep the strangely altered field of space and time around Ami up, guiding the shockwave around the girl she cared about so much through her own body.

"Gravitas..." Ami whispered in awe, her eyes wide with realization just how much Gravitas was going through to protect her. Through their bond, through the warmth that spread through their bodies, coming from their hearts, she felt her care. And she couldn't allow that to be in vain. She needed to protect Gravitas from further harm. "Gravitas..."

Triggered by the mutual desire to protect each other, their symbiosis started. The light of their powers, of their souls, flowed through their bodies, healed them, created a shield around them. Neither would be hurt by the shockwave now. The two girls got up and thrust their hands upwards, in perfect synch with each other.

"Voya Freezing Barrage!"

Immediately, the invading Saurians found themselves being lifted off the ground, while something strange was forming above the girls. It was a small ball of energy, coloured silver and blue, the colours ever moving and infiltrating each other... Suddenly, long, hard, sharp icicles formed from the blue energies of the ball. The ball pulsated and repelled the icicles, and the Saurians found themselves being pulled towards it...

The energy pulsated, creating new and new icicles, repelling them and bringing them back to the core as gravity shifted. With every pulse the icicles wounded the Saurians, who were drawn towards the centre of the gravity vortex no matter what direction the icicles were flying in. Pulsing became quicker, the Saurians closer and closer to the heart of the attack... And as soon as they reached it, all icicles were pulled back to it with incredible speed, resulting in making a giant icy ball of spikes, a shining and partly blooded frozen star. Then, in a final pulse, the star exploded, vanishing without a trace, for even gravity between atoms was nullified. There were no signs of the attack nor of the enemies left.

Gravitas sat silently on the damaged roof, cradling Ami in her arms in silence. Her face bore a frowning expression, for she was confused. They had won, which was good. The symbiosis had healed her wounds, which was great. Ami had not been hurt any further, which was fantastic. That she liked all those things, she knew that, felt that. But during the symbiosis she had felt other things. Just like the first time it had happened, she had been flooded by and dipped in Ami's emotions and strong feelings. A strange experience. She thought that she should love it, feel touched by it, be enlightened by such a thing… But it only rendered her more confused instead. She had understood so little of the feelings Ami had sent her way, aside from the desire to protect. Gravitas inwardly cursed and was displeased. Long ago, it had been her not understanding of these feelings that had driven her to throw them away in the first place… But now… Now she wanted to understand, wanted to feel them, wanted to experience them like Ami did. And she couldn't, which frustrated and saddened her.

"Gravitas..." Ami said, touching her cheek. Their symbiosis hadn't yet completely vanished, its power and warmth subsiding slowly. "It's gonna be okay. Everything is going to be alright..." She smiled proudly at her friend and whispered: "You've made amazing progress..."

Yes, Ami had felt Gravitas' soul as well during their symbiosis. And what she had found there pleased her. Yes, there were still little emotions, not nearly as much as a normal person should know... But compared to the emptiness earlier in her life, it was amazing. Happy moments, sad moments, frustrating moments, angry moments – they pinpointed the aloof Saurian's life, the human part of her life, like myriads of tiny lights. And that was great. Ami was happy for that.

"I have?" Gravitas asked tonelessly, an eyebrow raised.

"Yes. I feel it. And you will progress even more than now..." Ami said warmly, completely sure of her words.

"How so?" the other girl asked again, puzzled.

"Remember I told you about the strange emptiness I felt in your soul during our previous symbiosis? Now it isn't empty anymore..." Ami smiled gently at her, tracing her finger around the girl's heart was. "And it happened so fast... It's a great start, Gravitas."

Gravitas was about to say something in reply, but she was interrupted by Mercury's communicator beeping.

"Mercury reporting." Ami answered, not waiting to be asked. "Me and Gravitas have eliminated the threat, and are neither hurt nor wounded."

"Really? That's a relief." Came Usagi's voice. Ami could almost imagine her relieved smile and sigh. "Ami, Gravitas, please head to Rei's place now. She won't answer the communicator, and everybody is worried."

"Roger." Ami replied and turned the communicator off. "Let's go."

Gravitas nodded, picked Ami up and threw her on her back, then began to leap from roof to roof using her powers, listening to Ami's directions for going to Rei's Shrine as she did so.

* * *

"Of all places to fight in," Traveller growled as she pushed herself and Sailor Pluto behind a shelf so the attacks fired at them totally missed. "Why did it have to be _inside_? There's no worse a battlefield than inside!" She growled as the shelf of the warehouse they were hiding behind got turned to dust. Grabbing Pluto's hand, Traveller teleported the two of them away before more attacks came. The two reappeared at the fruit section.

"Perhaps that is exactly the reason..." Pluto said thoughtfully. Their foes ran and hid at the warehouse only when they saw the pair. "They must have a strategist in their group. Who are we up against?"

"We're in luck," Ignika's oldest sister replied as she tightened her grip on her dual-headed trident. "No rare or extra devastating powers, as far as I could see. Just one of Mind Reading, three of Fire, two of Ice, one of Sight and one of Growth. Yes, they can all do a lot of damage, but nothing extreme."

Setsuna frowned. "Mind Reading, huh... He's the strategist. We've got to take him out first, and the one of Sight, too." Suddenly, Setsuna ran behind Traveller and activated her Garnet Ball. "Bad thing is that he can read our minds and all our plans right as we think about them." She finished, deflecting the attacks.

"Then we just have to go by instinct," Traveller replied. "I just wish I had the power of Sight at this moment, because I can't see where our enemies are at all."

Setsuna looked at the ceiling. As she thought, the shelves of the warehouse didn't go all the way up... Not that it helped. The gap between the ceiling and the top shelf was still too small...

But then she thought of another possibility.

"You know what..." Setsuna smiled at her partner. "Let's try symbiosis now. Mind reading or not, it'll take them a while to go all the way back to the entrance... We have time."

"Won't that wreck this place more than our enemies will?" the Saurian of Teleportation asked, an eyebrow raised.

Setsuna smiled. "Depends..." She said. "Symbiosis is a power that does what needs to be done, what's best be done. Just remember, it restored the very fabric of Space and Time!" She took her friend's hand assuring. "Surely it could manage not wrecking the place more than needed..."

Ignika's oldest sister thought about it, then thought back to when they first had symbiosis and what it had done. All things considered, Setsuna wasn't entirely wrong. The black-haired woman nodded. "Very well… We might as well put master Angonce's theory to the test, no? It would be a great achievement indeed if we could really activate this power and bond at will…" She held out her hand for Setsuna to take, just as a blast of fire set the fruit stand aflame.

Setsuna frowned. "So they got here. Alright, let them play tag..." She took her partner's hand. "Teleport to the toy section, we passed it midway to the other end of the warehouse."

Traveller nodded quietly, triggered her powers and off they were. Barely a few seconds later the two women were standing amidst the toys of the warehouse, the LEGO section, to be precise. The Saurian of Teleportation frowned as she looked at the long rows of building toys. Some of them consisted of action figures that had to be assembled first, such as a yellow warrior with a mask that had a peculiar human shape on it. Traveller shook her head. What was she doing, wasting her time like this! She mentally kicked herself and then turned to her partner, taking both of her hands in her own.

"Ready?" she asked quietly.

"Yes." Setsuna closed her eyes and reached out to Traveller with her mind and soul.

Traveller did the same, closing her eyes and reaching out to the green-haired Senshi of Time. She remembered well what master Angonce had said. They had to think as one. Be one. Even their minds. They had to connect physically as well as psychically. They had to, both of them at the same time, will the power that flowed through them to be activated.

Setsuna did her best to do so, too, to not let her mind wander at all. And her efforts weren't in vain. Slowly, she reached out to Traveller's mental presence, to her light, to her warmth... Traveller did the same. And just a few seconds later, the contact was made.

Warmth flooded over them, their souls giving such an intense glow it surpassed the borders of their bodies, illuminating the warehouse with blue and garnet...

"Voya Dead Starfall!" They cried, thrusting their hands upwards at the same time.

The attack was indeed a starfall. Energy beams that strongly resembled Pluto's Dead Scream, only light-blue in colour, emerged from Pluto's body, where they were hit by the light streaming from Traveller's. The attacks vanished from sight, only for them to reappear elsewhere in the warehouse, one above each invading Saurian, where they rained down like falling stars, striking the reptiles and disintegrating them with the combined powers of space and time, just like that. Just like that, it was over.

The symbiosis ended, Setsuna opened her eyes and smiled. "See? Now imagine how much time we would have wasted hunting them one by one..."

Traveller laughed. "Indeed! Proves that not all fights have to take a long time and inflict a lot of injuries and pain upon us." She smiled at her friend and gently grabbed her hand, squeezing it lightly. "But more importantly… We did it."

"Yes..." Setsuna squeezed her hand back. Then took out her communicator. "Pluto reporting. Threat eliminated. Me and Traveller are safe and unharmed." She reported simply.

"I'm glad." Usagi replied. "Now please head to Rei's shrine, she won't answer her communicator... She might be in trouble." Worry was obvious in the Moon Princess' words.

"We'll head there immediately then," Traveller said resolutely. Then she scratched the back of her head nervously. "If Setsuna knows the way, that is."

Setsuna nodded. "I do. And you do, too. We've been there on the first day of your arrival, remember?"

"I was so shocked by all things I had to cope with that day that I barely remember the place…" Ignika's only sister by blood admitted reluctantly. She looked away, trying to hide her burning cheeks.

Setsuna smiled. "It's alright. Get us to Usagi's place then, somewhere outside, and we'll find our way from there."

Traveller nodded and took her friend's hand once more. "That, I can do." And with those words, she used the power granted to her by the Great Beings as she had done countless times before, warping herself and her symbiosis partner to the street just outside of Usagi's house.

* * *

**Next chapter: The other side!**

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	69. The other side

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**69. The other side**

Elsewhere in Tokyo, a group of Saurians had appeared and started rampaging near and in a high school. Fortunately it was night, and so no students were there, otherwise there would have been a high number of casualties already. Five Saurians were wrecking havoc on the schoolyard, while a group of well over ten of the reptiles had split up inside the buildings themselves. Their location was betrayed every now and then by an explosion blowing out some of the windows or a hole in the wall every now and then. The damage done already was great, and even if the invaders were stopped right now, the school would not be usable for a while.

And it was in this place that Sailor Neptune, Sailor Uranus and Sailor Saturn found themselves, face to face with a group of invaders five times their number.

"Damn it..." Haruka cursed, watching the Saurians from afar. "Why did they attack a school?"

Michiru frowned. "I don't understand it as well. Maybe they don't need a reason?"

Their daughter, meanwhile, was quickly tapping the buttons of the power-analyzer, getting a reply once every time three buttons were pushed. The results she got for the five Saurians outside were the following: magma, teleportation, sound, air and healing.

Haruka shook her head. "That's bad. We need to get rid of Teleportation and Healing as fast as possible."

"And if the Teleportation Saurian sees us, then..." Sailor Neptune didn't get to finish her phrase, as the Saurian in question arrived, and not alone.

"I thought I smelled something," the Saurian of Teleportation whispered, her voice female. "It seems I was not mistaken. Are these the ones, Vulcan?" She turned to the Saurian of Magma at her side, whose appearance was like that of a volcanic field. His scales were murky red and glowed like lava, his skin was grey like ash.

"It would seem so, Vanisher," he replied with a quiet, hoarse voice while nodding. Ash trickled down from his maw every time he breathed out. "We can all feel the power in them. I can smell it even. You are…" He frowned, as if having trouble with the words. "Sailor Senshi, are you not?"

Haruka raised her eyebrow and looked at the Saurians, mildly surprised. "You were sent on a mission and not even explained your objectives?" She, Hotaru and Michiru stood at the ready, but did not attack yet. The Senshi principles made it clear that a talk was better than a mindless battle.

"Felnas the Disruptor was clear with his words…" the Saurian of Sound replied calmly. "We were sent to wreak havoc on this world, lure out those who call themselves 'Sailor Senshi' and kill them. But aside from some vague descriptions thanks to lady Avsa, we have no idea what our prey looks like. If you are Sailor Senshi, we will kill you. If you are not, step aside."

Haruka nodded. "It's an honourable approach to the problem. But, unfortunately..." She sighed and summoned her Space Sword. "We cannot let you wreck havoc anymore."

"Even though we prefer reasoning to fighting." Hotaru added. "But protecting this planet is our duty."

Michiru nodded, and looked at the Saurian of Magma. "We are the Sailor Senshi."

"So I thought," Vulcan replied calmly. He triggered his power, and his right hand was set aflame and seemingly began to melt, while in reality it was merely turning into magma. Unbeknownst to the Senshi, he was an Elemental, too. "We will fight, then, and we will try to kill you."

"We understand why you wish to stop us," the Saurian of Air added. "This is your world, your home, and you will fight to protect it. If you invaded our world, we would do the same."

"Squall is right," Caretaker, the Saurian of Healing agreed. "Our world was invaded just the same, and we tried to fight and protect it, but couldn't. We are powerless to stop master Zyglak. It's bow or break. The only thing we can protect is ourselves… If we come here and fight, the chance exists we will die. Yet if we don't come here and disobey… Death is a certainty."

"We would rather not be here," Vanisher said quietly. "We hate this world. It is cold, grey and smells awful. We wish to be where we belong, in the forests and jungles of our home. But if we did that, we would be killed for disobedience."

"It is nothing personal, so you see," Vulcan concluded calmly, resignation to his fate in his voice. "If you had to choose between certain death or merely possibly dying, what would you choose?"

With those words said, the five Saurians took on their own fighting stance, their reptilian eyes focussed on their three foes.

Sailor Uranus nodded, looking at them sadly. "We understand. And it's nothing personal for us, either..."

Sailor Neptune repeated her words: "We understand. And we'd rather have avoided meaningless bloodshed, yet you don't have such an option."

"As you know, or at least the Immoral Ones know, the Child of Life and his family are under our care. They came as friends and became friends..." Sailor Saturn said. "It's a pity that we have to be enemies with you."

"You cannot protect us from master Zyglak's wrath should we disobey, you are too weak," Vulcan sighed. Then his eyes narrowed in determination and he reared back his magma-fist. "Forgive me, but I have to fight! Great Eruption!" The other four Saurians scattered as Vulcan rushed his fist forward, firing a gigantic fist made of magma at the Senshi as he did so.

"Deep Submerge!" Sailor Neptune fired her own attack, while Sailor Saturn shielded them with her Silence Wall. The attack struck home and the giant magma fist broke into several cooler, smaller pieces.

"Not done yet!" the Saurian of Magma shouted, slamming the ground with his tail. "Pyroclasm!" The ground beneath the Senshi shattered and four pillars of magma shot up from the underground, the searing heat capable of scorching off their skin without the magma even touching them.

The Senshi managed to avoid them, somehow. Haruka fell on the ground, sheltering Hotaru, while Michiru got up to her feet a few paces away from them. "Deep Submerge!" She fired her attack, and ran away, trying to get the Saurian to follow her and not attack her beloved and her daughter.

"Courageous," Vanisher noted, as she caught on to Neptune's meaning. Triggering her power, the female Saurian disappeared and reappeared right in front of the Senshi of the Depths. "But foolish." She lashed out with one of her daggers, and managed to slash the Senshi's side, despite her quick reflexes allowing Michiru to avoid being gutted.

Michiru quickly summoned her Deep Aqua Mirror, turned around and casted Submarine Reflection while trying to avoid the woman's blows. The beam of light that came from it made no damage at all, but for a few brief moments the light kept glowing at a particular spot...

"Under the jaw?" The Senshi thought briefly, before turning her mirror over and pushing the handle with all her might into the sensitive spot of unprotected flesh located where the Saurian's head connected with the neck.

Vanisher howled in pain as one of the few weak spots of her Saurian body was struck head on, and she staggered back, clutching her throat in agonizing pain. Neptune thought now was perhaps a good opportunity to attack her again, however, something slammed into her side just as she was making her move.

It was Squall, the Saurian of Air, who had stormed at the Senshi as he saw his friend getting hurt. One sweep of his mighty tail sent the Senshi of the Depths flying. "Vanisher, are you alright?" he growled between clenched teeth, keeping his eyes on Neptune even as he tightened the grip on his weapon, a heavy bisento.

"I'll live," Vanisher answered. "Let's move, we mustn't underestimate them."

Nodding, the two Saurians rushed to attack Sailor Neptune again. Vulcan, seeing this, decided he would keep the other two occupied. Triggering his mighty elemental power, he performed yet another Great Eruption in an attempt to melt Saturn and Uranus from the face of the planet.

Uranus fired a crescent blast from her Space Sword and it cleaved the giant fist in half. Saturn then cast Silence Wall, and the halves of the fist were deflected by it, altering their course and flying past the two Senshi, yet the heat was excruciating. As soon as the fist passed, Uranus fired a World Shaking at their foe.

Vulcan growled, but made no move. He let the attack hit him head on, and the force of the blow sent bits of his body flying everywhere. Only it wasn't flesh, but searing magma. The burning rock his body was now made of seemed to _eat_ Uranus' attack, and soon enough the magma came back together and his body reformed, unharmed and undamaged.

Uranus gasped and stared at the Saurian, instinctively stepping to shield her daughter, even though it was the said daughter who could actually shield her. She had never seen anything like that before.

"You are powerful," Vulcan noted quietly, observing Uranus with an unwavering gaze. "But you cannot defeat me, an Elemental, with that power." He activated his power again, turning both his hands and arms into magma, reared them back and then pushed them forward, creating a tidal wave of molten, searing rock. "Grand Cataclysm!"

"Oh no, you won't..." Sailor Neptune muttered through clenched teeth. Sending a Deep Submerge at both her foes, she jumped high on a tree and did something she barely ever did.

She summoned her violin.

"Submarine Violin Tide!" The Senshi of the Depths cried and started playing her violin, creating a furious battle melody. Obeying her music, a giant tidal wave appeared from nowhere and clashed with the wave of magma.

Vulcan growled, looking unimpressed. "You are the water, but I am magma. Nothing short of the ocean can stop my power!" And indeed, the water from Neptune's tidal wave was evaporated by the magma, a great deal of it even before it hit the molten rock. Some of the magma hardened for a few seconds, before it was immediately melt down again by the rest of the lava. "Now then, witness my volcanic might! Meteor Fall!" Vulcan created another giant magma fist and sent it after his wave of lava. When the two hit, they spat apart, chunks of burning stone being flung into the sky, where they came crashing down towards the battlefield again like meteors.

But that wasn't all, as his friends joined in the assault. Squall created a hurricane with his air powers, and Vulcan was quick to fill it with particles of searing magma. The blazing inferno was then sent at the Senshi, together with a devastating sound wave courtesy of Noisyth, the Saurian of Sonics. Vanisher stood back, keeping careful guard over Caretaker, the healer of their group.

Sailor Saturn created a Silence Wall to shield them from the attacks, and turned to look at the highschool. The battle had taken them to quite a good distance from it... And since the school grounds were quite big...

"Silence Glaive Surprise!" Sailor Saturn cried, and the giant expanding dome of purple energy easily overpowered all the attacks, destroying everything in its way.

The Saurian group managed to escape the attack thanks to Vanisher, all except for Vulcan, who refused to go. The destructive energy of Saturn hit him and destroyed the shape of his body, but the elements were not defeated by sheer destruction. And as the dust settled of Saturn's mighty attack, a pool of magma could be seen, sizzling on the ground. And from that pool arose a figure that quickly took on the shape of a Saurian, until Vulcan stood back on his feet in one piece.

"Impressive," he said quietly, not unfriendly. "Lady Avsa was right… The small one with the Glaive indeed does posses unparalleled destructive power. But it will not be enough to defeat me, for I am Elemental, and you are not." He raised his fist and set it aflame by turning it into magma once again, then he looked at Saturn with what could only be seen as some sort of respect. "Little one, announce your name. You are too great an opponent to be snuffed out like some nameless, weak fodder warrior."

"I am Sailor Saturn." Hotaru announced proudly. "And I will not go down easily."

"I will remember that," Vulcan replied. "I will honourable give you a quick death, you do not deserve to suffer. Yet fall you will, before the power of my magma." And with that said, he suddenly launched himself at Sailor Saturn, his fist growing larger and larger the closer he came.

Sailor Saturn rushed at her foe, seemingly having lost her mind. But she hadn't, oh no. She did have a plan. Closing the distance, she had her glaive at the ready, as if wanting to cut the Saurian. But that wasn't what she did.

"Death Reborn Revolution!"

Myriads of purple energy ribbons encircled Saturn and then rushed towards the Saurian, winding around him, absorbing all the power of his element. Magma was simply dissolved by the negative energy Sailor Saturn possessed. Vulcan couldn't turn into magma, if he did, he'd be destroyed all the same. Coming close to the entangled Saurian, Sailor Saturn said quietly:

"Zyglak will fall. Do you believe us?"

"No," he whispered sadly. "Nothing can end master Zyglak. Not even your power. If I die now, so be it. I will use all power in my possession to try and end your life, so I can live and see my beloved forest again…" With that, Vulcan began to glow red, and then blinding white as the temperature his body gave off increased. Though his body was being negated by the power of Saturn, his willpower was massive enough in itself to keep recreating it time and time again whenever it was destroyed. "Pyrokinetic Possession: Planet Core Explosion!"

In that one instance before Saturn could strike, Vulcan turned his body into a mass of magma so great and searing that it was like a planet's core. Worse, he set it off the next moment. And a gigantic explosion followed, as if the core of a miniature planet came to an end. The force was unbelievable and collided with the power of Saturn. A struggle of power ensued, as the element of Magma fought in its highest form again the element of Silence.

"I've got to hold on... Got to hold on... got to..." Hotaru thought as she poured every last ounce of her power into her attacks. Now she was using her powers in a very rare way: combining all three of her attacks. The shielding of Silence Wall, the destructive dome of Silence Glaive Surprise and the negative absorbing energy of Death Reborn Revolution. The Saurian's attack... An attack of that level couldn't hold out for long. "I've got to hold on..."

"Vulcan, stop!" Noisyth shouted, knowing his brother could here him despite the unbelievable noise of the destruction. "You'll kill yourself!"

"I'll gladly give my own life if it means I can bring the rest of you back home, to the forest and the lives we belong!" came the response of the Saurian of Magma from within the destruction. It sounded strained and full off pain, but Vulcan held on and showed no sign of falling. Quite the opposite, he went as far as to intensify his attack, feeding the explosive force with more fuel.

"He's using his own body to fuel his attack…" Caretaker concluded in utter horror. "Don't do this…" The healer did a step back and clutched his staff tightly in powerless sadness. "Don't do it, Vulcan! Don't go this far! Remember, brother? We'd either go back together, or die together!"

Sad music reached the Saurian's ears. It was Sailor Neptune, who fired a Submarine Violin Tide again. But this time she accompanied the giant tidal wave not with a furious fast battle melody, but with a solemn, slow, sad requiem.

"We are sorry." Uranus said, looking at the Saurians. "We have no other choice."

Growling, Squall rushed forward and into the path of the water, then unleashed the full force of his air powers, creating mighty whirlwinds and gusts that collided with the wall of water and brought it to a halt. "I will not let you interfere with my brother's battle!" he announced determinedly.

"Vulcan is giving his life for us, but we've made him a promise long ago," Noisyth added. "We intend to keep it." Then he tipped back his head and let out a scream, which was amplified by his sonic powers, until it became so devastating that it cracked the stone of the schoolyard, and knocked the wind out of Uranus and Neptune, nearly shattering their eardrums as well.

Neptune looked carefully at her violin. It wasn't broken, thank goodness. Michiru un-summoned her instrument and got up together with her love. Together, they fired a World Shaking and a Deep Submerge at their foes, which were countered by air and sound courtesy of Squall and Noisyth.

Vanisher was about to join the fray again, when she noticed something going awry in the ongoing clash of destruction between Saturn and Vulcan. The Senshi girl was a formidable foe, Vanisher mused, despite her age, for holding her own against an attack ten times the power of a Nova blast. And she looked resolute, refusing to back down. That made the Saurian of Teleportation afraid. For she knew Vulcan, her 'brother'. He wouldn't back down either. But he couldn't keep up. He couldn't keep draining the magma that made his body for his attack.

"His control is slipping…" she gasped in fear. "Once he looses it, the destruction will no longer be aimed at the Saturn girl… It will run rampant!" In panic, she yelled out to her three other brothers: "Take cover, Vulcan's going to explode!"

Haruka and Michiru gasped and looked at the place where the two powers clashed. There was no chance of getting their daughter out of there...

"God damn it all!" Uranus cursed and, grabbing her love, ran for shelter.

What followed was a scene from the apocalypse, as an enormous explosion levelled the schoolyard, the school buildings – and the Saurians inside – the streets surrounding the school and the buildings along those streets. It was all blown clean away as a result of Vulcan no longer being capable of sustaining himself, and his exhausted mind could no longer direct the force of his unbelievable might at only Saturn. When the dust and ash settled, the Saurian of Magma was smeared over the ground, his body half formed, half magma.

Next to him, looking into his eyes, was Sailor Saturn. She was severely burnt and almost naked, but alive thanks to her healing powers, which she kept using on herself. Her mind nearly exploded from using so many different powers at once, but she survived it. "Told you... Won't go down..." She whispered to the Saurian.

"I failed…" the reptile made of magma said, his empty eyes gazing off into nothing. Tears welled up in them, but evaporated immediately. "I could not save my family… We will die… And never see our forests again…"

Hotaru closed her eyes, tears welling up in them. Yes, it was hard... It was strange to care for her foe, yet she did. Those Saurians... They were a family. They were ready to sacrifice themselves for each other... Kill for each other... To come back home.

"I am the Soldier of Death and Rebirth." Hotaru opened her eyes and looked at the Saurian. "You will wait for them in the afterlife. There will be a jungle, just like the one you all love so much. There will be the warm sun, the clear water and the fresh air... There will be no hunger and pain... There will be a happy life, for you, and for them. I will make it so. Even if I die now, I'll be reborn, and make it so."

Caretaker rushed forward until he could go no further because of the magma, triggered his power and began to heal his dying brother. "It is not too late…" he whispered harshly. "As long as I am here, as long as you have the will… It will never be too late, Vulcan…"

"Caretaker…" the Saurian of Magma whispered with a smile. He reached out weakly with his normal hand, wishing to touch his brother. "Had it not been for you… we would never have lived for as long as we did… but I'm afraid… even you cannot help me now…"

Hotaru lay still. Her strength was slowly returning, and even though she was burnt, even though she was in pain, she could still fire a Surprise and kill both most dangerous foes...

Yet she didn't. She couldn't. They weren't mindless youma. Nor were the Senshi. No meaningless bloodshed if it can be avoided. Never.

A lone violin note rang through the air, getting the attention of all the Saurians. "We are sad for your loss... And we had no other way." Neptune said.

Uranus nodded, agreeing with her love. "If we had a way, we would have avoided killing you."

"But before the battle rages on..." Michiru got ready to play her violin. "Allow me to honour his deed... and his death." Michiru played, sadly and slowly, without using any powers.

"I won't allow him to die," Caretaker said simply, and he began healing his brother again. "Vanisher, teleport the strength the others have left into me, I will need it."

Michiru kept playing, Hotaru lay still, Haruka sat on the ground and looked at the sword in her hand. One Submarine Violon Tide, one Space Sword Blaster, or one Silence Glaive Surprise, and the Saurians are done for. Yet they couldn't. They knew they can't kill the Saurians. And would rather flee than let the Saurians kill them. That's why they didn't interfere. They just couldn't bring themselves to do it...

"Staying your hand, Sailor Uranus?" a new voice came all of the sudden. It was a voice the Senshi knew very well, for it was carved into their hearts. None of them could ever forget a voice like that, so heavenly, divine, pure, warm, gentle, caring and all that was positive… Quiet footsteps could be heard approaching.

Haruka looked up, her eyes wide with disbelief. "Master Angonce..." She whispered with awe. Michiru kept playing her music, and Hotaru couldn't greet the Great Being.

The Saurians stared in fear and awe at the divinity, and they looked torn, not knowing what to do. Partly they wished to raise their weapons to give them some sort of feeling of safety, and on the other hand they didn't dare to, found that they couldn't when in the presence of something so pure.

"Who… what… are you?" Squall finally managed to stammer, his eyes wide with shock.

Angonce smiled kindly at the invader, as if he bore them no ill will, which in fact he didn't. They had invaded this world, come to kill its guardians, but the Great Being bore not a trace of anger. "I am that which your race calls a 'Great Being', Squall, Saurian of Air," the deity said calmly. "And my name is Angonce."

That only served to send the Saurians into fits of pure terror, and they hurriedly threw themselves on their hands and knees to bow down before the majestic being, except for Caretaker, who bowed his head as deeply as he could while still trying to heal Vulcan and keep him alive.

"They are invaders to your world, Sailor Uranus," the Great Being said to the Senshi of Winds. "It is your duty to stop or destroy them… You had every opportunity to do so, yet you did not." Angonce tilted his head sideways and gave the blonde a curious look. "Why?"

Uranus lowered her eyes. "I could not..." She looked at the Saurians. "Those Saurians... They came here not from free will, but were forced to do it. They were not enemies blinded by desire to kill us..." She paused, trying to find the right words. "They are like us. A family. And all they wanted was to return home..." Haruka fell silent, not knowing how to express all her feelings. Michiru had it easier – it all flowed through her music.

"Many of the invaders you killed before were the same, Senshi of the Winds," Angonce informed her quietly. "Driven by fear, bend on staying alive, obeying their orders in order to do so. Yet those have died, and these stand before you alive."

"We seldom ever have a choice..." Haruka replied. "Now we did, if only for a while."

"And yet this fight is not over," Noisyth said harshly, not looking up from where was bowing before Angonce. "You may have a choice, Sailor Senshi, we don't. We have already disobeyed, our deaths are certain now. I doubt killing you will make much difference, now that I think of it…"

"Do you wish to do it?" Uranus asked.

"When has what we wished ever mattered?" Vanisher retorted. "Our wish is the simplest there is: live like Saurians should live, without beings of Evil and Immoral Ones oppressing us, feeding us with fear and sending us to strange dimensions with forests of stone that scare us and alien, weird-looking beings – no offence – trying to kill us because we have to kill them. Yet get that, we do not."

"That is why we are fighting." Hotaru raised her voice. "We have a key... And we have a chance... Here, in this dimension. We will defeat Zyglak."

Haruka nodded. "Our powers grow stronger. We already have defeated two Immoral Ones in battle... And it's not the end. We will defeat Zyglak. And Voya will be free as well."

"I do not believe it," Vulcan rasped from where he lay. Caretaker had succeeded in rekindling the flame of his life, but the Saurian of Magma had pushed his body way too far beyond its limits. Wordlessly, Angonce approached the Saurian and kneeled down next to him, the magma not hurting him in the least.

"You are wounded by more than physical pain," the Great Being noted. "You carry a pain and fear in your heart that prevents you from believing these warriors." Angonce sighed, then picked the fallen Saurian up in his divine hands. "So be it then. But I am confident the day will come when you will see it yourself, young one. You will await that moment with your family in my domain. There you will be safe until Voya's threat has passed and you can return to your rightful home."

The Sailor Senshi smiled. It was indeed a very good way out.

"You've been graced by an unbelievable honour, Saurians." Uranus said. "Master Angonce's home is the safest and most wonderful place in this world."

Hotaru giggled. "If you avoid Crast, that is."

The Saurians were simply speechless, and they pressed themselves even further into the ground. Their minds could not grasp the fact that a Great Being had just told them they could live with him until it was safe for them to return home again. They couldn't believe it. Their brains flat out refused to process that.

Vulcan locked eyes with Sailor Saturn. "You owe me a rematch… Sailor Saturn…"

The girl smiled at him. "Alright. But no extremes next time, hmm?"

The Saurian didn't reply, merely looked away and closed his eyes, falling into unconsciousness. Angonce smiled. "Not every battle has to end with one side dead, such is now proven," he said, then sent the wounded Saurians in his hands back to his mansion. The Great Being turned and addressed the remaining members of the Saurian family. "I will send you to your brother now. You need not fear for your lives any longer, but once you arrive, I request you do not touch anything until I return. Fear not for your brother, he will survive."

The Saurians, still speechless, merely nodded very briefly before Angonce sent them on their way. With the threat dealt with, the divinity sighed as he observed the destruction and chaos. "Unfortunate, so much destruction," he whispered then in his divinely beautiful voice. "And yet, worse has been averted by this solution. Further fighting would have wrecked the city even more." Ignika's 'father' shook his head quietly. "I took an enormous risk," he told the Senshi. "Coming here in person could force Zyglak into action himself, something we have to avoid for as long as possible… But it was worth it, if only for sparing the lives of innocents."

Michiru finished her melody with an array of fast winding notes fading into a long low note.

"They were also the first Saurians who tried to reason with us." She said.

"And Vulcan is the only Saurian we've encountered who named his attacks..." Hotaru said, sitting up. She has mostly healed herself, and, given time or some aid, would soon recover fully.

"It's well unfortunate that fear drives many of those innocent Saurians into unreasonable fits of violence," Angonce said, as he suddenly slammed the air with his fist, in the direction away from the exhausted Senshi. It was as if a Saurian of Quake attacked, as the air seemed to shatter like glass before the Great Being's fist. But it wasn't the air that cracked. It was reality itself. What Angonce created was not a quake. It was a rift in the continuum of reality itself, and the power coming from that was many times greater than the strongest shockwave any Quake Saurian could create.

The force from Angonce's reality shattering attack would have levelled all the earlier explosion from Vulcan had if it had not already been destroyed. The shockwave hit the four Saurians of the ten who had been in the school that had survived the collapse. They had been sneaking up to the Senshi to try and kill them, and Angonce had sensed them long before that. A quick look at their minds had proven them to be beyond reason, and so the Great Being struck. The magnitude of his shockwave was so great that the sheer power radiating from it was enough to disintegrate the reptiles to dust before the shockwave itself had even hit them. So strong was the attack that the three Senshi, who were standing away from the attack, had trouble remaining on their feet, had trouble to breath even, and the hairs on their skin stood upright as they felt the force of the Great Being's attack.

"Some cannot be reasoned with," Angonce finished as he lowered his hand again, his tone full of sadness. "And have to be removed. It saddens me, but at the same time it cannot be helped. Despite my soul being free of dark taint, through logic I am capable of acts like these, much as it sickens me to take lives."

The Senshi stood in shock and awe at what Angonce just did, absolutely effortlessly... An attack more powerful than the explosive battle of Saturn and Vulcan. If this was a Great Being's power... A mere _fraction_ of a Great Being's power, then what power did Zyglak possess? Suddenly the Senshi understood the disbelief of the Saurians they fought today...

Their thoughts were interrupted by a beep of their communicators. Sailor Moon was asking the last three Senshi to go to Rei's home...

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**Next chapter: Trial by fire!**

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	70. Trial by fire

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**70. Trial by fire**

Rei Hino, the Priestess of the Hikawa Shrine, had just closed the door to the Shrine as the last visitor left. It had taken her quite a while to deal with him, and she tried her best to ignore the annoying beeping of the communicator. It fell silent not too long ago, but the fact it was beeping for so long meant there was trouble. Quickly changing into her normal clothes and grabbing her henshin wand and the communicator, she shouted:

"Grandpa, I'm sleeping at Usagi's tonight!"

"Fine, fine..." Rei's grandfather came out of the back room to see his granddaughter out. "You could've stayed at home for a change. It's getting quite late..." He said, concern obvious in his voice.

"It's okay, Grandpa, really." The young miko smiled. "But the girls are already waiting, too late to decline."

The short old man nodded. "I understand. Well, go then, Rei-chan." He smiled.

"Good night, Grandpa." The raven-haired girl kissed his bald head.

"Night." The old man nodded.

Rei exited the shrine, and as soon as she was sure Grandpa won't hear her, transformed:

"Mars Crystal Power, Make Up!"

In a flash of light, Sailor Mars had appeared in the place of Rei Hino. The Senshi reached for her communicator, so she could contact the others and ask what was wrong. Only she didn't get the chance. A stream of crackling lightning bolts came as out of nowhere, and though Sailor Mars could react quick enough to step aside and dodge most of the blast, she couldn't avoid the lightning striking her arm and wrecking her communicator beyond repair.

"It is as we were told," a quiet voice, as if from a snake who could speak, said quietly. Four Saurian shapes dropped down from the trees of the Hikawa Shrine, surrounding the Senshi of Fire. "One of our brethren who was with lady Avsa had the opportunity to read this creature's mind, and in it saw this place. Correctly, Felnas the Disruptor concluded that if we waited here, a Senshi would show up."

"Indeed…" another Saurian agreed, the darkness of the night hiding their faces and colour of scales with shadows. "If we succeed in killing this creature, we may be awarded a higher power by master Zyglak, and join the ranks of the Phantoka…"

Sailor Mars smirked. "You guys seriously believe that? How many of you are there? You think the Phantoka will be happy to see new faces among their ranks?" the Senshi taunted them, insolence hiding her fear and surprise.

"Oh, make no mistake, it's no secret that the Phantoka are just _dying_ to see Mohtrek replaced with someone more… sane," the Saurian of Electricity said with a chilling smile. "And who knows, perhaps the master will rid himself of those who failed before and replace them with new blood… We're patient."

"So I see..." She said, not as confident as before. She looked around. The Saurians were invisible in the night while she was out in the open... And with her communicator destroyed, she had no chance for help...

"Have to fight on my own then." She concluded in a whisper. "Fire Soul Bird!"

The mighty Fire Bird flew around the Shrine grounds, to light the darkness and reveal her opponents. A Saurian of Fire, a Saurian of Electricity, one of Metal and one of Hunger. Seeing the fire bird, the first Saurian scoffed.

"A fire user," he said, unimpressed. "This will be interesting." He raised his sword, which started to glow red hot from heat, and then fired a stream of scorching flames at the lonely Sailor Senshi.

"Fire Soul!" Rei fired a stream of flames of her own, slowing the opponent's one a bit, and used the time that bought her to dodge. A Fire Saurian was very unfortunate for her, not to mention dangerous. Unlike her, he had an unlimited array of attacks...

Walls of Metal suddenly surrounded her, courtesy of the Saurian of Iron, and with Mars closed in, the Saurian of Electricity threw a stream of lightning bolts at the cage, ready to shock the Senshi of the red planet into oblivion.

Mars concentrated. This would be hard... And require much more energy and precision than usual.

"Burning Mandala!" She cried, and the rings of fire cleaved through the electrocuted metal, the cage falling apart. Mars jumped out of the way and fired a Mars Flame Sniper at the Saurian of Electricity. Her attack never made contact, as the Saurian of Fire jumped in the way and absorbed the flames of Mars.

The other three weren't done with the Senshi either, as the Saurian of Iron and Electricity combined their powers to fire a barrage of electrocuted spikes at Rei, with the clear intent of killing her as quickly as possible.

Mars fired a Fire Soul and a Burning Mandala, slowing the spikes down and cleaving through them. "Things are bad..." The Senshi mused while dodging another attack. "I can't see them, I can't hit them... Need to hold on till they come into the open." Yet she didn't know what she would do when they do come out, either.

The Saurian of Hunger, stalking her through the trees, saw his chance and jumped down all of the sudden on Rei, digging his claws deep into the flesh of her back, while he triggered his powers and started to drain her strength. "End of the line, creature," he snarled.

"No way..." Mars hissed through clenched teeth. "Fire Soul Bird!" The Saurian of Hunger may drain her physical strength, but not the control of her mind, disciplined by years and years of training and serving as miko. And now the Priestess carefully directed the raging fire bird at her foe, making it land right on top of him and peck his eyes.

The Saurian howled in pain as his eyes were burned, and he wildly rolled over the floor and trashed with his legs, while his hands were held over his destroyed eyesight. The claws of his left toes managed to hit Mars, tearing through the fabric of her fuku and digging deep into the flesh of her side, drawing blood.

Mars cried and put a hand over her bleeding side. But there wasn't any time to waste. She had to finish her foe... Before he got over his pain and could smell her.

"Mars Flame Sniper!" She fired the burning red arrow at the fallen Saurian's throat, not caring for once that it was a lowly move. The Saurian died almost instantly, but Mars' troubles were far from over.

"Filthy mammal!" the Saurian of Iron snarled in rage. "You'll pay for that!" Knowing his enemy was wounded and could move less fast, he attacked, covering his hands with gloves of steel that ended with giant sickles for claws. Armed with these he charged, and when Mars fired another one of her attacks, he used a wall of metal to protect himself. Once up close, he lashed out with his deadly hands, and though Rei attempted to dodge, he still managed to slash open one of her legs.

Mars tripped and fell, the pain in her leg too much for her to remain on her feet. "Fire Soul!" She fired at the Saurian from close distance, hoping he won't have time to shield himself from her fire. And even if he did... "Burning Mandala!"

Indeed the Saurian didn't have the time to shield himself, and he was badly burned, but still remained conscious an on his feet, and without hesitation rammed his sickle hands into Rei's flesh as deep as he could.

Mars put her hand over the Saurian's face, covering his eyes. "Burning Mandala." She whispered, not able to talk from the pain.

Another Saurian fell dead, but Mars had bought her victory with considerable pain, and the Saurian's sickles were still buried deep within her flesh. And now that their brother was dead, the remaining two Saurians had little qualms about attacking while he was so close, and streams of devouring flames and high voltage electricity soared towards the fallen Senshi.

The said Senshi could only use her Burning Mandala to split the streams and alter their course and a Fire Soul to slow down and deflect the ones still aimed at her. She then sent another Fire Soul Bird to detect her attackers. Only the bird was quickly absorbed by the Fire Saurian, while more lightning was shot into the sky and then rained down on Rei, still trapped under the dead Saurian's body and with his weapons in her body.

"God damn it all..." The miko cursed. She fired Soul after Soul, shooting the lightning bolts like a gunner in a shooting gallery. This prevented her from paying attention to the rest of her surroundings, and suddenly the Saurian of Lighting was at her side, a spear made of electricity in his raised hand. Without hesitation he brought it down, impaling her _and _shocking her at the same time.

Mars gagged, spitting out blood, and couldn't do anything but stare at the Lightning Saurian until the shock faded...

"Still alive?" the reptile muttered once the lance he had impaled her with vanished, shocked entirely into her body. Smirking, he began to create another lance and put a clawed foot on her chest, digging his claws in her flesh. "Then we'll just have to do something about that then, no?"

"No..." Sailor Mars thought. "No... I can't die now... Come on, body... move..." She concentrated all her willpower to move her hand. She did it, her fingers twitched.

Death was approaching. And Mars tried her best not to let it claim her.

"Bur... ning... Ma... n... dala..." Her paralyzed lips whispered. A single ring of fire flew from her right hand...

Right under the Saurian's tunic. It wasn't intentional, it was just the way her hand was positioned on the ground. The reptile's eyes widened and he howled in pain and rage as a very delicate area of his body was sliced and burned. He fell to his knees, clutching his crotch, cursing and snarling.

"Serves him right..." Mars thought. Then she blushed crimson red. "Oh gods..." Then mentally slapped herself. "Rei, stop thinking about it... Try to get control over your body... Ommmm... Clear your mind, clear your mind... Ommmm..." Sailor Mars closed her eyes and reached out to every last bit of her body, observing it and commanding it to move again.

The Saurian of Lightning spat out blood, his body mad with pain. But if he was to die, he'd take this blasted woman that had crippled him with him! Summoning his lasts bits of strength, he threw himself on her and bit her, first in her shoulder, breaking the bone, then in her breast, in her wounded side. The screams of pain and the taste of blood spurred him on, and he raised his head, ready to rip her throat to shreds with his teeth.

Mars' hands closed around his throat. The self-discipline and self-control of the Shinto Priestess worked. "Burning Mandala!"

This time, it wasn't a lonely ring of fire, but a full-strength attack. The head was cleaved from the body and the Senshi threw it back over her head, closing her eyes and turning away, holding her breath until the Saurian dropped on the ground. She was lucky her fire burned the wound close right away, else she'd be bathing in blood right now.

Suddenly she felt a hand close around her throat, and she was lifted up from the ground, claws digging in her neck. The Saurian of Iron's sickles were still in her, and as she was lifted up from the ground, the sickles were dragged down by gravity, further opening the wounds. She felt the hand around her throat heat up. The Saurian of Fire snarled down at her, his face twisted by anger.

Rei tried not to let her eyes roll and her consciousness fade from pain, and looked the Saurian straight into the eyes, as if challenging him. "Come on, kill me." She seemed to tauntingly say with her eyes.

In response, he dug his claws in her stomach and twisted them.

The Senshi just smirked, her mind numb with pain, and dug two fingers of each of her hand into his eyes. She wasn't afraid to choke just yet, various techniques of breathing were keys to meditation. She just had to make him let go...

To her surprise, the Saurian laughed. "I don't need my eyes to see," he whispered, setting her fingers aflame with the hottest flames. "And the damage, ah, nothing that cannot be healed… Unfortunate they cannot heal you when dead." Snarling, he dug his teeth into her other shoulder, while his hand around her throat was set aflame. "I can see all your moves… By the heat of your body… Which will soon grow cold… very cold."

"Curse you..." She wanted to say, but spared her breath. If only he let go... Just for a moment... To catch a breath with her incredibly burnt throat...

She jerked her legs up and pushed both her high-heeled shoes straight into the Saurian's groin. He snarled in pain and fell to his knees, but kept his grip on her throat. All damaged he received on his body, it could be healed. He just had to kill her.

Mars gasped and took a deep breath now that the Saurian wasn't holding her off the ground. Now she'll hold on for a few more minutes, even if he burns her throat. She put both her hands around his, almost touching the searing flames and trying to make them bend to her will. Her enemy growled as he felt what she was trying to do, but his own wounded state made it impossible for him to try and do something else. He'd just have to overpower her will and seize utmost control over his own powers of flame. Anything else would be humiliating.

The struggle for life turned into a struggle of willpower. Mars knew that once she masters even one small flame on the Saurian's hand, controlling the entire Saurian's fire will be easy. That's why she struggled, entering a deep trance caused both by the lack of air and her spirit powers.

The Saurian's blinded eyes widened in shock as he felt control over his flames slipping. It was just a small flame, but it already began to expand. More and more of his own fire no longer wished to obey him. "This can't be…" he ragged. "I… I am a Saurian of Fire… I can't… loose control over my own element!"

Mars' eyes flew open, looking empty but with an inner fire burning deep within. Her voice echoed in the Saurians mind, backed up by a much more powerful voice that sounded deep and roaring like a wildfire.

"Your power resides within your body. My power is the Fire of a whole Planet. Your power is a tiny ember, my power is an Inferno. You are a Saurian of Fire, I am THE Fire. I am Fire, Fire is me." And with those words, Hino Rei, Soldier of Flame, Princess of Mars took complete control over his power and extinguished it in one strong blow.

With his very powers extinguished by the Senshi of Mars, the Saurian was back to a normal powerless reptile, and incredibly weakened, to the point that his powerless body could not withstand the strain of the loss and the exhaustion caused by the wounds. His heart collapsed under the state of his body, and he fell dead to the floor of the shrine.

Rei was lifted up from the ground suddenly by flames that sprang from her body, the fires turning blue like the legendary flames of a Phoenix. They gave off no heat, but had a regenerative effect, and as the Senshi was lowered to the ground, the worst of the deadly wounds she achieved in battle were healed enough for them to no longer put her life in danger. Once she was no longer in danger of dying, the flames faded, and her eyes and mind returned to normal. Immediately, the Senshi of Mars fell unconscious.

Two girls sat on the arc at the entrance to the Hikawa Shrine. They looked completely identical, save for the colour of their uniforms – one purple, one red.

"Think we should have interfered?" One asked.

"There was no need, and you know it." The other one replied. "She'll make a good Priestess."

With those words, the girls turned back into crows.

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**Next chapter: The third aftermath!**

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**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Thanks for the review! And you're right about the Saurians, and when I realized that, I decided to throw Vulcan and family in here, to show that not all of them are beyond reason. You can expect to see them more often. And I'm glad you liked Angonce's attack. I have to be honest I was a bit nervous when I wrote it, since most people might see the Great Beings as geniuses only, not as powerful figures with might no less great than their intellect. Thanks again for reviewing!


	71. The third aftermath

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**71. The third aftermath**

"I smell blood and burning flesh," Traveller growled as she and Setsuna hurried up the stairs of the Hikawa shrine. They had teleported to Usagi's street, and from there Setsuna had known the way to Rei's shrine on foot, and they'd ran. "I don't know Rei-san's scent very well, so I can't tell if it's her blood…"

"That's bad..." Setsuna said grimly. "Means she was ambushed... all alone." She ran up the stairs even faster. "And didn't answer her communicator... It probably was damaged."

"We'd better hurry then!" Traveller grabbed Setsuna's hand and warped them both to the top of the stairs.

As soon as the two women arrived, they were greeted by the blue fire of the Phoenix as it healed Rei and put her back on the ground. The girl's wounds, while no longer lethal, looked horrifying, covered her body and were bleeding. But what horrified them even more were the mutilated bodies of the Saurians.

Farthest from them lay a Saurian of Hunger, his face burnt, his eyes missing, his throat pierced through by a no longer existent arrow. Closer to them, and to Rei, lay two Saurian bodies, strangely close to each other. One body, belonging to the Saurian of Iron, was burnt all over and its face was completely burned away and cut. The second body looked even scarier. It was missing its head, a burn mark, not covered by the burned away tunic, was visible between the dead Saurian of Electricity's legs. Finally, next to Rei lay a Saurian of Fire. He was intact and not burned, aside from his missing eyes...

Traveller shivered. "What a gruesome battle this must have been…" she whispered.

"Mars is not the Red Planet, the Bloody Planet for nothing..." Setsuna whispered, shocked. "Mars always symbolized War..." She gulped. "But Rei... Never thought... her... capable of it..."

The Saurian of Teleportation kneeled down next to the fallen Senshi and dragged her away from the dead, mutilated bodies. "She took our advice of doing everything in order to win quite literally," Ignika's oldest sister sighed with disapproval. "How disgustingly brutal. And it cost her dearly. I wonder how she healed these wounds on her own. They'd be fatal if they hadn't been closed already. But still, she needs healing fast."

"She shouldn't be capable of healing at all..." Setsuna muttered, taking out her communicator. "Setsuna speaking, we're at Rei's place. She is severely wounded, we need Ignika here, and fast."

"Roger. I'll bring him..." Usagi's voice came, but was interrupted by Setsuna again.

"Don't bring Small Lady with you!" The Senshi of Time commanded with slight panic in her voice. "This isn't a sight for her to see..."

"Umm... Alright..." Usagi replied, nervous and scared, and shut her communicator off.

Traveller gently shook the Senshi of Mars, trying to get her to wake up. "Should we bring her somewhere else, perhaps, Setsuna?" she wondered aloud. Then she glanced at the mutilated Saurian corpses and snorted. "And what about those bodies?"

"Let Ignika come, he'll heal her and do something... Decay them to nothing or something." Setsuna muttered. Her mind was racing. How? Why? Had she been like that in the past?

The Saurian of Teleportation was getting impatient and slapped Rei across the cheek. "Hey, bloodthirsty Senshi, wake up and tell us what happened here!"

Rei groaned and slowly opened her eyes. "Traveller...?" She whispered.

"Yes, me, and Setsuna's here as well. We've alerted the others, Ignika's on his way to heal you," the older woman replied. She helped the raven-haired Senshi to sit up and steadied her. "And you have some explaining to do."

Rei sighed. "Explain what? I was fighting for my life and for the life of my grandfather..." She glanced over Traveller's shoulder at the Shrine. "The Shrine is not even damaged..."

Setsuna raised her eyebrow. That didn't sound like Rei... To speak so calmly about mutilating living beings.

"Don't know if you've noticed," the disguised reptile snorted. "But I personally don't call _carnage_ fighting. I call it a bloodfest."

Rei frowned. "I'd like to have had a cleaner battle... But there were four of them against me and that Saurian of Fire dispelled all my long-range attacks." She glared in Traveller's eyes. "I don't have a weapon for close combat. All I have is my Fire powers... Which I used from close distance, for it was the only chance for the kill." She snorted, looking mad again. "When it came to close combat... That bastard..." She pointed at the Hunger Saurian. "Attacked me from behind and dug his claws in me to drain my strength. The only attack that could get behind his back was a Fire Soul Bird. And birds have sharp beaks..." Rei smirked sadly. "That bastard..." She pointed at the Saurian of Iron. "Pinned me down to the ground with his iron sickles. And got a Burning Mandala in his face. That bastard..."

Pointing at the Saurian of Electricity, Rei stuttered and gulped and continued in a low voice. "That was accidental. He paralyzed me... Despite that, I managed to fire one Mandala ring... And my hand was just positioned so it flew there..." Rei blushed. "After that he went berserk, got on top of me, bit me everywhere and was about to bite my throat. I made my move before he could. And that bastard..." She pointed at the Saurian of Fire. "Lifted me off the ground and choked me. I was trying to make him let go, for I couldn't say any incantation."

"So you thought, 'oh, I'll just slice of their heads and cocks while I'm at it'? Surely you could have some less… barbaric ways to dispatch your enemies up close?" shaking her head, she turned to her symbiosis partner. "Setsuna, help me out here!"

"Actually... With her array of attacks..." Setsuna shook her head. "I can't imagine how she could have survived at all. Whether there was another way or not... We'll have to re-watch the battle at the Time Gates for that..."

"My element is FIRE. Fire BURNS." Rei explained angrily. "In my case, it's also able to slice and pierce. But it always burns. Especially from up close. There is no clean way of damaging enemies with fire."

Later she would regret her words, later she will clutch her head in horror of what she had done, the images would haunt her in her nightmares, but here, but now, she was incredibly tired from winning the greatest battle of her life, and annoyed by having to justify her behaviour.

Annoyed, Traveller stood up and left Rei to her own devices. "I'll be downstairs waiting for the others. I don't feel much for spending time with a bloodthirsty killer who doesn't allow her enemies' souls to pass on, even if they were her enemies." The Saurian woman made to activate her powers and vanish.

At those words, Rei's eyes went wide and her heart and soul were gripped by cold. "Souls?" She asked absentmindedly. "Souls..." Rei grabbed her hair, turned to her side and shut her eyes tight. "Oh God..." She thought. "I am a Priestess... What have I done? Spirits, spirits, forgive me..."

"Saurians believe that a Saurian who dies without his head can never find rest…" Traveller whispered quietly, not looking at the Senshi of Fire. "It is an old belief, but when a Saurian dies, so the elders say, they have to look death in the eye before truly passing on… Only when death sees them, will he take them up to the sky and make their spirit a star to shine forever. A Saurian without his head or without his eyes… cannot see death, and will never be freed from his dead body. Death will never come for him or her."

"I... I..." Rei tried to say something, but failed, realization taking its toll at her. Tears streamed from her eyes, and soon she was sobbing quietly, using all her self-control not to wail loudly.

"Here, the dead are guided to the afterlife differently..." Setsuna explained quietly. "Rei is a Priestess, one of the people who pray for our kind... She'll say all the necessary prayers and do the rituals to let them pass to the spirit world. She'll do it once she recovers from shock." She said confidently.

"A Saurian can't leave his body until he sees death," Traveller said sternly and sharply. "We should pray that Ignika can do something for them. Even if they were our enemies. Even if they tried to kill you, Rei-san. Now they are dead, and such things like friend and foe have lost all meaning. There is only death once your life has ended, and death discriminates none. So we should not do so either. Just because they tried to kill us, does not mean we should leave them to be forever trapped in their decaying bodies, never to rest."

Rei just kept sobbing.

"A human soul leaves the body no matter how damaged it is..." Setsuna said. "Whether it leaves for the spirit world or remains on Earth to wander depends on whether it was prayed for..."

Traveller laughed bitterly. "And are those…" she pointed at the corpses. "Humans?" She let out a deep sigh and knelt down next to Rei, pulling the Senshi in an embrace. "But I'm losing sight of my priorities… We should be glad you are still alive, Rei-san… You alone against four Saurians, it's impressive you survived." She caressed through the black locks of the priestess. "I'm sorry for what I said. It was out of place, I was just… shocked by the brutality of this fight. Saurians don't fight like that usually. We try to make every wound lethal or fatal, not mutilate our foes… But you lived, that's the most important. Your friends will be glad."

"I... I... don't know... why I did it... myself..." Rei sobbed. "I..." She couldn't explain her frenzy in words. During this battle, all her fear, feelings and morals went silent... Leaving only her mind and the skill to kill. The trance in the end was unexplainable... Now it all came back.

"Say nothing anymore, I was the one who mistreated you, forgive me," Traveller whispered apologetically. She looked uncertainly at Setsuna, wondering if she'd truly said unsuitable words moments before.

Setsuna just shook her head. "Each has his own truth..." She sighed. Then looked up to the sky, where a white dot was already visible in the distance. Eternal Sailor Moon was arriving.

Ignika dropped down from her grasp and landed like a cat on his feet on the ground. He quickly got up, dusted himself off and looked around. "Setsuna-san, sister, Rei-san, are you alright?" he asked, worry obvious in his voice. Then he saw the dead Saurian corpses and his stomach nearly twisted. Even though he had seen Crast, the highest level of horror, this was still not a pretty sight. "What happened here?"

"I..." Rei tried to explain, but couldn't, and continued to cry.

"Rei, apparently, went berserk..." Setsuna explained, uncertainty in her words and voice.

"No kidding…" Ignika muttered. Then he shrugged. "I'll ensure their passage to the stars later. First I've got to heal you, Rei-san. You look terrible. Are you in a lot of pain? Where does it hurt most?" The Child of Life kneeled down next to the Senshi of Mars and began to examine her. Traveller moved a bit to give her little brother the room she needed, relieved he was so casual about the corpses. Apparently he could do something about them then, regardless of them being no longer 'living' beings.

"Dunno where most..." Rei muttered, hiccupping. At least Ignika didn't go for condemning her right away... But is there any forgiveness for what she had done? "Fasting..." She decided in her mind. "Fast and pray for hours... For thirty days..."

"Why are you crying, Rei-san?" the white-haired boy wondered while he bathed her in his elemental powers, warmly nursing her back to full health. "By the way, sister," he then said to Traveller. "You'll never guess what happened! I've become an Elemental!"

Traveller's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. She was speechless.

"Elemental?" Setsuna asked.

"Oh, I guess you don't know that yet, my friend," the Saurian of Teleportation answered. "Forgive us for not informing you, but Elementals are so rare, we didn't see the need to tell you about it…" Traveller paused for a moment and rubbed her chin, thinking of how to best explain. "Elementals are Saurians who possess elemental powers, like Life or Fire, and have mastered that power to such a high degree that they can turn _themselves_ into their element. That is a huge advantage, an enormous one even, as all physical attacks or attacks with weapons are rendered completely useless. No matter the damage, Elementals can simply rebuild their body with their element. Their only weakness is mental attacks, or the natural enemy of their power."

"I see..." Setsuna said thoughtfully. She hadn't heard of such a power before. No Senshi would be able to perform that.

And Rei thought: "My trance... Being Fire... Wasn't it...?" Then shook her head. "No. It was more like being possessed..."

"I did it on pure accident, though," Ignika admitted sheepishly. "I have no idea how to do it again… I can't control it…" The boy then shrugged, and rubbed a hand over Rei's arm, testing the new skin he'd grown to heal her wounds. "Well, there, all healed up, I think, Rei-san. Or does it still hurt anywhere?"

Rei shook her head. "No." Even if it did, she deserved that pain.

Eternal Sailor Moon gracefully descended from heavens. "Sorry, was informing everyone that the danger has passed and they may not hurry..." But her cheerful tone faded as soon as she saw just _what_ the battlefield looked like. Her eyes widened, she clasped both her hands to her mouth and looked at Rei in disbelief.

Ignika got to his feet again and ignored Sailor Moon's look of disbelief or Rei's feelings of guilt. He sighed and shook his head, then went over to the part of the shrine where the corpses laid. "I'll better take care of them now, so they can look death in the eye before it's too late to do so." He glanced over his shoulder at the priestess. "Don't cry anymore, Rei-san, they'll be fine. Ehm, as fine as dead people can be, that is."

Rei obeyed and forced herself to stop crying, even though it didn't ease her inner pain one bit.

"And you shouldn't feel bad either," Ignika said without looking at her, too busy restoring the dead bodies to a proper state. "You did nothing wrong. It was a fight, everything is allowed. And as long as I exist, even an aftermath like this means nothing. You committed no crime, Rei-san."

Traveller nodded quietly. "He's right…" she whispered, looking down at her feet. "I should have realized that as well, and not condemn and attack you like I did. It was completely unreasonable of me… I was just so shocked you Senshi could fight like _this_… Forgive me, Rei-san. I had no right."

"B-b-b-but..." Usagi stuttered, her lip quivering and her eyes still wide. "We _can't_... We can't fight like this!" She cried. She ran up to Rei and started shaking her. "Why? Why, Rei? What happened?"

And all Rei could do was look away and stay silent. "I don't know..." She whispered.

"We fight to win, Usagi-san," Ignika said calmly. He had restored all bodies to normal, now placed next to each other, and made a bow for them. Now they could see death in the eye and move on to the stars.

Rei undid her transformation, somehow ending up in her Miko clothes again instead of normal. She went over to the Saurians, knelt next to them and started praying. She prayed quietly, but passionately, whispering prayers for safe journey to the afterlife and for their spirits' forgiveness. But even if she sat there all night, it wouldn't ease her guilt. No, it required much more than a few hours of praying...

Traveller stretched her back and arms. "Well then," she said, yawning. "That's that. I wonder what's keeping the others so long… I'm tired and want to go home, truth to be told."

As if on cue, the rest of the Outer Senshi arrived at the shrine.

"How's the situation?" Haruka asked, not wasting time on greetings.

Setsuna shook her head. "You'd better not know." She sighed. "But everything is alright now. And with you?"

Haruka nodded. "Everything is alright, too."

"We've had the most extraordinary battle of our life." Hotaru said, smiling.

"Oh?" Ignika wondered. As far as he was concerned, the battle he had had with Usagi and Chibiusa against the sand Elemental had been extraordinary enough.

"Yes," the Senshi of Ruin nodded, still smiling. She proceeded to then give the assembled group a quick retelling of what had happened, leaving out none of the important details. She told about the other Saurian family, Vulcan's incredible ability to become magma – he was an Elemental, Ignika and Traveller quickly explained after hearing that – and Saturn's gigantic battle of destruction with him, the strange aftermath of the battle, master Angonce's appearance and his display of sanity-shattering great power.

Ignika and Traveller were simply speechless, and they shared glances, looking from Saturn's face to Uranus' to Neptune's. "And they… they're alive? Master Angonce is sheltering them?" Ignika stammered, disbelief in his voice and eyes.

"Yes," Hotaru answered with a happy smile.

"They didn't want to fight? They weren't out to destroy my little brother?" Traveller muttered, just as astonished as Ignika was.

"Nope."

Brother and sister looked at each other again, not believing their ears. Immediately the same thought welled up in their minds at the same time: they had to meet these other Saurians, Saurians who just wanted a peaceful life, just like they did.

Usagi smiled broadly. "I'm glad it turned out like this. Sparing innocent lives is always good."

Setsuna nodded. "It's good that you could avoid killing them. Killing reasonable but desperate foes is always painful."

And Rei thought, interrupting her prayers for a moment: "Too bad such Saurians are rare... These four didn't even try to reason... and were set on killing me." Then continued her prayers, not looking at anybody.

"Even amongst our race there are those who hunger for power, and aspire to ascend to the level of Immoral Ones to gain more power…" Traveller said with a sigh. "Rumour has it that's pretty much how the first Immoral One came to exist: a Saurian unsatisfied with the power bestowed upon him by the Great Beings, who longed for more and would resort to anything, even immorality…"

Rei raised her head. "These four were so. They said it themselves they'd like to join the ranks of Phantoka."

"Well, good for them that they're dead now, then," Ignika muttered quietly. "At least now they're free from such thoughts."

Rei just sighed and continued praying.

A few moments later, two new figures joined the group. It was Chameleon and Makoto, looking well and relatively unharmed. Chameleon had several minor wounds, while Makoto got a few nasty cuts and was supporting her left arm.

Catching Ignika's worried glance, Makoto smiled sheepishly and said: "I think I broke it... Anyway, how did you guys get through?" She asked.

"Me and my sister are fine," Ignika replied while he quickly began fussing over the Senshi of Lightning, forcing her to sit down so he could examine her wounds and start treating them with his powers. "Chibiusa-san and Usagi-san had some wounds I healed, Setsuna-san was unharmed, and Rei-san nearly killed. I don't know about the others."

"Our battle went relatively well, too, despite being up against six opponents," Chameleon said while he sat down next to Makoto and smiled at her. "If it hadn't been for that Saurian of Shattering hitting her arm when she dealt the final blow, Makoto would have been unharmed, too."

"Well, you're not exactly unharmed yourself..." Makoto smiled shyly at him.

"Meh, I've suffered worse," the Saurian of Chameleon replied with a shrug, as if nothing had happened.

"True that, not as bad as Gravitas that one time long ago, but my heart still races when I think back to that time where you were impaled on the ceiling of a cave by stalactites," the Child of Life muttered while he focussed his healing energies on Makoto's shattered arm bones.

Makoto gasped and gave a start. "You were?" She asked, wide-eyed.

Chameleon stuck out his tongue. "Once. Long ago."

The Senshi of Jupiter frowned and sighed. "Must have looked horrible... Well, at least there are no caves here, all the ceilings are flat." She smiled gently.

"Not as horrible as Gravitas with weapons sticking through her body everywhere," Ignika's only brother whispered very quietly, barely audible. He clasped in his hands and shrugged again, loudly saying, in the hope to divert the attention from what he had just said: "Ah what, we're alive, that's all that matters! And we won, that's a nice bonus!"

"I guess..." Rei sighed. She was about to continue to pray, when she heard something. She raised her hand to mention to everyone to stay silent.

The Senshi of Mars listened closely and gasped as she saw a light in one of the rooms. "Grandpa woke up! Traveller, get everybody out of here!"

"Right," Traveller agreed, understanding the situation. "Everybody, link hands, then link hands with me so I can teleport us all in one go. It'll be tricky, but I'll have to try."

Makoto got up to her feet and quickly counted the Senshi. Then smiled. "We don't have to. Teleport the Saurians, we'll follow, right, girls?" She winked at her fellow Senshi.

"Right." Haruka nodded and looked at Rei, who immediately got to her feet and transformed.

Setsuna smiled and explained: "We Senshi have a group teleport power, you see."

Traveller raised an eyebrow. "And you failed to inform me of this because?" she grumbled, even as she linked hands with Ignika and Chameleon. She was about to use her power, when the last two groups, Ami and Gravitas and Nightmare with Minako arrived together on the scene, out of breath except for the two Saurians.

Haruka immediately went over to them and dragged the two Senshi into the circle, briefly explaining the situation. "Rei's grandpa woke up, we're teleporting out of here before he can notice."

"Umm... Okay..." Minako said. "But what about those bodies on the ground?"

Ignika sighed and waved his hand, turning the four dead bodies into golden feathers that were blown away by the wind. "There, problem solved. Can we go now?"

"Yes we can." Usagi said as they all stood in a circle. "All together now..."

"Sailor Teleport!" They cried in unison and vanished in a flash of light.

"Why do they always have to cry out the name of their attack or spell, I wonder?" Traveller muttered, shaking her head, before she triggered her own power of teleportation and took herself and her family away from the Hikawa shrine, back to the house of the Outer Senshi.

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**Next chapter: Senshi musings!**

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**Review replies:**

James Birdsong: Glad you think it's good.

Bin82501: I'm happy you love it, and I hope you enjoy further chapters.

SoulLoss: Well, I can't say I disagree about the canon fights in Sailor Moon, since most were just one attack or spell able to finish the job, or the Senshi get their butt kicked (or worse, get killed) and Sailor Moon saves the day. But that's also because of the kind of enemy the Senshi used to face before. As we've established waaay back in the beginning, Saurians aren't mindless, they don't rely on long distance attacks and they are deadly in close combat, which the Senshi suck at. It does make for interesting battles to write. =) And thanks for the correction, I appreciate it. See you around. =)


	72. Senshi musings

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**72. ****Senshi musings**

"Alright, tea is ready." Michiru said, bringing teapots to the living room of the Outer Senshi mansion. "Help yourselves, girls, I'll bring coffee in a minute."

Makoto and Setsuna immediately took the job of pouring tea for everybody. Since it was most likely too late to get a good night's sleep anyway, the girls decided not to go home yet, but instead spend some time at the Outers' mansion. They definitely had gone through a lot recently, and had a lot to discuss.

The Saurian family had withdrawn to the guestroom upstairs, wanting some private time for themselves. They also had some things to discuss with one another, and now that they were all together, took the time to do so, granting the Senshi a moment of privacy amongst themselves, too.

Michiru came back with the coffee, and for a few minutes the Senshi just sat calmly, drinking tea and chatting a bit amongst themselves. But then Haruka asked:

"Say, Setsuna... Where have you and Ami been? Truth to be told, we were quite worried when three of our friends wouldn't answer the communicator."

Setsuna put her cup down and said: "Right. I had no opportunity to warn you ahead... Ami, Gravitas, Traveller and I were at Master Angonce's residence."

There was a collective sharp intake of breath as all Senshi looked at their two friends, awe and perhaps a bit of envy shining in their eyes. Each and every one of them remembered well how beautiful the mansion of the Great Being had been, and all longed to be there again, if only one more time. The other three Outer Senshi had perhaps a little less envy than the rest of the Inners, as they had been graced by Angonce's presence at the end of the battle, and had even seen a glimpse of the divinity's might in battle.

Regardless, every girl in the room looked at Setsuna and Ami longingly, wanting them to explain what they had been doing there, or how they had went to that place or even be allowed to enter.

"I won't tell you the reason me and Traveller needed an audience..." Setsuna sipped from her coffee. "It's not important yet. The reason we took Ami and Gravitas with us, though, was to conduct a research on symbiosis."

The girls looked at each other. "And... How did it go?" Minako asked.

"Well, master Angonce had already done a lot of research on his own even before we came," Ami replied quietly, thinking back to the time spent in the glorious deity's presence and in his amazing laboratory. "We were given the honour to visit his laboratory, and there we where allowed to partake in his tests… He scanned our bodies, one pair at the time, both with holding hands and without, then did the same for our minds. From that, we learned that to activate symbiosis, we need to be in direct physical contact with each other, and unify our minds, giving the command to use the symbiosis power at the same time, as if we were just one mind, not two."

"That's how it is, huh?" Minako said, thinking and comparing what she learned to the way she and Nightmare activated symbiosis in battle. Such an explanation seemed to fit...

Makoto raised her eyebrow. "Minako-chan, you seem unusually quiet. Come on, what is it?" She smiled at her friend.

"Ah..." Minako snapped out of her thoughts. "Well... Concerning symbiosis..." She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, feeling a bit nervous. She hadn't told anybody about it yet... "I've had symbiosis with Nightmare."

"WHAT?" came the united cry from nine Senshi's throats, as all, even Setsuna, stared at the blonde Senshi of Venus with their jaws on the floor and eyes bulging out of their sockets. That there would be other symbiosis pairs, well, that went without saying, for all of them, but none had expected Minako to have symbiosis with _Nightmare_ of all people!

Minako sighed and set down her teacup, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. She then told her friends everything that happened two days ago. After Nightmare's outburst about teamwork at the last meeting, she had arranged a match of Nightmare on her own against the rest of the volleyball team to prove why teamwork was needed. Minako told of the disastrous results of that 'plan' of hers, and went on to inform her friends of the terror Nightmare had unleashed after that.

As she spoke, the other Senshi were quiet, their expressions varying from girl to girl, and Minako herself went back in memories, reliving them vividly. She remembered well the fear and panic caused by one immortal, hurt girl, the fear she herself had felt during the battle, the panic when Nightmare threatened an innocent bystander, the total collapse of Nightmare's self-restraint and explosion of her eons of hurt and pain. She told about and felt the wounds inflicted upon her by the disguised Saurian of Fear, the cries of anguish and shouts of anger and hatred coming from that same girl, felt the katana being rammed through her stomach. Minako told of how Nightmare had collapsed after that, crying like the frightened young girl she really was underneath, and how she had hugged her and offered her comfort despite being near death herself.

"And that's when it happened," Minako muttered. "When I hugged her, and Nightmare realized and acknowledged I was there for her, she whispered an apology, and our symbiosis just… happened."

"Amazing..." Setsuna whispered.

"That's a mild expression." Haruka added. "Seriously, who could have thought that Nightmare..."

"Indeed." Michiru nodded. "Poor girl..." She frowned.

"Hey, you did really well." Makoto smiled and patted Minako's shoulder. "Standing up against her, really brave of you."

"You don't say!" Usagi looked at Minako with shining eyes. "And showing her kindness, giving compassion... Like a real Senshi of Love!"

"Usagi, she _is_ the real Senshi of Love." Rei said, not missing an opportunity to taunt Usagi. Though her mood had affected the way she said that sentence, and Usagi simply ignored it.

"Gravitas did say something about being a bad sister..." Ami said thoughtfully. "But I had no idea it was this bad."

"Well, with a friend like Minako-chan, Nightmare will get better in no time!" Hotaru said cheerfully, looking at Minako with a look of admiration.

"She already is..." Minako said kindly and warmly, smiling at her friends' approval.

"Hey, we did notice it, didn't we?" Chibiusa chimed in. "After today's battle, Minako and Nightmare were acting so friendly to each other!"

"True." Usagi smiled.

"Speaking of today's battle." Michiru said wanting to attract everybody's attention. "We had a most unusual one today..."

The Senshi of the Depths poured some more tea for herself, then started retelling the events that had transpired that evening. She spared not a detail, and often Hotaru or Haruka added their own version of the facts, or things only they had experienced to it. It was Hotaru, for example, who told about Vulcan, and the struggle of destruction she had had with the powerful Saurian of Magma.

"He was so desperate…" the Senshi of Ruin whispered. "He put so much power in his final attack, for a moment I really was afraid to lose… He wanted to secure the future of his family so badly…"

Haruka nodded. "The others were no less fanatic about protecting each other. They prevented us with all their might to interfere with our Hime's fight…"

They then told the rest of the assembled guardians of the earth about the aftermath of Saturn's battle, how Vulcan had been clinging to life and how his family had forsaken the battle in favour of caring for him. They could have killed them all at any moment, Haruka said, but they just couldn't. Those Saurians were a family just like they were. They cared for each other. Finally, they told about the arrival of Angonce, how the Great Being had praised their decision to stay their hand, and how he had taken the Saurians with him to his mansion, where he would keep them safe until they could return hope should Zyglak ever be defeated.

"If we can defeat him…" Michiru muttered. "For what we saw this evening…" She didn't finish that sentence, still too filled with fearful awe of Angonce's display of power. So, Haruka told it in her place.

Long, heavy silence followed. The battle had been shocking, even though the Senshi felt relieved not all Saurians are bad, but Master Angonce's power... Rendered them all speechless.

The silence was broken by Rei.

"The power of the Great Beings is immense and unimaginable, true." The priestess, who had been silent the entire evening, spoke. Her words were calm and quiet, but did sound convincing. "However... You caught a mere glimpse of his power. Master Angonce knows it thoroughly, from the depths to the borders. Likewise, he knows what the combined power of all the Great Beings but one means... Yet... If he says that we do have a chance of winning, then it is so. He cannot lie and wouldn't give us false hope. That's why it's too early to give up and despair."

"Wish that I would not speak ill of him…" Setsuna muttered. "But perhaps master Angonce himself is giving even himself false hope, fuelled by desperation and guilt."

Ami frowned. "Well... He is a scientist greater than all the Earth's geniuses combined... I don't think he would chase after false hopes..."

Makoto nodded. "Besides, if there was no hope of defeating Zyglak... He could have just taken Ignika and family and fled to another dimension like his kind abandoned Voya... Yet he's still here."

"Maybe because he knows that there's no chance of running?" Chibiusa muttered, looking around the group uncertainly, playing idly with the sword Ignika had given her in her hands.

"Maybe we will try to be optimistic?" Minako suggested. "Otherwise there's no point in fighting at all."

"Being _realistic_ doesn't hurt, either, Mina-chan," Rei said quietly.

"Since when have we won by being realistic, Rei?" Minako retorted.

"These fights are unlike any we have had before, though," came the voice of the Senshi of Pluto. Setsuna crossed her arms and thought back to all the battles they had fought yet so far with the Saurian invaders. "In just these few battles, we have suffered far worse injuries and wounds than in most of our battles before. These enemies… They don't want to take our Pure Hearts, our Sailor Crystals, our energy… They want to kill us, and the powers they have allow them ways to try and achieve that that we have never been up against before ever in our entire history as Senshi." She let out a deep sigh and rubbed her temples.

Minako smiled. "Well, we're improving, too. Hasn't everyone learned to control their powers better since the Saurians came?" She then gave a laugh. "With that awesome training Nightmare put me through, I can now fire two Shocks at once, and make homing blasts as well, not to mention modifying my Love Me Chain, and within such a short time! Seriously, we have a huge potential."

"Not all of us have been trained so extensively," Hotaru said, blushing a bit. "I'm still only good for barriers if space is too limited…"

"But that's a limit of your power, not your control, isn't it?" Chibiusa said. "Besides, barriers are extremely useful in combat. We sure could have used some in our fight..."

"As long as there's no Immoral One around to shred said barriers," Setsuna noted dryly, thinking back to how Avsa had destroyed her barrier along with Saturn's in that battle.

"That is true..." Ami said. "But we have symbiosis. It's a whole different type of power, there's a whole unexplored field of using it, and you've seen its power... Know its potential power."

"Yes, it's an amazing power," Minako agreed cheerfully and with a smile. "For that matter, it's amazing fighting together with Ignika and his family, too. They have so much experience and knowledge about the enemy, that helps a lot!"

Makoto nodded. "Can't disagree with that. I like fighting with Chameleon. Invisible, but always ready to appear by your side to help."

"True." Setsuna nodded. "It's pretty much the same with me and Traveller. Only I _can_ actually see her." She chuckled. "And teleporting together to confuse enemies is fun."

"I see... Gravitas isn't like this." Ami said. "She's... Kind of like the shield she carries. Always around to shield and protect you."

Minako smiled. "Nightmare is the same. Only not like a shield, but like a sword. Really, you should see her fight! She's plain awesome!" She exclaimed, admiring her new 'sister'.

"The whole family protects us." Usagi concluded. "Ignika is like all of them."

"Wish their family was bigger so Rei could have had a partner, too," Ami sighed, feeling very sorry for what had happened to the priestess, and she wished strongly she had been there to help, so it could have been avoided that Rei had to fight as brutal as she had…

Rei bowed her head and stayed silent.

Usagi placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Maybe we should prevent any of us being alone again as long as this fight is ongoing?"

"As long as it's possible..." Rei put her hand over her friend's. "By the way, I told grandpa I'm sleeping at yours today..."

Chibiusa let out a mock-exasperated sigh. "Oi, oi, where are we going to put her? We're already stuffed."

Rei smiled weakly. "Doesn't matter..."

Usagi pulled her black-haired friend in a strong hug. "Don't listen to the brat, Rei, of course you're welcome!" She stuck out her tongue at her future daughter.

Rei hugged the future Queen back. It made her feel better, if only a bit.

Makoto shared a glance with just as confused Minako: "Why so angsty, Rei-chan? What's wrong?" She asked.

Setsuna turned grim. "Believe me, you're better off not knowing."

"Speaking of not knowing," Usagi said, trying to change the subject. "I wonder what our Saurian friends are doing?"

* * *

**Next chapter: Family talk!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Bin82501: I think it's a valid question, too. =p Though the explanation could be that the Senshi's attacks are magic spells and need an incantation in order to work. I don't know if this is actually made clear anywhere in manga or anime. I also agree that previous chapter was very interesting to write. I like focussing on the characters a lot, because they're so interesting to work with, and putting them in new situations like Rei was is both a challenge and fun for me. And thanks for reminding me of Venus. With Minako being so bubbly and sunny, it's easy to forget what role Sailor Venus has amongst the Senshi and where she stands compared to the Princess. I'll try and make sure it appears somewhere down the line. Thanks for the review!


	73. Family talk

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**73. Family talk**

While the Senshi were downstairs discussing their things with some tea and coffee, the Saurian family had retreated upstairs, in the room Traveller and Ignika were allowed to occupy. The Child of Life and his sister by blood were sitting on the edge of the bed, while Chameleon was seated atop the low wardrobe in the room, and Gravitas and Nightmare sat relatively close together with their backs against the wall. Every now and then, one of them grabbed a cookie from the plate Ignika had smuggled out of the kitchen.

They had been discussing the events of that evening as well, together with what Traveller and Gravitas had done in Angonce laboratory that day. During it all, however, Gravitas had been quiet most of the time, observing her sister. There was something not quite right with her, the girl thought. Finally, she couldn't help herself anymore. She had to know.

"Alright, sister," she said sharply. "What is wrong?"

Nightmare nearly choked on her cookie. Nevertheless, she raised her eyebrow and asked: "Wrong? Nothing is wrong, sister." Inside, she felt a bit warm, though, for Gravitas didn't often address her as 'sister'.

"You've been unusually quiet," Gravitas persisted, with her usual aloof, disinterested, emotionless voice.

"And," Chameleon chimed in. "You haven't been insulting me as much as usual. That's just weird. Are you sick or something, sis?"

"No, I'm not sick..." The Saurian of Fear retorted, though not nearly as sharp as she intended. She remembered well that Minako, her 'onee-chan', wanted her to talk to her family about this, but inside she felt a bit insecure.

Ignika, raising an eyebrow as he too sensed that she was not her usual self when he briefly tested her mind, leaned a bit closer, curiosity in his eyes. "Nevertheless, Nightmare, something is up. Common, can't you tell us what it is?"

Nightmare opened her mouth as if to talk, but closed it. She tried again, but just couldn't get herself to talk. "Jeez, why is it so hard?" She mentally shouted at herself. "I, ehm… well, you see…" she began, stammering, but quickly stopped herself. The puzzled glances of her family were starting to irritate her. "I HAD SYMBIOSIS WITH MINAKO, OKAY?"

The jaws of all in the room, except for Gravitas and Nightmare herself, of course, hit the floor, and they stared speechlessly at the youngest sister of the family. Gravitas herself merely raised an eyebrow, crossed her arms and looked sideways at her sister by blood.

"How the heck did that happen?" Chameleon wanted to know from atop the wardrobe. The shock had been so great he had nearly tumbled off. "You can't stand that, and I quote: 'Silly brainless love-twit'!"

"I know!" Nightmare snapped. "But it… it was kind of an accident. I tried to kill her, first."

The Saurian of Chameleon let out a deep sigh of relief. "Great Beings, what a relief. For a moment you had me worried here that you had _really_ changed!"

The Saurian of Fear in a human body glared harshly at her oldest brother. "Shut your trap, useless," she spat, making Chameleon laugh.

"She's alright, guys," he told the others with a wink.

"I think we've all noticed that, Chameleon," Traveller noted dryly, crossing her arms as well.

"So how did that happen?" Ignika asked, voicing everybody's question.

"And why did you try to kill her?" Gravitas added, her arms still crossed and her cold dead eyes focussed intensely on her younger sister. She could feel it, through their sisterly bond, that her sister's reasons for attempting to rid herself of the blonde Senshi weren't as simple as she tried to make them out at first glance. There was a deeper reason.

"There was no reason, really," Nightmare answered her sister's question, her shoulders shagging in shame, and she looked at her feet. "She just said something and I… snapped."

"Snapped?" Gravitas echoed emotionlessly.

Nightmare found herself squirming in discomfort under her sister's gaze. "She made me explode, loose control, you know… All those eons of pain, frustration and anger that I've been building up… She just happened to light the fuse and I took it out on her… It's unfair, I know, but I couldn't help it, I couldn't stop it then, anymore… It had to go out…" The young girl took a deep breath to calm herself and steel herself for what was to come, but found it difficult.

"You know she takes me to this game called 'vol ee ball'," the Saurian of Fear continued. "After my outburst about teamwork at the last meeting, she was so bent on teaching me to work together… She just kept going on and on about working with others, relying on others, needing others, taking care of others… And I… Gaah! I just couldn't take it anymore!" Bristling with silent anger as she remembered those moments, the girl let out a low growl of irritation.

"I warned her." Chameleon shrugged. "But she seems to like taking danger head on."

The others stayed silent, not sure what to say. What eons of pain was she talking about?

"I flew into rage," Nightmare admitted. "But I tried to show restraint, and at first I just stormed away, but she had to come after me, and I couldn't think straight anymore. I was so mad, I attacked her on sight. I wanted to kill her. I used my powers on her, on the other humans, on everything!"

Ignika gasped. "You did WHAT?" He asked his sister, his eyes wide and his voice full of disbelief. "But we mustn't let normal humans see our powers!"

"I didn't care!" Nightmare replied without hesitation. "And I still kind of don't. I was beyond reasoning, okay?" She threw her hands up in the air, letting out a deep frustrated sigh. "She changed into that Venus form of her, we fought and I nearly killed her." She paused for a moment, feeling the shocked gazes of the others on her. "Of course she was no match for me! I mean, it's _me_ she was up against!" For a moment she smirked because of the self-praise, but when she remembered the wounds she had inflicted upon her 'sister', that smile dropped right away.

"I slashed her, ran her through, punched, kicked and stomped on her, used my powers on her… All that frustration that had been building up inside of me for all those eons, all the pain, the violent anger… I took it all out on her…" Nightmare sighed again. "Was it fair? Of course not. But I didn't care… life's never fair, so deal with it."

Her family exchanged glances. Eons of frustration... The pain... Did they know about it? This was a side of Nightmare they weren't familiar with.

"Frustration?" Gravitas asked, confused.

"Yes, frustration," Nightmare copied, her jaws clenched together.

"What frustration?" Her sister asked, unaware of what she might unleash.

Nightmare sent a deadly glare at her sister by blood. "Take three guesses, popsicle."

Gravitas just looked at her sister, frowning in confusion. There was it again... Something she had to understand, but couldn't. She looked at her other family members, looking for help. But they just leaned back, shielding themselves from the storm they now knew was coming.

"Frustration coming from YOU!" Nightmare shouted, pointing accusingly at her sister. But then, to everybody's surprise, she proceeded to point it at Ignika. "And you!" And at Traveller. "And you!" And at Chameleon. "AND CERTAINLY YOU!"

"B... but... What did we do, Nightmare?" Ignika asked, wide-eyed. She never told them something was wrong... What was wrong? In response, Nightmare's livid gaze bore itself into Gravitas again.

"Well, let's start with you! I didn't get much help from you, now did I, huh?" she shouted at the Saurian of Gravity, who could only stare at her sister confused and bring out a weak 'huh?'.

Frustrated by Gravitas' incapability to understand, Nightmare threw her hands up in the air again. "Shall I refresh your memory, back to when we first met? You knew we were sisters but that was it! Hugging an ice cube would have given me more comfort! YOU were the oldest of us two! YOU should have taken care of us two! Instead I had to do it all! YOU didn't know shit about how to behave, what to do when! I had to take care of you upon taking care of myself! Imagine, ME taking care of my mentally-inferior 10-year older sister! And do you think I ever even got a word of thanks or appreciation, a sisterly hug or an act of comfort from you in exchange? NO! NOT. EVEN. A. SINGLE. ONE. NOT ONCE DID I GET EVEN ONE 'THANKS, NIGHTMARE!'."

Gravitas just stared at her helplessly, knowing that it was indeed so, and that it was her fault... But at the same time it wasn't, for Gravitas truly hadn't known anything of that, couldn't understand it back then. And couldn't understand it still...

But Nightmare didn't care, she was already rounding up on her next victim, her blazing eyes now burning holes in the Child of Life. "And you!" she snarled. "You just dropped in my life because that popsicle over there," As she said that, she pointed accusingly at Gravitas. "Decided to help you completely out of the blue! As if my life wasn't bad enough already, what with being hated and shunned and called 'Immoral One' because of my power, that I now had to become 'family' of the accursed Child of Life as well! Thank you very much, Gravitas, Ignika!"

"But... But I didn't force you to become family..." Ignika could only mutter. This was so strange... They've spent hundreds of years together, they should have known each other through and through by now. And now they suddenly discover a completely different side of Nightmare.

But again Nightmare had already moved on to the next member of her family, and she was now glaring at Traveller, who was struck with silence by the Saurian of Fear's outburst. "And you! My so-called sister! All that matters to you is Ignika! All of the world could go to oblivion, as long as Ignika would be fine you wouldn't notice! It's always Ignika! You've got other Saurians you call family, too, so why not try and show it? Isn't it bad enough that I was neglected by one sister, that I need to be neglected by two?"

Traveller was rendered speechless. That was the truth. Absolutely true... But Nightmare never asked for comfort. The mean prickly girl she was.

Slowly, shaking with anger, Nightmare turned to the final member of her family. "And you," she hissed quietly, dangerously. "You I can't even describe in little words, and if I had to do it with _all _words I can think of for you, we'd be here till the end of next week. My so called older 'brother'." She spat out that last world, furious. "You'd think that having a family would make you, I don't know, more _considerate _for us, but no! You just storm off, your invisible tale behind your stupid invisible body as you rush to the enemy. And we? We can just guess where you are, never knowing if you're close enough so we can count on you or not! We don't even know if you're hurt or not! And don't think we can actually tell you this, cause you'd just laugh and shrug it off like the idiot you are!"

Chameleon shifted uncomfortably on his wardrobe. This was one of the few moments when he wanted to turn invisible but _couldn't_ use his power.

"All these past eons, it's always been about others! Be it my sis, be it Ignika, be it Traveller, be it any of you! Always making decisions and just expecting me to go along with it! Never getting a say in the matter! Always just 'shut up, smile and nod, Nightmare, it's been decided'! Always the scorn of the people, and nowhere else to go but with you! Always, ALWAYS, YOU, YOU, YOU and NEVER just even once ME!" The disguised Saurian girl yelled, punching the floor with her fist, not caring if it hurt. "And I took ALL OF THAT out on Minako two days ago. I cried, I admit! I cried! Me, _Nightmare_! And how did she react? She HUGGED me! After me nearly killing her she tried to comfort me! That's more than I can say for most of you four!"

This was impossible to believe. Yet there it was... The speechless family had finally seen Nightmare's inner self... That she kept hiding for so long. They hadn't even known the way things are doesn't sit well with her.

"B... But... You never complained... Never told us..." Ignika said meekly.

"I was shocked when she said she was there for me... Nobody EVER said that to me! And I said I was sorry, and then there was this symbiosis shit..." Nightmare muttered, burying her head in her hands.

Her family just watched her, stunned, the discovery shocking them no less than Nightmare.

"The symbiosis, it healed us both…" the youngest sister of the family whispered. "It erased everything I had done, it took us home… I cried… I was broken completely… I couldn't deal with it all anymore… And she held me… Minako held we while I cried… stroked through my hair, tried to comfort me… Like a _sister_ should!"

"Should..." Echoed Gravitas. Ami had said something about this...

"After all I did to her, she said it was forgiven, just like that. She gave me all the comfort and warmth I've been missing for my entire life! She said I could tell her anything! She even called me her little sister!" Nightmare said, again her voice being barely a whisper.

"Little sister...?" Chameleon repeated, feeling surprised. For Saurians, accepting a person not related by blood into a family was normal, but do humans do the same? None of the Senshi are sisters...

"Yes, 'little sister'," Nightmare snapped. "You know, the word you barely if not never call me!"

"But... Nightmare..." Traveller raised her voice. "Why hadn't you told us anything about this before?"

"Yes, why do you only tell us this now?" Ignika asked, agreeing with his sister by blood. He looked sharply at his youngest sister. "You always act strong and independent, Nightmare! How were we supposed to know you wanted comfort when you keep snapping at us?"

"Yeah, you always call us, or me, rather, names, constantly being mad and angry and prickly!" Chameleon growled, crossing his arms in defiance. "We never got warm hugs from you either!"

"As if I did _that_ for fun! Or as if I liked doing it!" Nightmare shot back. "You'd be prickly and untrusting of strangers too if you've been shunned and hated and called 'Immoral One' for your entire life! You can have my early years, useless, and then we'll see how bright and cheery and sunny YOU are!"

The next moment it was Nightmare who was rendered speechless as she felt someone's hands wrap around her and press her close.

Gravitas had remembered what Ami told her to do when her sister feels upset...

"G… Gravitas…?" Nightmare stuttered in complete surprise.

"Ami told me... I should do this... When you feel bad..." She said quietly. "I don't understand, but... I'm sorry..." She hesitatingly put her hand on Nightmare's head and stroked the girl's hair once.

Nightmare smiled, leaned into her sister's embrace and affection and purred. "Sister…"

Gravitas looked uncertainly at her family, asking silently if she was doing it right. Chameleon and Ignika nodded at her approvingly.

The next moment the two girls were both embraced by Traveller. "I'm sorry as well, Nightmare, Gravitas... I'll be a better older sister from now on."

"Thank you, Traveller, my sister," Nightmare replied, still enjoying the embrace her sister by blood was giving her. She didn't want it to end, and snuggled closer to her Gravity-using sibling. The said blood sister pulled her closer as well, guessing it was logical.

"Just don't keep it inside next time, hmm, Nightmare?" Ignika came over and joined the hug as well.

"You already had such a big burden, my little brother," Nightmare whispered, as she put an arm around him. "I… I didn't want to add my problems on top of that."

"Tsk tsk tsk." Chameleon came over. "That's not a right course of action." Chameleon joined the group hug as well. "Come on, we're your family! Of course we'd listen."

"Yeah right, as if you could keep a straight face for even a minute, useless!" Nightmare retorted, sticking out her tongue, but accepting the hug nonetheless.

"That's my little sis!" Chameleon said proudly.

"Really, Nightmare, next time you need to say something, talk to any of us!" Ignika said. "We'll always listen, right, Traveller?"

"Right." The oldest sister nodded.

Nightmare sniffed, and was surprised to find herself crying. Tears of happiness. "Great Beings damn it all… Now I'm crying because I'm happy… Damn you, you bastards…" She choked in tears and laughter, feeling happy and content, for the first time since long, with her family.

The family stood like that for a while, smiling and happy, except for Gravitas.

"... Are hugs supposed to last this long?" She asked uncertainly.

"They can last forever, as far as I'm concerned," Nightmare replied, her eyes still closed as she was still experiencing pure bliss from being hugged by her sister, by all her family, feeling they were there for her, giving her the comfort she had wanted from them for so long. "This is paradise, sister…" And she snuggled closer.

Gravitas nodded and didn't complain anymore, knowing that Nightmare was happy now, and that she did everything right.

After a few more moments of family warmth like that, it was Chameleon who broke the silence next. "Hey, what say you guys we go downstairs and ask for cake?" he suggested with a playful smirk on his face. "Aren't cakes usually for celebrations? I'd say this calls for one."

"I'm for it!" Ignika eagerly said. "Let's go, Chameleon!" The boys got out of the group hug and hurried downstairs.

Traveller rolled her eyes. "Boys..." Then followed them to make sure they get the cake back in one piece.

Nightmare and Gravitas remained alone in the room, and the Saurian of Fear had no intention of letting her sister go yet. She was enjoying the hug Gravitas had given her far too much. Not even the prospect of cake could tear her away from this. "I have wanted you to do this for such a long time, sister…" she whispered softly. "But it was worth the wait…"

"I'm sorry..." Her sister whispered. "If it weren't for Ami, I wouldn't have guessed..."

Gravitas' little sister smiled and shook her head, caressing Gravitas' cheek. "It's okay, sister… I… I know it's not your fault… And I don't really blame you, but it's just… Hard for me, sometimes… Well, okay, a lot of times…"

"I'll do it more often then." Came the simple reply.

"I'd like that…" Nightmare whispered back, embracing her sister even more tightly.

Traveller reappeared in the room with a big chocolate cake. "Couldn't allow those two carry it." She explained simply, putting the cake on the table. Pretty soon, the boys came running up as well.

The oldest sister of the family set the cake down, and each member eagerly took a piece and began devouring it, sweetness overflowing their senses. Ignika smiled as he munched on his piece of cake. It was nice, he thought, to have a happy family moment like this. It was good Nightmare had exploded, he supposed, and told them all of her problems. Now they could work on those, and grow closer as a family, which was always great.

The Child of Life sighed happily. "We've really been through a lot already, haven't we, as a family and on our own?"

Everybody nodded. Yes, they had much to remember and recall from their already long life...

* * *

**Next chapter: A bond through the ages!**

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	74. A bond through the ages

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**74****. A bond through the ages**

Traveller woke up well before dawn and couldn't get back to sleep. She looked at the sky lit by millions of bright stars, barely visible through the dense foliage and sighed. Another day... And she still hadn't found what she was looking for...

Whatever that was, she thought grimly. It was strange. Five hundred years ago, she had crawled out of her egg, the apparently only hatchling from a nest of nine. The rest of the nest had fallen prey to thieves and predators. But she had survived and hatched, and from the moment she opened her eyes to take in the light of the world, she knew she was missing something, and that she had to find it. Barely a minute old, and already she knew it, even back then. And yet to this day, five hundred years later, what exactly she was searching for still eluded her.

The Saurian coughed harshly and wheezed. Her cold just didn't seem to want to pass… She had already devoured all kinds of herbs and plants that were used to cure these nuisances, but this particular cold was a stubborn one, it seemed. And she didn't have the time to look for a Saurian of Healing. She had to continue on her way and search for… whatever it was she was searching for. Something inside her pushed her on, always. There had been times when she had tried to ignore the little voice in the back of her head, but in the end it always proved too strong for her and she had to be on her way again. After three times, she had given up on trying to ignore it, and told herself to just do what her instincts told her to do.

The woman, halfway through the average Saurian lifespan, slowly crawled upright, sweeping some leaves that had fallen on her or her tunic during the night away with her tail. She could smell a river nearby. She'd go drink a bit and then continue her quest. It was the only option she had.

* * *

A Saurian child stood on the edge of a huge clearing, bordered by mountains from one side and surrounded by dense jungle all around. Even though it was covered with grass and wild flowers, it looked alien on this planet...

"This place... Looks so empty now..." The golden-scaled child with white hair said quietly. Tears welled up in his eyes as he remembered the magnificent crystal fortress that stood here just a few hours ago.

He still couldn't believe it had happened. The Great Beings had indeed departed... The Great Beings who raised him and taught him everything he knew, the Great Beings who created him and given him immortality... Gone without a trace... Left for another world...

"And this world... Is now mine... Master Angonce... I will not fail you." Ignika said and sobbed. Losing what was his life for five hundred years was painful... He would have loved it to stay with the Great Beings and not to part with his father, Angonce the Kind, but that was not his destiny. His destiny and duty as the Child of Life was to be left behind to take care of this planet. The planet that was home for him and his race. The planet he loved dearly. Yes, just like the Great Beings, Ignika loved the whole world, albeit with an innocent child's love. But now he felt lonely and hurt.

The half a century old child couldn't hold his tears back anymore, and broke down crying. He cried for all the things that he knew until now that had vanished. He cried for being unable study with Master Angonce anymore... For being unable to admire the alien plants of the Great Beings' garden. For being unable to visit their library and get fascinating knowledge from their books. For being unable to watch them work at their laboratories and assist them. But most of all he cried for the Great Beings themselves, for every single divine being of pure Light, whose presence alone could make you feel overwhelmed and fascinated, and yet so happy, hopeful and enlightened... Now he'll never feel that again...

But he wasn't all alone... Even if Ignika couldn't feel the Light, there was something else that could fill the emptiness in his heart.

Life.

Life that was all around him, the Life that was pulsing through the planet, connecting every single being on Voya. The energy of Life only he could control... The energy he'll use to protect the Life on this planet, because that was his duty, the task given him by the departed Beings... The Child stopped crying, closed his eyes and reached out with his powers, expanding them to feel the pulse of Life that surrounded him...

And felt something else.

A presence that was alien and yet somehow familiar, frightening in its likeliness to his own. He could feel it now, not just by his powers, but by something else as well: his heart. A voice in the back of his mind had awoken, and it seemed to whisper constantly, persistently, to him to go out and search for this presence that he could feel. And in that instance, Ignika realized that what he was sensing could only be what his 'father' had told him he could possibly have.

A blood relative.

Ignika gasped and jumped to his feet. Why hadn't he felt it before? After some thought, he concluded it was because of the much stronger mental presences of the Great Beings... The voice was simply blocked. But now that the Great Beings were gone, the bond was beginning to form again.

Ignika cast one last glance at the place where the Fortress once stood, and sprinted off into the dense jungle. He had a relative... A sibling to find. Yes, the family bond was strongest with siblings... And he could feel it was strong. Perhaps his egg wasn't the only one that survived...

The Child ran, filled with happiness and excitement at this new discovery. Five hundred years had passed since his birth... What was his sibling like? "Looking a lot older than me, that's for sure." He thought, smiling. What powers had the Great Beings granted him or her? What was his sibling's personality like? So many questions filled his mind...

For the moment he didn't bother to think that chances of finding a particular Saurian on a huge planet that was Voya were miserable. He had the bond, and the power of Life to guide him. Surely he can achieve something like that?

Filled with newfound hope, the Child of Life began his search.

* * *

Traveller fell to her knees and coughed painfully, clutching her chest through her tunic. Drops of blood fell from her mouth to the forest floor and she wheezed and gagged in pain. Her simple cold had not passed away, instead it had gotten worse and worse, until near the beginning of this week, it had become so painful and torturous to breathe that she knew her lungs were done for. She had become terribly ill, and her body was burning with a horrid fever. The Saurian woman was in pain every minute of the day, and chances of getting better were nonexistent. Traveller could barely stand on her feet anymore. She wasn't stupid. She knew what was happening.

She was dying.

Traveller punched the ground in futile, pathetic frustration. "Why now... Why now?" She screamed mentally. If she dies now, her life will be a failure... She had spent her entire life looking for something she didn't even know. Years, decades, centuries... Running and running, fulfilling the search that was her duty and destiny... And now destiny decided it was her end.

"The search ends now... Great Beings, forgive me for being so weak... So pathetic..." She thought, coughing up more blood. "I will soon die..." She mouthed the last words, too in pain to use her voice. She knew it, and had only one final wish.

To hear music again. The alien sounds that filled the air every night at the Great Beings' fortress. The sounds and melodies that made up the most beautiful and happy memories of her lonely life. Yes, lonely... She was lonely all her life. She hadn't even mated, despite being five hundred years old already, because of that never-ending whisper urging her to go on... It kept whispering even now, but Traveller couldn't obey it. Her only desire was to die to the sounds of music...

"Can't teleport right there..." She thought, breathing heavily after another coughing fit. "Too weak... Need to cover smaller distances..."

With that decision made, Traveller gathered her strength and vanished in thin air.

* * *

Ignika frowned and looked up from his meal of roasted meat. The presence he felt through his powers and the strange bond had suddenly increased in strength. It was still quite far away, but it had come closer, all of the sudden. With a thoughtful expression on his face, his sharp carnivorous teeth ripped another piece of meat from the bones.

As he ate, he was quietly thinking in his head. A sudden increase in strength of the presence. Strange, but not illogical. He ran through the list of powers that those who had raised him had bestowed upon his race. Yes, Ignika realized, teleportation was a part of that list. If his unknown sibling had all of the sudden come closer to him, it was possible that he or she was a Saurian of Teleportation.

He used his powers to reach out to the Life signal of his blood relative, and frowned a bit when he found it. For some reason, it seemed weaker than the days before… He shrugged it off for now. The fact that he could still feel it and that the presence had become stronger was much more important.

The Saurian of Life hurriedly wolfed down the rest of his meal and then quickly continued his journey, heading off through the woods in hopes of encountering his only remaining family. Over the course of the next few days, he noticed the presence was getting stronger and stronger, the blood-related Saurian coming ever closer to him. Had he or she felt his presence, too? Was that why it was heading towards him now?

* * *

Traveller's frail form was shuddering from another horrible coughing fit, the only thing she was aware of besides her pain. This was it. She won't move any further today...

Or at all...

The last few days were lost in the haze of her fever. Traveller didn't get up, only teleported again and again as soon as she felt her strength returning enough to cover even a small distance.

Her powers had brought her to settlements three times... Those three nights were good. She was warmed by the fire, she was fed with meat that was carefully chewed to make it possible for her to swallow... But none of the villages had a Saurian of Healing, and the local healers could only make her drink some decoctions to ease the fever and pain at least somewhat... Yet Traveller knew she had little time, that these healers were powerless... She left the villages behind as soon as she could.

But now that had to end... Her strength was gone completely; breathing became next to impossible... She was constantly shaking from the cold she felt, while in reality her fever was so high it could reach lethal level... This was the end.

"Damn... Pathetic..." Traveller cursed herself mentally. "Couldn't even... grant my own last wish..." Tears of unfairness and pain formed in her eyes. The Saurian of Teleportation cried quietly, her tears mixing with the blood she coughed on the ground. Soon, the fever began to rise again, and she found herself losing consciousness.

But as the world before her was vanishing in the haze... she felt something. A presence. Someone was nearby... Someone important... She opened her eyes and saw a faint, very blurred form of a Saurian child moving towards her.

"Wh...?" She managed to think before the whole world turned black.

* * *

Ignika was worried. The presence of his blood relative was very close now, close enough for him to sense the Saurian in question with his Life powers and determine the state of his or her wellbeing. And that was exactly what was worrying him. The life force was weakening, decreasing rapidly, plummeting into the cold abyss of death. His heart was clenched by fear. He couldn't loose his only remaining family before he had even met it, could he?

There was a shift in the strength of the presence as his blood relative teleported again. That Saurian was even closer now. Was he or she trying to get to him to at least see his or her brother in his or her dying moments? Ignika clenched his jaw. No, no! He couldn't allow that. He had to reach his blood relative before death claimed him or her, then he could save his family. He had the power to do so. The Child of Life felt the presence was close, less than an hour away.

Ignika didn't hesitate any longer and began to run.

He ran and ran through the thick foliage of his home planet, blasting aside anything that came in his way with his powers. Normally he'd frown upon such behaviour, but he was in a hurry, for the first time in his already long life, and he couldn't waste it on dodging trees and boulders now.

The Child of Life ran for more than half an hour until he arrived on a small open spot between the trees. In his hurry, he nearly tripped over the fallen figure on the ground. But the voice in his mind screamed at him to stop and so he did, digging his clawed feet into the ground as he roughly came to sudden halt. Breathing hard, Ignika's golden eyes immediately glanced at the fallen Saurian at the boy's feet. It was a Saurian woman, five hundred years old, just like him. Only, she looked like she was that age, too. Her black hair had started to grey a bit, her claws and scales began to loose shine. Blood pooled around her head.

So Ignika saw his sister Traveller for the first time in his life.

He nearly choked as he saw the blood. That wasn't right! There shouldn't be any blood! Blood outside the body was bad! The white-haired reptile quickly turned the woman on her back and laid his head on her chest. He could still hear her heart beating, faintly. His life powers were telling him the life was slipping from her body quickly, however. His tail wagging nervously behind him, Ignika went to work, triggering his powers for the first time to be used in such a delicate way while not being supervised.

Immediately he noticed the cause of the declining life force. His sister – he could barely believe he was with his _sister_ at this very moment – was ill. Very ill. An infection in her lungs that was in its final, lethal stage. She must have been in great pain. Unfortunately, he had never had to deal with such a thing before. Yes, he had no doubt he could do it, but just how much power he had to use? He shook his head and growled in frustration. He couldn't think about such details now! His sister – the word felt alien on his mind and tongue, but he liked it – was dying!

The Child of Life began to pour his elemental energy into the body of the Saurian of Teleportation. He fiercely targeted and attacked the infecting illness, reducing the infecting bacteria inside her lungs to nothing, reducing their age to nonexistence. Soon enough, the illness had been defeated, and all that was left was heal the damage. Ignika frowned. What if he hadn't killed all bacteria inside her body? And what was the best way to heal the damage? What should he check first? Oh, if only Master Angonce were here to tell him what to do…

In his worry and panic, his control over the power he poured into his sister slipped, and the effects on her body came immediately. Before Ignika's very eyes, the years she had lived through began to vanish, the clock in her body being rewound. Grey hair became vibrant black, dull blue scales and black claws became richly blue and razor sharp once more. Organs that had slowly been reducing in efficiency soared to perfect health again, including her damaged lungs. The boy's eyes widened in panic. His sister was growing younger! He was undoing her aging!

He tore his hands off her body and crawled away from her backwards, hoping if he did that the growing younger would stop. He held his breath for a few vital seconds, but let it out in relief when he noticed she didn't grow younger anymore. But he had reduced her age back to two hundred, though.

The Child of Life sat down on the ground and breathed heavily, tears from the stress streaming down his face. All he needed to do now was wait for his sister to wake up...

* * *

Breathing.

Her chest slowly lifting up, her lungs being filled with sweet, precious air, and slowly coming down to let it out again. Once again... And again... In a continuous, natural motion. No pain, no burning in her lungs, no painful spasms of coughing. A deep, even breathing.

This was heaven. To lie, to breath, to enjoy the sensation of air... Had she died and been sent to the afterlife?

Slowly, her other senses began to come back. She could feel the ground she was lying on, hear the sound of the forest around her... And someone's presence next to her.

Traveller slowly opened her eyes. Her gaze remained unfocused, her vision blurry, but she tried to look around nonetheless... And saw the golden silhouette next to her.

Her eyes widened as in that instance when she saw the golden silhouette, she realized she had found it. The voice that was always screaming at her to search and move on, in the back of her mind, was now silent, as if pleased and content. Then it softly whispered that she had indeed found that she had been looking for all her life. It was strange and overwhelming, and at first she could barely grasp the fact or believe it. But there was no doubt possible… Her heart was just flooded by warmth, the voice was quiet, everything just felt _right_… Immense relief washed over her. She had found it.

Traveller smiled and waited for her vision to clear. She blinked a few times, hoping it will help. She wanted to find out what is it that she had found, after all. What was that silhouette of such a rare, beautiful colour? Finally, her vision cleared enough for her to see details.

In front of her eyes sat a child. A divinely beautiful golden child with white hair and skin. The child radiated power, she could feel it. A very warm and familiar energy... Traveller was filled with awe. Was it a heavenly being that came to guide her to the afterlife? Who could it be?

"Who... are... you?" Traveller whispered hoarsely, having got unused to her voice during the sickness.

The boy smiled shyly and innocently. He seemed to blush somewhat, looked away, rubbed his hands together in discomfort, and then finally turned his attention back to her and said. "I… I'm your… your little brother…"

"My... brother?" Traveller repeated slowly. "But... I..." Traveller frowned in confusion. "I've been searching... for my entire life... since I hatched... Searching for something... And found you..." She looked at the child. "But you're only a hundred years old or so..."

"Five hundred," the child corrected her immediately. "The Great Beings made it so I don't age, you see. I've been hundred years old since I was a week old." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I guess being the Saurian of Life comes with its oddities…"

Traveller gasped, her jaw falling open and staying there. "The Saurian... Of Life...?" She reached out to touch her brother, but then her gaze fell on her own hand and she gasped again.

She brought her hand closer to her eyes, not believing what she saw. Her scales were bright and soft again, her claws sharp and without a single crack. Hesitatingly, she moved her fingers and clenched it into a fist. It was her hand, alright... The Saurian of Teleportation began to feel herself all over, touching her body and face, flexing her arms and legs. It all felt different... Younger, stronger... Traveller took a strand of her hair and brought it before her eyes. She gasped in awe again. Black... Black and silky smooth, without a trace of all the tangles she got while being sick and unable to tend to herself.

"I..." She raised her voice, and didn't recognize it as well. It indeed sounded younger... "Am I...? What happened to me?" She looked at her... yes, at her brother, her gaze full of confusion.

"I… I'm sorry… si… sister…" her little brother stammered, saying the word sister with awe and disbelief. "I… When healing you I… My control slipped… I turned your age back by three hundred years… I'm sorry…"

"Th... three hundred..." Traveller repeated, her voice filled with awe and disbelief. But it had to be true, after all, she did look and feel younger... Slowly, she sat up and looked at the child again. "You... You really are... a Saurian of Life... brother." She smiled. Her mind was filled with so many questions now, yet she didn't know which one to ask first...

"Sister…" the white-haired child answered slowly. Then he suddenly threw himself against her, arms wrapped around her as he hugged the dear life out of her. Excited cries of incomprehensible babble left his mouth as he buried his face in her chest and hugged her.

Traveller, though surprised at first, immediately hugged her brother back, holding him tightly in her arms. Yes, it felt right... Her brother... The one she was looking for throughout all those years... Tears of happiness streamed from her eyes as she held the divine child that was her brother by a weird twist of fate. "What is your name, brother?" She asked him softly.

"Ignika," came the answer happily. "What is your name, sister?"

"Traveller." His sister smiled. Then sighed and lay her head on his shoulder gently. "I'm so glad you found me... If it weren't for you, I would have died... How did you find me?"

"I felt you… I sensed you…" Ignika answered quietly, hugging her tighter. He placed a hand over her heart. "You felt me too, didn't you, sister? That feeling you had something to look for in your life, you felt that too, didn't you?"

"Yes... I did." Traveller whispered back. "Ever since I have hatched... But I didn't know what it was... What I was looking for." She bowed her head. "I didn't think it could be a sibling... When I hatched, I was all alone... I thought all the rest had died before hatching..."

Ignika bowed his head as well. "I didn't know I had family either… Master Angonce only told me that my egg hadn't been the only one in the nest when he left a few days ago… I lived for five hundred years thinking I was alone…"

"Master... Angonce?" Traveller frowned in confusion. Saurians never addressed someone with the word Master... Unless... The realization made Traveller gasp. "D... do you mean... You know a Great Being's name?" She asked, staring at her brother wide-eyed.

The white-haired child tilted his head sideways in innocent confusion. "Where did you think I've been the past five centuries, sister?"

Traveller's eyes almost budged out of their sockets and her mouth fell agape. She stared at her brother as if he just told her he had been to the Moon. "Y... You don't mean...?" The Saurian whispered, not daring to believe it.

Ignika nodded happily. "The Great Beings raised me!" he said cheerfully and with a bright smile.

Traveller gently got the Child out of her embrace and held him at an arm length. She looked at him with awe and fascination. Raised by the heavenly god-like beings... Living among them for five hundred years... Hearing that divine music she so longed for every night!

"Ignika..." She said, her eyes shining and her voice filled with awe. "It's amazing. I can barely believe it... So that is where you were all this time..." But the next moment Traveller frowned and said in a low voice: "If only I knew... The nest where I hatched was less than two days away from the Fortress... I've seen it... I've spent two weeks next to it before giving in to the voice and running off to find you..." Tears welled in her eyes. "If only I knew... I would have waited for eternity."

"I'm sorry sister…" the white-haired boy whispered. "I… I didn't know you existed… Until a few days ago, when the Great Beings left, I didn't know… But why were you coming towards me if you didn't know I was there?"

"I was...?" Traveller asked, and then sighed. "I didn't know it... I... I wasn't heading towards you..." She bowed her head to hide the tears that fell from her eyes. "When I... realized I was dying... I headed towards the Fortress. I wanted to hear the music one last time..."

Feeling sorry and sad for his sister, the white-haired reptile quickly pulled his older – body-wise at least – sibling against him in a warm hug. "I'm sorry sister… The Fortress is gone now, there is no more music… But I'm here now… I have you now, and you have me, right? I won't let you die. I won't let you get sick."

The second half of Ignika's words had been lost as Traveller felt a part of her soul being broken, shattered into pieces. "G... gone?" She asked in a trembling voice. She couldn't believe it. The Fortress? The magnificent building of crystal, so tall, so huge, so divine, so eternal... gone? "I-Ignika..." Traveller looked at her brother, wishing he'd say it's a lie, even though his tone was serious.

"The Great Beings have left us, sister," Ignika answered seriously. "New worlds beckoned to them. They did what they had to do here, now our race can survive without their aid." His serious mask dropped and revealed a hurt, young sad child. "At least, that's what they told me…"

Traveller couldn't believe it. Her soul, her mind, her very essence were against it. And yet she had to. However hard that was. However painful that was... Painful... Traveller hugged Ignika tightly and sobbed. Soon she was crying, trying to be quiet but being unable to stop it. Traveller cried for the music she'll never hear, for the music that filled her soul with fascination and beauty, the heavenly, unearthly, eternal music... That was now gone...

Ignika wasn't sure what to do. He was sad as well, but he had the presence of Life to comfort him. His sister didn't have that. She had him now, but it was obviously not enough… He didn't know what to do, the Great Beings had not told him about how to comfort an older sister who was sad.

"I'm... I'm sorry..." Traveller whispered. "For being so pathetic... The music... was the only reason I stayed by the Fortress for so long..." She sobbed again. "It's... It's heavenly... It's unlike anything else in the world... Oh, Ignika..." The Saurian of Teleportation cried for a while more. But then she finally got a grip on herself, sat straight and wiped her tears. "Then again... It is only fair. Destiny may have taken music from me..." Traveller her brother gave a small, yet determined smile. "But I'll never let it take you away."

Ignika smiled back, shyly. "I'll never leave your side, sister… I liked the music too… But you have me now, right? Unless I'm not good as a brother, I understand that, really… I never learned how to be a good brother, so… Sorry."

Traveller smiled. "It's okay. I haven't learned how to be a good sister, either... So, let's learn it together, alright?" She said playfully and hugged her brother warmly again.

The Child of Life hugged her back eagerly. "I'll be a good student."

* * *

**Next chapter: A confusing meeting!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Yeah, I guess it was, but I wanted to show that even our Saurian friends have problems, to make them into more well-rounded characters. You're very right about Gravitas, and I enjoy writing her a lot because I can relate to her. If she was human, she'd probably be called autistic, making her similar to me, so I enjoy writing her and her learning process about other people's feelings. Don't worry about reviewing, I had problems with the site as well two weeks ago and almost couldn't update in time. Thanks for the review!


	75. A confusing meeting

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**75. A confusing meeting**

Cold. She was cold again. Always cold, always wet. The raining season was at its highest peak now, and it covered the earth relentlessly with a blanket of water. She shivered and winced. Cold. Always cold. Even wrapping her arms around herself didn't help much, the cold remained. Covering herself with animal skin hadn't helped much, the cold was still there. She was cold and miserable. And alone. Gravitas, that was her name. It had come to her, by accident, but she liked it. What she didn't like was being this cold, alone and miserable. Why was she feeling these things? Those feelings weren't nice, they only made her… feel bad. Why did she have to feel bad in the first place?

The lonely Saurian child huddled closer to the tree, sitting high in its branches. But the leaves did not stop the rain. Or the cold.

* * *

Nightmare let out a yelp as another stone hit her back. She turned around and growled at her attacker.

"Why?" She shouted. "Why do you shun me? I only came here asking for shelter!"

This was hopeless. It was the fifth time she encountered a settlement, and still it was exactly the same as the other villages. Heck, her _every_ encounter with another Saurian ended up like this! Why? What did she do to deserve it? The forty years old girl bit back the tears of unfairness and unhappiness and refused to let them spill.

"Immoral One!" she heard somebody whisper spitefully behind her back, making her freeze. The young Saurian was indecisive, torn between staying and beating the crap out of them and just going away. Growling, the young girl forced her legs to keep moving her forward. Once she was at the edge of the jungle, however, she couldn't help it…

She turned around and fired a crescent wave of her Fear energies at those who had shunned her, striking them down to the ground with utter fear. "Bastards!" she snarled, before she turned tail and fled deep into the jungle.

"It's always the same..." Nightmare thought, running through the thick jungle, tears streaming from her face. "But... There has to be someone to accept me!" Nightmare was stubborn, and refused to let go of that thought, even though her certainty crumbled down a bit more with each encounter.

"Someone like a sister," the reptile thought, smiling a little bit. "A sibling, who would take care of me, accept me for what I was born to be, and not hate me for it. Somebody who could comfort me whenever those idiots of my species hurt me again… Yes…" Nightmare let out a deep sigh as she climbed up a tree and started making a nest to sleep. "That would be nice… Wishful thinking though." She growled as she cut off branches to make her nest with. "Dreaming is nice from time to time, but stay real, Nightmare," she scolded herself. "You're alone, and always have been, and probably will be. Who'd be kind enough to accept a Saurian of Fear, huh? Hah, that'd be the day…"

* * *

Gravitas raised her head and looked emotionlessly at the sun shining through the thick foliage. There it was again. For the first time in one hundred and twenty years she felt something again.

It was like a whisper at the back of her mind. What was it? It seemed to urge her to go somewhere. Where? It told her to search for something... Why?

Uncertain and not wanting to act on feelings again, she simply sat there, under the tree, and waited. Over the past two weeks of being on her way, the voice was getting stronger. Perhaps if she just sat there, the voice will stop, and she'll return to not feeling. Though there also was a chance that this 'something' will find her. In any case, this place was just as good as any other.

* * *

"Get. Out. Of. My. Head!" Nightmare growled as she rammed her head against a tree again and again. It was getting seriously irritating, that voice in the back of her mind telling her she had to go and look for something. She didn't even know what it was she had to go search for. Sometimes, when she was in one of her better moods, she heeded the voice. When she was bitter and angry, like now, she hated it.

It had been ongoing for weeks now, that little whisper in her head. And it hadn't been the first time. When she was smaller, she sometimes had heard it, too, briefly. Only now it was there constantly, pestering her to the point she thought she was going mad. She butted her head against the tree again. No, it didn't help, only made her see stars. Sometimes she even dreamed of it. A voice in the jungle calling out to her, and no matter how much she tried to run away, it always kept coming back. And when she finally did go towards the voice, her dream always ended in a flash of silver and she woke up. Weird.

"Oh fine! Fine!" the Saurian of Fear shouted out loud for all to hear. "I'll go? Happy now? I'll go wherever it is you want me to go, stupid voice in my head!" She was well aware of how ridiculous her tirade must have looked had anyone seen her. But she didn't care. Had they laughed, she would have run them through like she did with anyone who laughed with her, shunned her, hated her, annoyed her or attacked her. Steaming, she snatched her katana from the ground and stormed off.

* * *

Gravitas returned from a successful hunt and sat under that tree again. This place was just as good as any other.

It was interesting. The voice didn't go or vanish; on the contrary, it seemed to grow only stronger over the past few days. Observing the trend of daily change, she concluded that whatever the voice wanted will find her today or tomorrow. "That'd be nice." She thought. She longed to return to the silence of her thoughts.

Gravitas skinned the small animal she caught and began eating, ripping the hard meat off the bone with her teeth. "Soon." She thought.

* * *

The voice in her head was getting very strong now, and Nightmare wished for a moment that she was a Saurian of Mind, those were experts at shielding their own minds or focussing on one thing and lock out the rest. She really could have used that now, because the voice was driving her up the wall. Days, days and more days had passed since she finally decided to give in to that annoying mental reminder, and it had only increased in volume, without any sign of her getting to wherever she had to go.

"I hate this!" she snarled, cutting her way through the bush wildly with her katana. "I despise this! Stupid voice in my head, stupid bush getting in my way, stupid societies shunning me, stupid everything! Gaah!" She slashed through more shrubbery and suddenly found herself stumbling on an open spot in the forest, under the branches of a big tree. Grumbling, she picked herself up from the ground and…

Came face to face with another person.

Gravitas looked at the new person. The voice in her head immediately stopped whispering and a wave of warmth went through her, along with a feeling of everything being _right_. A hundred and ten years ago she would be happy about it, but now she was just glad it was over.

She sat silently under her tree and looked emotionlessly at the girl. She had red scales and skin, and black hair. Her mind told her it meant she was a Saurian of Fear. Interesting.

Nightmare looked at the new person. Her mind was quiet all of the sudden. The voice that had plagued her these past few weeks, gone in an instant. Instead, she felt something she had never had felt before: the feeling that things were _right_. Having rarely felt like that before, she wasn't sure how to react, so she just observed and took in the other Saurian girl.

Green scales, silver hair and skin… A Saurian of Gravity, one of the more powerful breeds of Saurians. They were also rather rare. Interesting.

After a few minutes of silently staring at each other, Gravitas spoke, quietly and emotionlessly:

"Who are you?"

Nightmare's first instinct was to snap back that it was none of her business, but even as she opened her mouth to do so, the voice in her head came back full force and screamed at her to stop. And so she did, surprised by her own course of action. She tilted her head sideways and looked at the Saurian of Gravity at her feet, confused. "I'm Nightmare. And you?"

"Gravitas." The older girl replied.

Silence fell again. Nightmare was getting uneasy. What's with this girl? Why did the voice urge to search for her? Why is she so silent, damn it?

Just as Nightmare was about to get angry, Gravitas broke the silence.

"Want some?" She said, holding the half-eaten animal up to her.

Nightmare growled, even though nobody had ever offered her some before. She'd accept it, if it weren't for one tiny detail. "Why don't you roast it with fire first, instead of eating it raw?" she snapped. "Even the smallest Saurian knows that's much better and healthier."

Gravitas' lips twitched, almost forming a frown of confusion. So much words at once... And two unknown ones. "Roast with a fire...?" She repeated, as quiet and emotionless as ever.

"Yes, you know, put your meat on a stick and hold it in the flames until it's done?" the Saurian of Fear replied, getting more and more frustrated the longer she talked to this girl. And it wasn't just because of the way the girl was… It was something else that frustrated her. "Who are you?" she growled. "Why does it feel as if I'm supposed to know you?"

"I do not know... I am Gravitas... And I do not know..." The silver-haired Saurian answered the questions in order, completely ignoring Nightmare's frustration.

Nightmare's fingers twitched in irritation. "You don't know what cooking your meal is? You don't even know what _fire_ is?"

"No." Gravitas replied simply, and looked up into the other Saurian's eyes. "What is 'fire'?"

"Great Beings…" Nightmare whispered, her jaw on the floor. "Where have you been the past few millennia? No Saurian doesn't know what fire is! How is it possible that nobody taught you how to make fire yet? You're older than me, for nightmares' sakes!"

Gravitas looked away again. "Nobody ever spoke to me... for long. They all left, in less than half an hour. Don't know why."

"If it weren't for this stupid voice in my head telling me to stay I would have hightailed it out of here after the first minute!" the Saurian of Fear shot back. "You're just weird, that's why the others fled! Just look at you, staring at me as if you've never seen a Saurian before, no emotion or feelings plastered on your face whatsoever! And not even knowing what fire is!"

Gravitas looked at the ground, at loss at what to do. Why was this girl shouting at her?

"What is wrong?" She asked.

"You are!" came the immediate answer. "Why are you not showing any emotions? Why is your voice, and heck, your eyes, too, as cold as the ice of the northern frost? Show some feelings, damn it, you're creeping me out!"

Gravitas' eyes widened slightly. Feelings? "Why...?" She whispered. For her, feelings meant cold and pain and fear...

"Because that's normal, duh," Nightmare growled as an answer, plopping down on the ground, crossing her arms and legs and glaring at the Saurian of Gravity.

"It is...?" That was unexpected and confused Gravitas a great deal. Why were cold and pain and fear normal? Didn't they just make you feel bad? Why did that girl want her to feel bad? Did she have ill will towards her? Why?

She did get her to feel something, however. Confusion. And Gravitas did not like it.

"Yes it is," Nightmare explained, still glaring. "It's part of life."

"Why...?" Gravitas asked. Now that someone was talking to her... Should she try to ask this girl for explanation? "Feelings are... bad. Feelings are... cold. Feelings are..." She couldn't finish her sentence, for she didn't know what to call the pain and loneliness she felt in her early years.

"I know," Nightmare shrugged. "Don't have plenty of nice memories of good feelings myself. Just anger, pain and hatred for all the mistreatment and I went through." She sighed and glared at the other girl again. "Doesn't change the fact that it's part of life."

Gravitas looked at her and tilted her head slightly. The girl seemed to understand what she meant. Just to make sure, she asked: "Anger, pain, hatred... What are those?"

Nightmare gave her a long harsh stare. "Don't tell me you don't know the names of bad feelings either! Great Beings, what rocks _did_ you crawl under from?"

"There were no rocks there. Wouldn't have crawled out if there were rocks..." Gravitas replied, thinking that the girl was reffering to her hatching place.

Nightmare hit her head against the most nearby hard object she could find. "You. Are. Frustrating!" she growled while hurting herself. When she was done and stars were twirling before her eyes, she said with a sigh: "It's an expression, smartass! It means that you're not very smart! Don't take it literal!"

"Then how? And why did you hit yourself?" Gravitas asked, more confused than she ever was since she hatched.

"Because you're driving me crazy with your ignorance!" Nightmare shouted, really beginning to lose her patience. Why was she putting up with this woman for so long? Why didn't she simply stand up and get the heck out of here?

Gravitas looked up at the sky, pushing her confusion away for a bit. "It'll get dark soon..."

"Yeah, better get a fire going so we can stay warm," Nightmare said quietly, agreeing.

Gravitas looked at her again. "How?"

Sighing in exasperation, the Saurian of Fear got to her feet. "Watch and learn, hatchling," she sneered, before starting to search for firewood. Really, why was she staying with this weirdo at all, or even teaching her things? She was weird, she was frustrating and irritating! Why did she stay with this 'Gravitas'?

"Because it's right," the voice in her head whispered, and she vehemently tried to kick said voice in the jaw mentally to get it to shut up.

* * *

It was night. But Gravitas wasn't cold.

The fire burned before her.

It was so amazing... Gravitas watched the flames dance. It was a... miracle. That one could get warmth by using some wood and a few sparks. It was amazing.

When Nightmare just made the fire, Gravitas was surprised by the warmth coming from it. She tried to touch it, but Nightmare shouted at her and prevented her from doing it, saying she'll hurt herself. That got Gravitas confused again. It's warm, but hurts? How can that be? Warmth is good, cold is bad. Hurt is bad. Why does what is good hurt?

But now Gravitas was just watching the fire dance beautifully in the night. Hurt or not, fire was a good thing, she decided. When Nightmare roasted the animal Gravitas had been eating earlier, the meat became soft and... tasty. So tasty that Gravitas immediately went to catch another one, and another, so Nightmare could make more of the delicious meat. And while she was cooking, Gravitas kept staring at her doing it intently, her mind eagerly taking the new knowledge in.

"I don't get it," the Saurian of Fear grumbled as she roasted another piece of meat above the flames. "I don't get why I'm doing this. Nobody's ever been nice to me so I'm never nice to people. But I'm nice to you, and I don't know why." She glared at Gravitas. "You're making me so confused, it's not funny."

"Is 'confused'... not knowing what to do or think?" Gravitas tried to guess.

"Yes," Nightmare snapped. "You're catching on, but that's besides the point! Why am I nice to you?"

"I do not know... And... You're making me confused, too. A lot. I don't like it."

"That makes two of us, I don't like it either," Nightmare sighed. She handed Gravitas the piece of meat that had been roasting, it was ready now. "My life's just fucked up. People hate and shun me because I have the power of Fear, then there's this stupid voice in my head telling me to go search for something or somebody, then when I follow it I end up with you! Fantastic. Bloody fantastic."

"I haven't met much people. And nobody talked to me... Nobody did anything like this for me." Gravitas then eagerly dug her teeth in the now so soft and amazingly delicious meat.

"I've never had anybody not chase me away, either," Nightmare reluctantly admitted. "I'm a Saurian of Fear, and yet you're not bothered by it. Almost as if you were…" Her eyes widened and she gasped, nearly choking on her meat.

"If I were what?" Gravitas asked, not interrupting her meal.

"My… sister…" Nightmare finished, dropping whatever she was holding as she stared at the Saurian of Gravity with disbelief. Of course. It would make sense if that were true… The bond, the feeling of something missing, the desire to find somebody, the feeling of it being right when she was with this woman… It had all been signs she had failed to interpret correctly.

"Sister..." That word sounded nice, and warm somehow. But like everything else, it was new to Gravitas. "What does that word mean?" She looked at Nightmare.

"Being related by blood. When two Saurian females have the same parents, they're sisters. And if they're from the same nest of eggs, they're twin sisters," Nightmare explained absentmindedly.

Gravitas looked at her hand. "We are not twins, you are younger than me. Being... 'sisters'... is possible."

"Yes… Tell me, did you also hear a voice in your head?"

"I did. Today it got especially loud... When I saw you, it stopped."

"It was your brain telling you to get up and start searching for me, dimwit!" Nightmare growled. "Where were you all this time, sister? I'm hundred years old, where have you been? Where were you when I needed you?"

"I heard it for the first time only two months ago..." Gravitas said quietly, as emotionlessly as ever, staring in the fire. "I didn't know what to search for. The voice made me confused... I do not like being confused. So I just sat here and waited. Either the voice would go away, or whatever it wanted would find me. I was right."

"Well, you have a sister now, like it or not, so what are you going to do about it?" the Saurian of Fear asked, crossing her arms.

Gravitas was silent for a while. "...What am I supposed to do?" She asked, not knowing what to do with the fact they were sisters.

"Take responsibility, of course!" her fresh new little sister of the Saurian of Gravity said, as if it was obvious. "Big sisters take care of their little sisters!"

"How?"

"Protect them from danger! Be there for them whenever they need them!"

Gravitas nodded. "What else?"

"Help them hunt, heal them when they're hurt, take care of their wounds, protect them from people bullying them, give them warmth and comfort, well, everything family does for each other!" Nightmare continued. "And of course, they hug their little sister."

Gravitas frowned and looked away from Nightmare. She knew none of what she was talking about. Protecting her from danger was simple. It was not letting her get hurt, right? Being there for her was simple. It was just being near, right? But the rest... What was it? What did she expect her to do?

Nightmare didn't say anything, caught in her own thoughts. She had a sister now, that much was certain. They both had felt the inner voice and had the feeling of it being _right_ when they were together. That was proof enough. But she didn't know how happy should had to be about it. She had always dreamed of a bigger sibling, to protect her and help her… What she got was this emotionless, underdeveloped ice cube. Talk about bad luck. Why was it always her who got into trouble like this?

* * *

**Next chapter: A Saurian's life!**

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	76. A Saurian's life

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**76. ****A Saurian's life**

"And why can't _I_ be the prey?" a twenty-seven year old Chameleon asked innocently, his clawed hands folded behind his back and smiling sweetly at his five friends. They wanted to go hunt, but his friends' parents didn't let them go into the forest. So they decided to just pretend to hunt, with one of them being the prey. Chameleon had volunteered, but his friends had immediately said no.

"Because you'd just use your powers, making finding you a nearly impossible task!" one of his friends, Wheeze, a Saurian of Air, explained with a roll of his eyes. "And you know as well as I do that that's cheating, Chameleon!"

"It's not!" the younger Saurian shot back, putting his hands on his hips. "I'm using my natural tools to my advantage, that's not cheating!"

"It is when you're pretending to be the prey," Ashen, a Saurian of Fire objected. "There's not a single prey out there that has the power to camouflage itself so perfectly it's invisible. So you can't be the prey, or you'd have to promise not to use your powers."

"Spoilsports," Chameleon grumbled, childishly sticking out his tongue at his friends.

"Deal with it, Chameleon, I'm never the prey, either." Speedy said.

"As if someone can catch you." Leaf, a Saurian of Plant Control said. "Only a Saurian of Speed can catch a Saurian of Speed."

"Or a wall of stone." Pebble snorted, making her friends laugh. They still couldn't forget that time when they were having a playful fight, and Speedy, too busy fleeing from Wheeze's whirlwind, ran straight into the wall she made.

Speedy growled at her. "Fine, Leaf will be the prey."

"Hey, why me?" The plant-controlling girl pouted.

"You're easy to catch." Speedy said simply, not even looking at her.

"No I'm not!"

"Prove it." Speedy looked at her challengingly.

"Fine!" Leaf glared at the boy. "I'll be the prey!"

"Alright, you have three minutes, then we're going after you." Ashen decided and put his hands over his eyes. His friends followed suit, and the Saurian of Plant Life ran off to find a hiding place.

"I'll catch her." Speedy whispered.

* * *

One hundred and twenty three years later, Chameleon was on his way, heading towards a particular village to fulfil a promise he had made to someone. However, there was still time, and Chameleon enjoyed his trip through the jungle. A week ago he had stumbled across Wheeze, who told him the latest news. Seems that Ashen went somewhere north, and wasn't heard of since, and Pebble was killed in a fight. Chameleon shook his head. There were enough dangers on Voya, why must the Saurians fight each other?

However, Speedy and Leaf had settled down together as lifetime mates in their home settlement. Chameleon chuckled at that. Speedy had always said he'd catch her, after all. Their happiness made him think of the promise he was on his way to fulfilling, and a dreamy smile was formed by his jaws. He looked forward to it.

"Well, I still have time." The Saurian of Camouflage said, stretching himself. "I guess I'll pay my friends a visit."

With those thoughts, he changed his course and ran west. "Bet they'll be surprised to see me!" He thought cheerfully.

* * *

He smelled it long before he could see it: smoke and fire. That on itself would not be strange, Saurians used fire for cooking and warmth all the time. No, what made it unsettling was the scent of burning flesh. Saurian flesh. That wasn't right, and Chameleon increased his pace, speeding through the jungle as fast as his limbs could carry him. Nimbly he jumped over fallen branches, logs and boulders, swung from vines into trees and went further along the branches before coming back down to the forest floor once he reached the clearing where the village was.

Now he could see it clearly: the village was burning, Saurians were fighting, corpses littered the ground and the disturbing scent of burning flesh overflowed his senses. Chameleon grimaced and drew his daggers. Another attack, Saurians fighting each other, he thought. It disturbed him, but he put that aside from now. He had to find his friends. They were alive still, weren't they? Daggers in hand he triggered his powers and rushed into the village, darting between the huts looking for his childhood friends.

Soon he had to duck behind one, because a small crowd of hatchlings of all ages ran right past him. "Go, go, GO!" An adult voice shouted from some distance, and Chameleon recognized that voice, despite all the time that has passed.

Leaf.

He hesitated not, and switched off his powers, becoming visible once more. "Leaf! What the heck is going on here?" he asked her hurriedly. "Why are you being attacked? It's me by the way, Chameleon!"

"Less babble, more fighting, Chameleon!" Leaf said as she entangled another one of the attackers with a poisoned thorn vine. "Get your sorry ass over here and help me!"

Without another word, Chameleon turned invisible and rushed into the fight, glancing at Leaf briefly. She had changed, he noted. Instead of a shy, somewhat clumsy hatchling there now was a strong and beautiful Saurian woman. And now she was facing six other Saurians on her own, to give children the time to flee.

He moved in against the wind so they couldn't smell him, and struck, slitting the throats of three of Leaf's opponents, before he quickly retreated on top of a hut, so he could survey the battlefield a bit. The hatchlings were safe for now, the attackers didn't seem to be interested in them. "Who are they after?" he asked again once he jumped down from the roof on top of another Saurian, ending another life mercifully quick.

"The Child of Life." Leaf replied, growing two giant man-eating flowers which immediately attacked the last two Saurians and ended their miserable lives.

Chameleon froze, memories of someone important to him telling him about that one unique Saurian, said by one to be a blessing of the Great Beings, said by others to be a curse… And according to that important person, it was a blessing. A blessing that was here?

"He's… here?" the Saurian of Camouflage repeated slowly, shocked.

"Yes." Leaf nodded seriously. "The Child and his family came here three days ago asking for shelter... We let them stay." The Saurian female picked up her falchion and looked at her friend. "Let's go. They're fighting on the other edge of the village."

"Where's Speedy? He's still alive, right?" Chameleon asked, halting her in her hurry for a moment. Child of Life or not, Speedy was more important.

"He's fighting with them. We are beholden to him, he saved our daughter, Flame, from illness..." Leaf explained in a low voice. "Let's go."

"Alright, lead the way," Chameleon agreed with a nod.

* * *

Leaf and Chameleon arrived at the battlefield to see four Saurians hold their own, no, overwhelming an opposing force of Saurians thrice their numbers. Chameleon saw a Saurian of Fear and Gravity strike down enemies as easily as skinning dead prey. A Saurian of Teleportation was lashing out with her trident, leaving bloody holes in her foes, but all the while she remained close to the fourth member of the group. A young Saurian, he couldn't have been older than hundred, appearance-wise, and yet he was the most formidable of them all. Chameleon saw him take down seven Saurians at once by waving his hand, then take down some more by striking them with the wicked scythe he carried.

Powerful, with golden scales and eyes, white hair and skin, Death Scythe held firmly in his childish hand, that was how Chameleon saw Ignika for the first time in his life.

Leaf immediately rushed into battle, knowing that her lifetime mate was somewhere there, being so fast he was almost invisible. And Chameleon stayed still, observing the Child of Life.

"Such child could be both a blessing and a curse." He muttered as he watched the Child kill a Saurian after Saurian, striking them down with his power and his scythe. He had much more power than any other Saurian Chameleon had come across in his life. But what does he use his power for?

"_The Child is divine, and will never use his power for evil_._"_ A voice rang through his memories. For a moment he could see the old Saurian's dim eyes looking intently at him. _"Do not believe the rumours. The Child is a miracle in need of protection."_

Chameleon sighed, readying his daggers. "For you, Gramps."

Triggering his powers, Chameleon rushed into battle.

* * *

The battle was over. The final assault of the Child of Life and his family, coupled with a last push from the inhabitants of this settlement, had chased the attackers away or killed them. Peace had returned at last. Chameleon snorted. Peace? Yeah, right, as if, he told himself once he took a good look around. A number of innocent Saurians killed, their houses burned, their hatchlings scared or without parents. Peace indeed!

The Saurian of Camouflage looked at the Child of Life, who was being dragged by Leaf to a mortally wounded Speedy. Seeing his friend dying like that, Chameleon rushed over as well, shocked and suddenly afraid. Leaf was begging to boy to save her lifetime mate, but Chameleon inwardly sighed in defeat. The wound was lethal, he could see that from where he stood. He didn't have to be a Saurian of Healing to know Speedy would die.

His jaw dropped when the Saurian boy with the golden scales moved forward and restored Chameleon's friend back to full health.

Speedy slowly opened his eyes, and found himself looking at his mate's worried face. "Leaf..." He smiled.

"Speedy..." Leaf smiled back, tears of happiness streaming down her face. "Ignika saved you."

Chameleon heard the name. "Ignika?" He thought. "Sounds strange..."

"Are you in any pain, Speedy?" asked the Child of Life.

Speedy shook his head. "No, I'm as good as new."

Hearing that, the Child nodded contently and hurried off to heal the other wounded Saurians, Chameleon intently watching him go.

"Leaf, what of the children? Flame, Drizzle, Sturdy?" Speedy asked worriedly.

"They all escaped with the other children thanks to Chameleon. Yes, he's back!" Leaf laughed happily, noticing her mate's disbelief. She looked at Chameleon and mentioned him to come over.

"Hi there, friend," Chameleon greeted in his usual cheerful way. "You've looked better before."

Speedy smiled and sat up, playfully punching his friend's shoulder. "You stayed the same, I see. That's a good thing." Speedy was only ten years older than Chameleon, but seemed a lot more mature and serious now. Perhaps it was the responsibility of taking care of children... That was one of the few privileges of living in a village – not having to leave hatchlings all on their own in the wild.

"Heard you caught the best prey there is, namely, Leaf," Chameleon continued, sticking out his tongue playfully. "And did I hear it right, you've got hatchlings? All the same nest?"

Speedy chuckled. "No, Flame is two years older. Sturdy and Drizzle are twins. Strength and Weather control, they're a great pair." The Saurian of Speed said proudly. "And you, Chameleon? Have you claimed a lady?"

"I might, soon," the Saurian of Camouflage replied, thinking of his promise. Then he let out a deep sigh. "Did you hear of Ashen and Pebble?"

Speedy grimaced. "Ashen…" He slowly raised his head and pointed at a corpse of a Fire Saurian lying at some distance.

Chameleon gasped and ran over to the corpse. Yes… It was him. Ashen… His friend, the leader of their small gang of friends. He was covered in wounds that were hard to identify on the first glance, but one particular wound was clearly visible.

Three small holes in the chest, left by Speedy's bladed knuckles, which went right through Ashen's heart.

The Saurian of Camouflage's eyes widened slightly, and horrified he turned to face Speedy, his friend, speechless.

"He was among the attackers…" Speedy said slowly, his face twisted with pain. "I tried to reason with him… He did not listen. I tried to make him see what he's doing, that he's destroying the village where we grew up together, where we caught our first prey together, where we still are always welcome and at home… He threatened me. He ordered me to leave, or he'll kill me."

The Saurian of Speed shook his head and looked away. "Ashen fought against Gravitas…" He pointed to the Saurian of Gravity with a huge wicked shield. "She defeated him, but he was still alive. I rushed to his side, I told him that not everything is lost, that Ignika can heal him and he can stay in our village as my friend… But he just laughed in my face." Speedy lowered his head, looking at the ground. "It was a wicked, insane laughter… But, Chameleon… You should have seen his eyes…" He looked at his friend again.

"Fear." Speedy continued. "Fear greater than any Saurian like Nightmare could ever cause. It was fear that had driven him mad, fear was the reason he attacked his village. And we can only guess what caused it…"

"The times are changing, huh?" Chameleon whispered darkly, his head bowed. "It's not the first time I've heard of attacks like these… First time I saw it myself, though." The Saurian boy sighed. "I've been hearing rumors everywhere. Whispers between the trees of winged Saurians with awful powers, whispers of attacks, Saurians fighting Saurians… What is this world coming to?" He clenched his fists. "Where are the Great Beings when we need them?"

"The Great Beings had left and will never come back…" Leaf said in a low voice, tears streaming down her face. "They are somewhere beyond the sky, saving other worlds like they saved Voya… So Ignika, the one who was raised by them, says. He was left here to watch over Life… Over us… So Ignika says…"

"Seems to me he needs his eyes checked in that case," Chameleon growled.

"The Great Beings didn't know this would happen." Came the voice from behind Chameleon. It was Ignika, who had finished healing the wounded. "They did not foresee I'll be hunted, and did not foresee us fighting against each other." He tightened his grip on the Death Scythe. "Life must go on on Voya, and for it to do so, I must eliminate all who threaten it… But I am the only Saurian of Life on the entire planet. I cannot defeat all evil on my own, and cannot let it defeat me." The Child sighed again. "For then the disaster will be greater than whatever evil in the world can cause."

"What do you mean by that?" the older Saurian demanded.

"The power of Life is stored within my body." The Child explained. "I can grant life…" He picked a knife from the ground and made it alive. The knife slid out of his hand and stood on its point, turning around, bending in ways iron can't bend on its own, taking in the world. "I can take it…" Ignika waved his hand and the knife fell on the ground again, lifeless. "I can restore or destroy it…" The Child frowned. "But it requires immense control. And once I am killed, all control will vanish, and the world will be flooded with Life." Ignika looked at Chameleon. "The trees that surround us, the soil we walk on, even the air we breathe – all will be alive and fighting for survival. Can you imagine that?"

"Sounds pretty bad," Chameleon agreed. "Maybe the ones that said you were a curse rather than a blessing were right then, hmm?"

The Child smiled sadly. "It's not up to me to decide… But the ones who think I am a curse usually try to kill me… And I have to protect the Life in me." He waved his hand, motioning to all the corpses that still littered the village's grounds.

"Well, defending one's life's natural. Alright, count me in," Chameleon decided, nodding at Ignika.

Ignika's eyes widened, along with those of Leaf and Speedy.

"What?" The Child of Life asked in disbelief.

"I said: count me in. I'll help protect you," the Saurian of Chameleon explained on a tone as if he was explaining to a hatchling what the difference was between rain and snow.

"Umm… Why?" Ignika asked innocently, confused by such a sudden decision. "Not that I'm against or anything, I'm very glad." He quickly added.

"Just feel like it," Came the shrugged reply. "We can't kill you or we're screwed, but I can't let you out of my sight either or you'll get into more trouble meaning we're also screwed. So there, count me in."

"Okay." Ignika smiled brightly. It wasn't every day that you get a new ally. "What is your name?"

"Chameleon, and yours is Ignika, right? What kind of name is that, anyway?"

The Child smiled. "It means 'Life' in the Great Beings' tongue. Chameleon, will you be my brother?" Ignika clenched his right hand in a fist and reached it out to Chameleon.

"Sure thing, little bro," the Saurian of Camouflage replied with a smirk, clanking his own fist against the Child of Life's, sealing their new bond.

"Great!" Ignika jumped in joy and grabbed Chameleon's hand. "Come on, let me introduce you to the others!" The happy child barely gave his new brother time to get on his feet and dragged him away.

The family was complete.

* * *

**Next chapter: Evening wonderings!**

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	77. Evening wonderings

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**77. ****Evening wonderings **

The Saurian family had finished their cake and had had enough for the moment. They decided to go downstairs and join the Senshi, finding that there were still some things that had to be discussed. They arrived into the living room, where their human friends were chatting softly and drinking tea.

"Hello, everyone!" Ignika greeted with a smile. "Did we miss anything important?"

"Ah, hello." Michiru greeted. "We just finished discussing our current situation."

"And what have you guys been up to? What was the cake for?" Haruka asked.

"A little family celebration," Traveller replied with a smile. She put an arm around Nightmare and hugged her briefly. "Right, little sister?"

Nightmare nodded, but growled. "Right. But stop it, you're embarrassing me in public, sis."

Minako smiled brightly, understanding what such attitude meant. She gave her 'sister' thumbs up.

"Anyway, there were some things I still wanted to discuss," Ignika announced, sparing a moment to smile at Traveller and Nightmare, and at Minako, too. "Mostly concerning our teamwork."

"Oh?" Usagi said.

"Well, yes, teamwork is a very valuable point." Minako raised her finger and winked at Nightmare. "So what did you want to discuss?"

"Well, I think we all know now for certain that working together in pairs at the very least really helps… I mean, just look at what happened to Rei-san…" Ignika gave the priestess an apologetic look. "I think it's important none of us are alone anymore, but with someone, be it Senshi or Saurian, at all times…"

Rei shivered. She didn't need to be reminded of it...

Ami nodded. "Personally, I agree with that teamwork helps a lot and is very valuable... But normal life doesn't always make it possible to be next to each other at all times."

"But do we really want what happened to Rei-san happen again?" Traveller asked back.

"But what did happen?" Makoto suddenly shouted. "Usagi and Setsuna know, but they don't say a word! And Rei has been sulking all evening! What happened, damn it?"

Ignika and Traveller, who had been there and seen it, looked at each other uncertainly, then at Setsuna and Usagi. "Ehm, perhaps it's best if you explain? We might add unnecessary details…"

At those words, Rei clutched her head and put her elbows on her knees, not wanting to look at anyone, not wanting to hear or see their reaction, their accusing glances and words…

Setsuna looked away. "When I and Traveller came, it was already over… But what we saw…" Setsuna shook her head. "Apparently, during her battle, Rei had fallen into some kind of a battle frenzy… Otherwise I can't explain the condition of the bodies…"

"Mutilated." Was all Usagi could utter. Even quieter, she added: "Burnt, missing their eyes or even heads…" The future Queen shivered, remembering the sight.

"Things that happen during a fight, I see," Nightmare replied with a careless shrug. "What's the deal, why so gloomy about it? Stuff like that happens."

"Senshi don't fight like that…" Haruka whispered, her arms crossed.

"Neither do Saurians," Chameleon said, an uncharacteristic thoughtful frown on his face. "But sometimes, you have no choice. You Senshi don't fight in close combat either, but sometimes, you're still forced to. It's natural. Battles never go fully like you want them."

"They're right," Traveller agreed with a nod, smiling briefly at her brother and sister. "What happened was just a result of the circumstances, and not Rei's fault. And I apologize again for shouting at you like that before, Rei-san, I had no right to condemn you, I was wrong. I'm sorry."

The other Senshi just sat still, lost in their own thoughts. Chibiusa was downright shocked, and just stared at Rei with her mouth agape. Ami remembered her own first kill, how she froze a Saurian's blood… Hotaru and Makoto were thinking of their own kills, and felt they had no right to condemn Rei. Haruka and Michiru just sat there, not knowing what to think.

Minako, pretty much like Nightmare, shrugged it off. "When it comes to death… If it's us or them, it has to be them…" She said in a low voice.

"Yep, onee-chan is right. She killed today, too, but do you see her letting it bother her? Nope! Chin up! It's only a kill. I've been doing it for centuries." Nightmare shrugged again and hugged her adopted 'sister'.

Minako frowned. "I know I have and know I don't, but still, don't talk about it so carelessly. Ordinary or not, calmly or not, we're still taking away someone's life."

"And lives of all of their unborn children…" Michiru added quietly.

"And here you sillies need to realize one thing," Nightmare snapped, irritated. "They try to kill you, and not for a moment do they stand still by the fact that they take away lives, or the lives of our unborn hatchlings. They don't care, they never did. So stop wasting your caring on things that don't deserve it, and care for things that actually appreciate being cared for. Like me!"

The others of her family were quiet. They didn't exactly disagree with Nightmare about the fact that their enemies didn't care for them for a moment, but they weren't as casual about killing as the Saurian of Fear was. Nightmare's views were the result of her long years of being scorned and socially isolated. The others had never cared for her, so she did not care about them for even a moment either. She despised them as much as they despised her.

For Traveller and Chameleon it was different. They saw the taking of a life as pure self defence, and if it could be avoided, they didn't do it. Ignika, on his part, did not enjoy killing at all, and every kill he made filled him with a bit of regret. He was the Child of Life, supposed to care for life, not take it. But even he knew that there sometimes, or actually a lot of times, was no choice, so he did it anyway. It was the others or them, after all.

Only Gravitas, as ever, felt nothing about the entire subject. Kill or not kill, she felt no emotion about it either way. If it was the practical thing to do, she'd kill. If not, she wouldn't, simple as that. And think about unborn hatchlings? She did not see why she had to do so for even a moment. Unborn hatchlings of the victims she killed didn't exist. Gravitas cared little for things that did not exist.

"Not all Saurians are like you said, Nightmare. No, definitely not all!" Hotaru argued. "And today's battle proved it!"

"I have a very simple outlook on that, shorty," Nightmare retorted effortlessly. "What attacks me, I kill. What doesn't, I leave alone until further notice."

"It's good that you weren't with us then…" Haruka said darkly, and then looked up at the Saurians. "I don't know if Ignika and Traveller told you, but since tonight, another family of Saurians lives in Master Angonce's mansion."

"So I've heard," the Saurian of Fear shrugged. "Lucky for them indeed, else they'd be taken by death to the stars at this moment."

"Rei-chan…" Usagi started, but was interrupted by the Miko raising her voice.

"The Saurians I killed were not like that." Her voice was quiet and hurt, yet firm and perfectly audible. "They had openly stated their desire to join the ranks of Immoral Ones… And yet…" Rei shivered. "I'm scared. I don't understand why I behaved, why I acted like that. Why there were no feelings… Just power and knowledge needed for killing… I don't understand it, it scares me… Even though…" Rei let go of her head and looked at her hands. "Never before… Had I controlled my powers so well…"

"If you don't know what happened to you, or what to think…" Traveller began. "Go to master Angonce. He is wise, and can surely provide you with the counsel you require, Rei-san."

Rei shook her head. "Perhaps I will, but I need to try to find the answer myself… It's somewhere near, I just know it… But what…" She fell silent again.

"Well, should you ever change your mind about wanting to see the master, let me know, I shall take you there," Traveller said kindly.

"Thank you." Rei said absentmindedly, thinking of that unimaginable surge of power during her trance. It was a mind-blowing experience. In the right state of mind, she'd never dare try diving so deep into her element…

Rei smirked darkly and thought: "But I wasn't, apparently."

"Well, just don't let it keep you down, Rei-san," Ignika suddenly chimed in. The Child of Life took a deep breath and then looked at the assembled Senshi. "Still, that aside, I do think our teamwork is important, and I'm sure you all can agree now… Today, I fought alongside Usagi-san and Chibiusa-san, and it made me realize something."

"What is it, Ignika?" Chibiusa voiced the question that lingered in everyone's mind.

"Well, you Senshi may find it silly, I don't know…" the white-haired boy answered, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. "But we've been here for quite some time already, and fought a lot of battles together, but…" The Child of Life looked around the group again. "I realized that despite all our two groups have been through together, I still don't know each and every one of you as well as I'd like to…So I think we should do some kind of things together to strengthen our bonds of unity, but to get to know each other better, too." Ignika bowed his head shyly. "Tell me if I sound stupid."

Michiru smiled. "No it's not. I think it'll be of help to the team spirit. And since we're talking about it, I have an announcement." Michiru stood up and gave everyone a glance. "In three days from now, me and Haruka are giving a charity concert. I invite you all." Michiru smiled brightly at her friends, and especially at Traveller.

Traveller's eyes widened and shone like stars. She clasped her hands together. "Truly, Michiru-san?"

Michiru nodded, smiling. "Yes, Traveller. Truly."

Excited, the Saurian of Teleportation put her arms around her little brother and Nightmare, the two who happened to be the closest to her. "Oh we accept! We accept! Don't we, sister? Don't we, brother?"

"I will once you stop smothering me," Ignika squeaked.

Nightmare wanted to say 'no!', because she didn't like classical music from the little she had heard of it. Minako had let her listen to a "see dee" of classical music once, and it had bored her to tears. But on the other hand, Traveller was family, and if she wanted the older Saurian to like her little sister more, said little sister would have to do some effort as well. "Alright, alright, I'll go…"

"Well, why not? Should be something different," Chameleon said cheerily.

Gravitas looked impassive as always. "If my sister goes, I will as well."

Everybody smiled at Traveller's happiness and the prospect of going to the concert that would have otherwise cost them a great sum of money for free, when Chibiusa, blinking, cried out:

"Wait! What would they wear?" She said, pointing at the Saurians.

"Oh gosh, you're right." Makoto said, putting her hand to her mouth thoughtfully. "They don't have any formal or evening clothes…"

Now it was Nightmare's eyes which widened, but in fear rather than excitement. "You know what, never mind, I'm not going!" she growled, creeping closer to Traveller, away from Minako. "I'm not going through that dreadful thing called 'shopping' again! Minako did it to me after our first training, and that's once but never, ever again! I'd rather face an Immoral One!"

Chameleon shivered. "Agreed."

Haruka glanced at the dread-filled Saurians. Shopping with Minako and Makoto, apparently, wasn't the most pleasant experience for them. "No." She said. "You'll be going shopping with Setsuna. She'll make it quick and efficient, right, Setsuna?"

The Senshi of Time nodded. "I enjoy shopping, but if the situation requires…" She shrugged. Then smiled. "Besides, such clothes aren't found in normal shopping centers."

"What's the difference?" Ignika wondered innocently. "You humans seem to have different clothes for everything. What's the point?"

Traveller didn't say anything, still starry eyed at the prospect of going to a concert of her musical teachers.

"It's a social and cultural thing, Ignika." Setsuna answered. "Theatre and musical concerts have been a luxury for a long time, and it's only natural for rich people to show their status with their clothing."

"Nowadays concerts are not that unreachable, but since then, a certain tradition has developed as to what is proper for the spectators to wear and what is not." Michiru explained. "It depends on the level of the theatre or concert hall, but I assure you that if you come dressed like this, you won't even be let into the building."

"That sounds kind of silly," the white-haired boy replied. "Clothes are clothes, they serve the purpose of keeping you warm and isolated, that's all."

"Not here." Makoto shrugged. "Here, they also serve a purpose of making you look beautiful and reflect your lifestyle."

"And make for torturous trips to 'shopping centers'," Chameleon added, depressed.

"You're lucky it's almost summer now, for autumn and winter you'll need thrice as many clothes." Mako countered.

"I want to go back to Voya," the Saurian of Camouflage whined.

"Oh? I thought you said you'd miss my cooking." Makoto looked at him teasingly.

"Caught between a rock and a hard place…" Chameleon grumbled. "What a dilemma."

"_Anyway_," Ignika said fiercely, not wanting this discussion about shopping and clothes to go on for much longer. "I think going to that… concert is a great idea for doing things together. But are there other things we can do?"

"All of us?" Usagi said aloud, thinking. "Amusement park?"

"Or a simple picnic." Ami smiled.

"What are those?" Gravitas wondered aloud, looking confused at her blue-haired friend. She knew the words 'amusement' and 'park', but felt that they were used together to indicate something else than the normal meaning. And the word 'picnic' she didn't know at all.

Ami smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. "Well, you'll probably find it weird… A picnic is a pastime. We go out somewhere natural, like a park, take food with us to have a meal there, and then just relax, playing games, reading or just enjoying the nature…"

"That sounds… normal," Gravitas said slowly. Then she tilted her head to one side. "And an 'amusement park'?"

"It's a place where we tickle our nerves with completely pointless things." Haruka joked, rolling her eyes. The Senshi all chuckled or laughed at it. "But really, better to see than to hear."

Gravitas raised an eyebrow. "You are making no sense."

"Ah, fine, I'll explain." Usagi said and raised a finger. "What makes an amusement park awesome are the various rides for all tastes and ages. Each ride is some kind of a machine you ride in together with other people. Mostly aimed at tickling the senses." She winked at Haruka. "Oh, and there's also a lot of different attractions, and popcorn, and cotton candy everywhere!"

Gravitas raised her eyebrow even higher. "That makes even less sense."

"It doesn't have to!" Minako grinned.

Makoto nodded. "Just wait till you ride the roller coaster, then you'll see the difference between a normal park and an amusement one."

Chibiusa giggled. "They'll think mankind is insane for sure."

"As if we don't already," Nightmare snorted, rolling her eyes.

"Anyway, it's fun and thrilling..." Makoto started, but then was interrupted by a snort.

Everybody looked in the direction the snort came from… And saw Hotaru standing on her knees on the floor, her head resting on her arms on top of the couch's arm, asleep.

"Very fun and thrilling indeed," Nightmare smirked. "So fun, in fact, shorty fell asleep because of it."

Haruka shook her head. "No. She fell asleep because she's tired. And frankly, I wouldn't mind following her example."

"I suppose that's reasonable," Ignika agreed, though he didn't seem very tired yet. "It is rather late, and though I feel energetic, strangely enough, but I blame my elemental experience, I do think it's time to go to sleep…"

Traveller frowned, snapping out of her daze she had slipped into by the announcement of the concert. "I'm not teleporting anybody home again, my mind's a tad too tired to do so…"

"I don't mind sleeping here with the family," Gravitas said tonelessly.

Haruka shrugged. "Well, you can stay here, I suppose."

Michiru looked worriedly at Usagi and Chibiusa. "Won't Tsukino-san be worried?"

"Nah." Usagi smiled. "I told her I'll be sleeping at Rei's."

Chibiusa nodded. "And I'm supposedly sleeping over at a school friend's."

Michiru nodded approvingly. "Good. Well, I'll bring some extra blankets and pillows… Haruka, let's go."

The Senshi of Wind carefully picked up her daughter up to carry her to the bed and followed her love upstairs.

Nightmare frowned, and looked at the blonde Senshi of Love. "Onee-chan, is this what you call a 'sleepover'? You mentioned that once, in your babbling."

Minako smiled. "You can say that. Although usually a sleepover is a party with fewer people and more fun. Oh, and everyone's wearing sleeping garments."

"So I guess this doesn't count," she decided. Then she clung to the blonde's arm. "But I'm sleeping with you again, onee-chan." Nightmare's family shared surprised glances and then looked at the Saurian of Fear with raised eyebrows. Nightmare just shrugged, and snuggled closer to the blonde Senshi, purring.

Minako smiled, hugging her newfound sister. "Sure thing, imouto-chan."

"Wow." Ami said. "Really, I wouldn't have believed it's possible if I haven't seen it with my own eyes."

"Somebody look outside to see if treeturtles have grown wings and started to fly," Chameleon joked. In response, Nightmare zapped him with a small dose of her powers, enough to startle him for no reason, before she snuggled happily against Minako again.

"Shut it, useless," she murmured.

Haruka and Michiru came down, each carrying a futon. "Managed to find these two." Michiru said and began to roll out the futon on the floor. Haruka followed suit.

"So who's sleeping where?" Chibiusa asked.

"I suppose me and Gravitas can go join Ignika and Traveller in their room," Chameleon suggested. "There's enough room on the floor, and I'm sure Ignika can turn something organic in something soft to lay down on."

"My two sisters should come sleep with me and Traveller as well," Gravitas agreed. "Family must stick together, especially sisters." As an afterthought, she added: "Or so I am told."

"Ehm…" Minako said uncertainly. "I'm glad you call me sister and all… But neither me nor Nightmare are very still sleepers…"

Nightmare winced, remembering the few times she and Gravitas had slept together, when it was exceptionally cold. She tugged on Minako's sleeve. "The one to suffer will be us, onee-chan," she whispered. "Gravitas has her own way of dealing with active sleepers."

"Umm…" Minako could only say, completely uncertain now.

"Gravity has its uses," Gravitas admitted emotionlessly, though her family could have sworn the corners of her mouth lifted up ever so slightly.

"There's just one problem," Ignika said. "With Minako-san added to the group, that makes six of us in the small room Traveller and I usually share. That's too many. Maybe we should sleep here in the living room for this once, and let somebody else use the guestroom?"

"We don't mind." Usagi said.

"Yep. I can sleep in Hotaru's room and then we'll have only four people in your room." Chibiusa said smiling.

"It's decided then." Setsuna said and yawned. "Well, good night, everyone." She got up from her armchair and went upstairs.

"Good night, my friend," Traveller replied, smiling at her symbiosis partner.

Setsuna smiled back at her before ascending the stairs, and was followed by Haruka, Michiru and the Inner Senshi sans Minako. All wished each other good night and left the Saurians and one Senshi to get their own sleep.

"Well then," Ignika said, clapping his hands excitedly. "I guess it's just us family now!" He smiled a big cheerful smile at Minako. "The family just keeps expanding, huh?"

Minako smiled shyly. "Just don't mention any of this to my parents when they come back, okay? They wouldn't be happy about suddenly having five more children…"

Chameleon wrapped an arm around the blonde all of the sudden. "No problem, sis."

Nightmare put her hands on her hips and glared at the Saurian of Camouflage. "Now listen here, useless, onee-chan is MY sister! She agreed to be, she didn't agree to be yours!" She latched herself onto Minako's arm. "I won't let you take her from me."

"Fine, fine," Chameleon shrugged. "I'll just call her Minako-san, then. Would feel weird to call a human sis, anyway." He then unceremoniously dropped himself on a couch and closed his eyes. "Whatever, night, family and Minako-san."

"Night, Chameleon." Minako said and shook her head. "Nightmare…" She started, but then changed her mind. The teenager had just gained a person who could give her warmth, and Minako could understand that she didn't want it to be taken away or even shared, not even with her family. But that was okay. Minako will make sure Nightmare gets all the warmth she wants…

With those thoughts, Minako made herself comfortable on a futon she shared with Nightmare. Gravitas placed herself down next to Nightmare, causing the youngest of the three sisters to be placed in the middle. Hesitatingly, Gravitas put an arm around her little sister, hesitatingly looking at Minako and asking her with her eyes if she was doing the right thing.

Ignika and Traveller smiled at the sight, then laid down together on the other futon, Traveller hugging her little brother warmly and strongly, gently caressing through his hair.

Minako smiled at the silver-haired girl and caressed her arm, nodding approvingly.

"Good night, everyone." She said, addressing her adoptive family. "Gravitas, could you turn off the light? Those two switches." She pointed at the wall with the switches. The Saurian of Gravity nodded, pointed her finger at the switches and used her powers to turn them down, switching off the light. Then she tightened her hold on Nightmare.

"Good night, my sister…" she whispered quietly.

Nightmare smiled in the darkness, then let go of Minako for a moment to turn around and nuzzle Gravitas' neck, showing her appreciation. Then the Saurian of Fear laid down on her back, so both of her sisters could hold her evenly, which they did. The young girl could barely believe that this was happening. She was being held, kept warm and hugged by the two sisters she loved the most. Never before had the Saurian of Fear been this happy.

Bathing in the warmth of her sisters, the young girl drifted off to sleep, and her dreams were happy ones.

* * *

**Next chapter: Training and warning!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Litaxken: I'm glad you enjoy the story and that you like Chameleon and Makoto. Thanks for the review. =)


	78. Training and warning

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**78. Training and warning**

The morning came, quietly and serenely, and the sunrays streamed through the windows of the Outer Senshi's house, illuminating the living room and stirring the sleeping Saurians inside. Chameleon was the first to wake up, yawning and stretching his arms above his head. For a moment he wondered where he was, his surroundings being unfamiliar for a moment, until he remembered the events of yesterday and their decision to stay at the Outers' place. Cracking the joints of his neck, the Saurian of Chameleon looked around the living room, before gazing at his sleeping family on the floor on the futons.

Traveller and Ignika were still together, the Child of Life cradled safely in his oldest sister's arms. Chameleon smiled upon seeing that, but his smile widened even more as he looked at his other two sisters and their human adopted one. Gravitas had apparently been able to prevent the other two from going anywhere during their sleep, Nightmare being kept in an iron grip by the Saurian of Gravity. Minako, in her sleep, had apparently put an arm around Nightmare as well, and it seemed the two sisters of the Saurian of Fear had struggled for possession of their little sister's sleeping body. Chameleon had to do everything to not laugh out loud at that idea.

Then, Chameleon sniffed a familiar scent coming from the kitchen. It was that strange black drink Makoto didn't allow him to even try.

"What was it called again...? 'Ko fee'?" Chameleon thought and went to check who was making it. "Could it be Makoto, up so early?"

However, when he came to the kitchen, he saw not the Senshi of Lightning, but rather the Senshi of Wind. Haruka was dressed in a casual tight-fitting t-shirt and sports pants, and had just finished making herself coffee.

"Hi," the disguised reptile said, leaning against the doorframe, enjoying the smell of the coffee. He didn't know how it tasted, but it smelled very good. A very rich scent. "You're up early, aren't you, as far as humans go?"

Haruka nodded. "Couldn't sleep." She turned off the cooker and poured her coffee in a cup. "And your family is also still asleep, huh?"

"I'd be too, if somebody had been hugging me while sleeping," the boy shrugged. "But I wasn't, and the light shone in my eyes, so… Up I am."

"I see..." Haruka looked at the coffee pot. She'd made a bit too much, apparently, there was still about half a cup left. "Want some?" She offered Chameleon the coffee.

The Saurian looked uncertain. "I don't know… Makoto never let me have some, so I'm guessing she had a good reason for that."

Haruka shrugged and was about to put the pot back on the cooker, when she heard Chameleon continue his thought:

"But it smells so good..."

Haruka chuckled. "Well, suit yourself." She sat at the table and started reading a yesterday's newspaper, since today's haven't been delivered yet, calmly sipping her coffee. The next moment, she heard Chameleon choke.

"Triple yuck!" he cursed, spitting out the coffee in the sink. "How can something that smells so good taste so terrible?"

Haruka chuckled again. "I like my coffee bitter. Most people drink it with sugar." Then she got a devious idea.

Haruka went over to a cupboard and took a box from it. Inside were fine Belgian chocolates, in small, thin bars. Haruka took one out, with "90% Chocolate" written on it and offered it to Chameleon. "Want a chocolate?"

She hadn't even finished saying it or Chameleon was right besides her, hand extended. "Yes!" he said enthusiastically. Then he added, almost as an afterthought: "Please?"

"There you go." Haruka gave the boy the black-wrapped chocolate and went back to her seat, seemingly uninterested in what she knew would follow. She was barely able to prevent herself from grinning.

She got the same reaction as before.

"Unexpected, huh?" Haruka laughed softly and evilly.

"Okay, that's it!" Chameleon growled. He waved his hand, summoning his Camouflage Daggers to his clenched fists and advanced on the laughing blonde. So she liked laughing with him, huh? Well, he'd show her. Soon, she wouldn't be laughing.

Haruka's eyes widened and she ducked under the table, kicking a chair under Chameleon's feet. "So now we know how coffee affects Saurians..." She thought, getting out on the other side of the table and dashing towards the backyard through the kitchen door.

Chameleon was faster, however, and he jumped overt he chair and lunged at her, managing to catch Haruka by the arm. "Not so fast!" he growled. "You're not going anywhere except to the garden. It's training time, lady."

Haruka sweatdropped. "I guessed so. And over there..." She pointed at the kitchen door. "Is the shortcut. We don't need to go all the way to the front door, you know."

Chameleon stopped in his tracks and looked at where she was pointing. "Oh." He shrugged and smiled. "All the same," he said before dragging her to the kitchen door.

The Senshi just sighed and followed him outside. The air was still chilly from the night, and the grass was covered with dew. Still, she didn't have anything to do, anyway, and training was a valuable pastime.

The Saurian of Camouflage grinned evilly as he noticed Haruka's reluctance. That would teach her.

"Uranus Crystal Power, Make Up!"

In a flash of light, Sailor Uranus stood before him. "So, I am ready, teacher." She said, summoning her Space Sword.

Chameleon nodded, then dismissed one of his daggers. Uranus had only one weapon, so to be fair he had to do the same. "Alright," he said, eying the Senshi of the Winds critically. "Let's get this started. Though technically I use daggers and you a short sword, the design and size of your weapon makes it lean closer to my daggers than to Nightmare's katana, so you're better off with me."

Haruka nodded. "True. We have come to that conclusion earlier." For now, Uranus took a waiting position, taking in all of Chameleon's words, but prepared to counter if he tried to make an unexpected move. That she deemed as a necessary precaution, after being told about Nightmare's training methods.

"Okay then," Chameleon decided. "Attack me with your weapon. And only with your weapon. I'll do nothing but defend."

Haruka nodded, noticing that he had seen through her simple tactic. Knowing her swordsmanship was far from best and that she would be corrected, anyway, she simply charged at Chameleon head-on. She swung her sword at him, but he deflected it and knocked it off course with a simple downward strike of his dagger. When she tried to get him by slicing upward, he merely leaned to the side and knocked her off course with an upward strike himself, making her stumble as she tried to regain her balance. So Haruka attacked, time and time again, but Chameleon simply parried and deflected every single strike with his hands in his pockets, so to speak.

"Observe all you want..." Haruka said, panting as she made another attempt. "But teach, too."

"I'm simply waiting for you to give up," Chameleon replied with a shrug. "But fine, you're right, I've seen what I needed to see." Then he lunged and attacked, disarming her so quickly she wasn't even aware of it until he kicked her legs from under her and made her land unceremoniously on her butt.

Haruka simply looked up at him, and stood up, wanting to go and retrieve her sword. "What do you have to say, teacher?"

"That you'll need a lot of teaching, Haruka-san," Chameleon chuckled. "And give me a lot of good chocolate before I go easier on you."

Haruka smiled, picking up her sword. "Going easy is not my way." She turned around to face her teacher.

"Meh, you'll need it, because if I were to go realistic on you, you'd be dead in a second, weapon-wise," Chameleon answered calmly. "You see, your problem is that you've got no technique at all. You just blindly swing that thing around hoping to hit something. A weapon doesn't work that way. Every strike you make has to be planned, thought about and well-aimed. And you need to be able to do so in less than a second." He scratched his chin. "Tell me, Haruka-san, have you actually ever been told how to use that sword properly? Or is it just a magic stick for you?"

"I wouldn't call it a magic stick, but it is a ceremonial weapon." Haruka replied. "If anybody ever taught me, it was in my former life, and I don't remember it."

"Well, watch out with that, if Saurians see you having that weapon, they'll assume you can use it, and that's one more reason why they might choose to go for you rather than someone else," Ignika's older brother explained patiently. "So like I said, every strike has to count. With every strike, your goal has to be to end the fight with that one strike. Don't swing it blindly, that will accomplish nothing but tire you out. Aim, for goodness sake! Aim for vital spots, such as the neck, or the inner thighs, places that have a lot of blood going through them. That, or aim to disable your opponent. Strike their hands, their feet, whatever they use in a fight. But always, always…" Chameleon tapped the side of his head with a finger. "Use your head while doing so. Focus and concentrate, one strike at a time. That's the first thing you gotta understand."

Haruka mused over that, going over and memorizing key details in her mind. Finally, she nodded. "Got it."

"Good. I'll check if you really got it later. Now, second thing. An enemy's obviously not going to stand around waiting for you to aim and strike him, he's gonna attack you as well. So for now, let's say you're up against a sword user like yourself. He strikes at you with his blade, and you can't dodge or dive, you have to parry and deflect it," Chameleon continued, crossing his arms and looking inquiring at Haruka. It was kind of strange to see the boy that was, body-wise at least, younger than her, tutor the, body-wise, older Senshi of the Winds. Even more so because Uranus preferred to work alone and take advise from nobody, except the other Outers or maybe the Inners. "So, how are you going to do that?" her 'teacher' asked.

"Block it?" Uranus sighed and looked straight into Chameleon's eyes. "Look, Chameleon. I know that I am a bad swordsman. I know nothing about swordplay. If you're trying to get me to think on my own, it won't work, because I have nothing to base my thoughts on. So..." She paused and tightened the grip on her sword. "Just teach me how to do it right."

Chameleon sighed. "Haruka-san, I've been defending correctly all the time just now. Surely you're not unobservant? Think back to how I did it and answer me."

Haruka smiled. She took up a fighting stance and said: "Bring it on."

"Do you know how I did it?"

"Best way to learn is practice. Let's see if I learned something." The Senshi answered.

Chameleon sighed. "Look, Haruka-san, the best way to learn is to listen well to your teacher and do what he says. I'm not asking you to fight or practice. I'm just asking you to answer my question. Only when I'm sure you've got it, will I let you try."

Haruka sighed. "Fine. An upwards slash like this..." She repeated the move she did. "Is parried with an upward slash like this." She repeated Chameleon's move as well as she could. "A downward slash..." Haruka continued, and went over all their small battle, trying her best to repeat the moves as closely as possible.

The Saurian disguised as a human nodded. "Yup. And do you know why that is?"

"Use my own strength and momentum against me?" Haruka suggested.

"Correct," Chameleon confirmed with a smile. "I know Traveller teaches your daughter, Hotaru-san… Surely she must have mentioned this to her as well, right? When defending, try to do it in the same direction as your opponent, that saves strength. Try to avoid head on collisions, or locking weapons in a contest of strength. Those are too big a risk to be worth it. What's more, if at all possible, try to strike downwards as much as you can, so you have gravity on your side." Thoughtfully, he added: "At least, that's the Saurian technique, I'm not sure if you humans do it the same. But you're up against Saurians, so I'll teach you our ways."

Haruka smiled sadly. "Human ways of swordplay haven't been used for hundreds of years... Some still teach the old ways, but it is seen more as sport or training than learning to fight."

The disguised Saurian nodded. "Well then, let's see if you've really learned something now… Attack me again. I'll notice right away if you're keeping my advice in mind. Don't worry about hurting me, even if you've learned what's needed, I doubt you can. After that, I'll check if you've learned your lesson defence-wise."

"Alright." Haruka said and charged at him again, seemingly having learned nothing. However, once she closed the distance between her and her teacher, she swiftly changed her stance and aimed for his throat.

Chameleon smirked and blocked it, sending her strike off course again, with a little bit less ease than before. "Good, that's better than before. Still, totally transparent what you were going to do, but hey, it's a good start. Try again."

Haruka nodded and, not changing her position, brought her arm up, aiming to slash Chameleon's hand with her sword, and if it fails, to get into the right position to slash at his throat again.

Again, Chameleon deflected it and, seeing through her intent, parried her with such force she stumbled and lost her balance, threatening to fall. "You're doing better now, but I can't say you're a prodigy," he told her honestly. "I can practically see the gears spinning in your head. Yes, it's good that you think, but you'll have to train yourself to do it fluently, without delay. Don't worry, that'll come. It has to become a second nature to you."

"Maybe quicker than you think..." She muttered, attacking again. Instantly taking in the ever-changing situation, making decisions and thinking quickly wasn't new to her, she had to do it all the time in her every single race, but adapting that skill to fighting was a different thing.

"You're fast, I give you that," Chameleon admitted, as he deftly stepped out of the way of her attack, making her stumble again. He struck her back with the flat of his dagger. "But at the same time, you're too fast. It's weird. You seem to think so slow, but are so quick in the way you carry out your actions. I'm not saying you're dumb, mind you. Just, you prefer to charge way too much. Only do so when you know you can get away with it, like me, okay?"

"It's easier to learn to think quicker." Haruka replied, attacking him again. "I am a racer, Chameleon. Being quick, pressing on, outrunning all my opponents – that's the key to my victory." With those words, she made another slash, now trying to cut through his stomach.

"But you shouldn't be rash," Chameleon corrected her, easily parrying her again. "I mean, I know I'm being a hypocrite here, but really. I have both the power _and _the experience that allows me to take such risks, and despite what the others say, I'm always careful. You, on the other hand, Haruka-san, only have the power, not the skill, to be so rash in a Saurian battle. Keep it in mind."

"Got it. Rash and quick, there really is a difference." She suddenly ducked and made a slash at the Saurian's legs. He had jumped to avoid it, but Haruka had counted on it, and sprang up on her feet, slashing upwards, aiming at his thigh.

"Nice!" Chameleon commented. Then he smirked. "But not good enough!" Before Haruka's startled eyes, Chameleon pulled in his legs and flipped his body midair, doing a salto, bringing his feet down on Uranus' shoulders and knocked her down to the ground again. Chameleon landed on his two feet and grinned. "Don't underestimate me just because I'm in a human body now. I can still pull of feats that seem to defy the laws of physics. I've trained myself for that."

"You don't say..." Haruka said sarcastically, still lying on the ground. Then she suddenly grabbed Chameleon's leg firmly with her feet and turned over, causing the boy to lose balance and fall on the ground. Within a moment, Haruka was on top of him, only to find his dagger on her throat.

"Like I said," the Saurian grinned wickedly. "You're way too obvious. I know all moves beginners try to pull on me to try and surprise me, and they always fail. Game over, Haruka-san."

Haruka chuckled. "Who were you teaching so efficiently?" She lay defeated, sure, but now, she had at least learned something, and she considered that she performed well for someone who doesn't know how to properly hold a sword.

"Meh, I've been around in villages before I joined the family," the boy explained. "To pay for my stay, I taught the hatchlings some self-defence every now and then."

Haruka nodded. "I see. Experience does show, you're a good teacher. Now could you please remove the dagger from my throat?"

"If you promise to give me some _real _chocolate, then yes, I will," the Saurian of Chameleon teased, sticking out his tongue.

Haruka rolled her eyes. "It _was_ real chocolate. The most real one you can find. Chocolate is made by mixing cocoa beans with other ingridients like milk and sugar. Normal chocolate has less than 60% cocoa, while the one I gave you has 90%. So of course it's bitter."

Chameleon gave her a puzzled look. "Eh, what?"

"Remove the dagger, I don't like explaining proportions with steel at my throat."

"Gimme sweet chocolate," Chameleon retorted, obviously enjoying teasing Haruka like this. Payback was a bitch, as they said, and totally when it was a Saurian doing the paying back. When it came to that, they never miscalculated.

"Sure, no problem. Not everyone can appreciate all the shades of taste in real, bitter chocolate." Haruka replied causally. "Or coffee."

Chameleon winced when he remembered the bad taste, then removed his Camouflage Dagger from Uranus' throat. "You humans are such weird creatures. On one hand, you make the most delicious kind of foods, on the other, you make the most disgusting ones, too." Still grinning, the Saurian crawled from under the Senshi and got back to his feet, stretching his arms above his head and cracking the joints of his neck. "Aah, nothing beats a bit of morning exercising before having a chocolate breakfast."

Haruka rolled her eyes. "To be honest, I don't have much normal chocolate in my house. Definitely not enough for a breakfast. But you'll get a decent meal. Now that Mako-chan is here, it's probably she who will be cooking."

"Sounds good, though I'm open for new stuffs, too," Chameleon shrugged. He eyed the Senshi of the Winds curiously. "You know, there's something I've been wondering."

"What?" Haruka asked, looking back at him.

Ignika's brother crossed his arms and tilted his head sideways. "Makoto told me some stuff about the battles you girls fought before our arrival. One thing I never really got was why you attacked Makoto and the others back then. Aren't you all supposed to be on the same side, being Senshi and all?"

Haruka smirked bitterly. "Our mission differed from theirs. Our mission was to find the three Talismans and awaken the Messiah. To complete that mission, we were ready for any sacrifices, and to obliterate any obstacles that come our way. That's why we didn't hesitate to attack our fellow Senshi should they interfere."

"Yeah, but if you'd just explained your mission to them instead of being all high and mighty and 'it's none of your business', they might have gone out of the way themselves, eh? Or am I wrong and is this some weird kind of Senshi or human logic?" Chameleon asked again, probing deeper into the matter. Normally he wasn't so nosy, but the Senshi before him _had_ attacked Makoto, and he wasn't sure he was as okay with that as Makoto was.

"Perhaps. But we Outer Senshi have always been loners..." Haruka shook her head. "I do not know how many years have passed since Michiru gained her power, or for how many years she was burdened with the visions of the Apocalypse... But she defended the world on her own, where she could and how she could, maybe even before the Inner Senshi were awakened. And when I joined her..." Haruka smiled slightly. "She was not alone anymore, but still was a loner. I'm not the one for teamwork, either, being a racer. So we worked alone together."

Chameleon sighed. "Listen, I'm not very suited for teamwork, either. My power is a passive one, it can't be used directly for offence, or combined attacks. So I work alone when I can during battle. So I can understand that. But I can't understand why you kept the other Senshi in the dark when you knew they were charged with protecting this world as well, and that they would want to help or get involved no matter what you said. But you refused to, almost as if you wanted to attack them." The boy shook his head. "And it's that that I don't understand. What do you gain by sowing reasons for doubt and antagonism amongst yourselves?"

Haruka sighed. "Can you imagine Usagi going after Talismans?" She shook her head, imaging Usagi bugging her with every single Pure Heart Crystal that definitely isn't a Talisman there is. "Besides, how would they do it? Attack civilians to get their Pure Heart Crystal? That's impossible, not only because of the idea of attacking innocents, but also technically impossible. Only the daimon of Death Busters could do that." Haruka shook her head again. "What we basically did was waiting for the daimon to extract the crystal, and destroy it afterwards so we can check whether it is a Talisman. Can you imagine Makoto standing still while an innocent is being attacked?" She sighed again. "Besides, we didn't know ourselves what Talismans looked like back then. We only knew that we could feel whether a Pure Heart Crystal contains it or not. How would we explain what we're looking for to the Inners?"

"You could have at least explained your actions," Chameleon reasoned. "Truth to be told, you and your mate set a lot of bad blood with Makoto back then. Now that's gone, but it could have been avoided, if partly, had you at least said that you were looking for something, and weren't their enemies. You could have done that, right? Unless you thought back then that you _were_ enemies, in which case I'll call you an idiot."

"And if the mission required us to become enemies?" Haruka countered. "If gaining a Talisman indeed required sacrifice, and it was not Michiru and me that contained them, but one of the Inners? That would be betrayal, Chameleon. Better not to become a friend if you know you might have to stab your friend in the back."

"Hmm, I suppose," the Saurian reluctantly admitted. He scratched his chin absentmindedly with the tip of his dagger. "I guess in the end it all did turn out well, but let me make one thing perfectly clear, Sailor Uranus…" He finished menacingly, his tone dark and serious.

"What is it?" Haruka asked, just as serious.

"If you, for any reason, get a mission that inquires you to risk the safety of my family, or of the other Senshi, don't even _think_ of going through with it," he hissed dangerously, his eyes casting a dark glare on her. "Or you'll find me on your path, and then you'll find out, for the last time ever, why you are the student, and I am the master." Slowly, Chameleon rose back to his normal height again, but his glare remained. "Remember, Sailor Uranus. The world is finite, but I am not. As of such, I don't really care for the world. The world can end for all I care, as long as my family remains safe, I won't shed a tear for it. And I'll sacrifice the world for my family without second thought. Remember that well."

Haruka nodded. There wasn't much to say.

Chameleon nodded as well, satisfied. Then his dark expression vanished and his usual cheery smile returned and he grinned. "Well then, now I really want that chocolate!"

Haruka chuckled and undid her transformation. "Let's go, sweettooth." She said, casually turning around and motioning Chameleon to come back to the kitchen with her.

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**Next chapter: Rights and wrongs in the morning!**

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**Author's note: **

Before anyone says Chameleon is kinda selfish (or very selfish) for being ready to sacrifice the world for his family, and not caring about the world, you have to look at it from his point of view. Just like Ignika, and the rest of the family, he's immortal and won't age. So, eventually, if he survives this fic, he'll grow older than the world and he'll see the world die. And he'll live on and see other worlds live and die, and keep doing so till infinity and beyond, until his life is so long that the lifespan of a world will look like a minute to him, something fleeting and short that will die and vanish anyhow. The only thing he'll have to keep him sane in his long torment of immortality is his family, so that's why they mean more to him than even the world or the universe, because, if all goes well, he'll outlive the universe anyhow.

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	79. Rights and wrongs in the morning

**AN: This chapter contains references to mature content in its second half.**

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**79. ****Rights and wrongs in the morning**

Nightmare woke up feeling happier than she ever had before. When she opened her eyes and looked around without moving, she remembered immediately why that was: she was being hugged by the two people she held the most dear in her life, the two sisters she was closest to. It was great, heavenly even. She wanted it to never end. She wanted to go back to sleep and enjoy it more, but she heard sounds coming from outside, curious ones, almost like fighting. That, and she noticed she had woken up Minako with her stirring, too. Or maybe it was just the sunlight hitting the blonde's face.

It was indeed the sunlight, because the next moment Minako sneezed and opened her eyes. "Morning, Nightmare-imouto-chan." She said sleepily and warmly.

Grinning widely, the Saurian girl pulled her human sister in a tight embrace. "Good morning, onee-chan! It can't be better! Awakening to find myself hugged by my sisters, the sound of battle in the garden, warmth of the sun and the hug, feeling well rested…" Nightmare sighed happily and snuggled against her sister. "It's perfect, onee-chan."

Minako smiled, returned her hug and closed her eyes to catch some more bits of sleep, but then her eyes flew open and widened. "Wait, battle in the garden?"

"Yeah, probably useless sparring with someone, he's missing from the couch," Nightmare answered, her eyes still closed and still snuggling against Minako. All the time, she was fully aware of Gravitas' arm wrapped around her as the Saurian of Gravity slept on, and the gesture touched the youngest sister of the family.

"Ah. I see." Well, it was logical, if it was something serious, then surely Chameleon would have at least woken his family up. So Minako smiled and looked at Gravitas. "She's really improved, huh?" She said quietly, talking about the silver-haired girl.

"Yeah, I know," Nightmare agreed, a happy smile on her face. "She never did this before… I guess that brainiac girl of your group told her that this was normal for sisters… But maybe she's improving a little _too_ well…"

"What do you mean?" Minako asked. "I think any improvement is good..."

"Try getting up, you'll see what I mean," came the reply with a sigh.

Confused, Minako tried to sit up, but found out that she couldn't. It was as if she was pressed to the ground... by gravity.

"Oh... Okay, I take my words back, you're right. Good thing we can at least move when still in bed." Minako said, then paused, deep in thought. "Maybe she took something Ami said way too literally?"

"I think she got told sisters sleep together like this," Nightmare replied. "So now she thinks that we need to stay like this until we're _both_ awake."

"Heh... Okay, let's fix that." Minako said, chuckling. She took a strand of her long blonde hair and tickled the Saurian of Gravity's nose.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, onee-chan," Nightmare warned teasingly.

"I think it's more effective than trying to shake her awake." Minako replied simply and kept tickling her.

"Fine with me, if you're ready to say goodbye to some of your teeth," Gravitas' sister by blood shrugged.

That did stop Minako. "You've got better ideas?" She asked her adoptive sister.

"Yeah, wait till she wakes up herself… Gravitas hates being woken up. She has a terrible mood then, and she'll glare at everyone for all day then," Nightmare explained patiently, thinking back to the few times that happened before. "Normally, she's always quick to wake up… But I think she's enjoying this as much as we were, so that's why…"

Minako tilted her head, looking at Gravitas. "Is she _really _asleep? I mean, we've been talking for a while now, and if she's a light sleeper she couldn't have not noticed it and the tickling..."

"Well, it's the first time she slept while sharing the warmth and comfort of an embrace…" Nightmare replied. "Remember, we overslept too when we slept together for the first time, Onee-chan."

"Well, that was more because of the battle before that..." Minako sighed and turned over, lying on her back. "So what to do now?"

"Hug and enjoy it?"

Minako smiled: "Well, okay, but it'll get boring in a while..."

"I disagree," Nightmare whispered affectionately.

Minako hugged her sister again. Despite how many hugs she got, Nightmare never seemed to get enough of it. And Minako understood that perfectly. This girl needed warmth...

The Love Senshi's eyes drifted to Gravitas, still holding Nightmare firmly with her arm. She always seemed so cold... But then again, today Nightmare said she enjoyed this warm hug just as they did. Suddenly, Minako got an idea.

"Say... How about we make a surprise for Gravitas?" She said, smiling brightly.

"A surprise?" Minako's adopted 'sister' echoed.

"Well, see, you enjoyed waking up to your two sisters' embrace very much... I think that maybe Gravitas will be pleasantly surprised when she finds _herself_ being hugged by two sisters instead of you." She explained her idea with a happy smile.

"She'll be surprised, that's for sure," Nightmare agreed with a nod, liking the idea. "I don't know if it'll be _pleasantly_, or if she'll feel anything at all, but it's a good idea nonetheless, onee-chan." She smiled at the blonde.

"Great!" Minako turned over and tried to get on her fours. She did manage to do it somewhat, but hit her head – "Ouch!" – on the invisible gravity barrier. Rubbing her head, she started slowly crawling over her two adoptive sisters to get behind Gravitas.

"I never did understand how the heck she can use her powers while sleeping…" Gravitas' little sister muttered as she turned around to face her older sister and put her arms warmly around her in a hug.

"Well, it's strange, but not that surprising... I mean, some people talk in their sleep, some can't stay still like us, and Gravitas uses her powers..." Minako, having hit her head a few more times, still managed to crawl over and lie down next to Gravitas. She gently and warmly hugged her from behind. Her middle sister was cool to touch...

Gravitas drew a sharp intake of breath, and for a moment it seemed as if she would wake up, but then she visibly relaxed, and her face got an expression so peaceful, only Ami had seen it before, when Gravitas had read books for the very first time. The middle sister of the Saurian family took in the warmth of the embraces, and relaxed, and even her gravity hold on her siblings slipped.

But now the said siblings didn't _want_ to get up until their middle sister awakens. After what she did, after she showed her caring, they couldn't leave her to wake up alone. Besides, they were curious how she will react when she wakes up...

Unfortunately for them, Gravitas had no intention whatsoever to wake up any time soon, and she simply slept on, calmly, peacefully breathing and keeping her arm around her little sister. That was when Michiru came downstairs, having woken up to find the other half of her bed cold and empty, something she never liked.

Curious, she came over to the sisters. "Hey. You're awake already?"

"Aside from Gravitas, yes, we are," Nightmare answered. "And useless is in the garden sparring with someone."

Michiru raised her eyebrow. "What?"

Minako nodded and smiled at her. "Yes, Michiru-chan, you should go check it, we won't be getting up in a while." She returned to her embrace and gently stroked Gravitas' hair. Nightmare followed the example of her sister and snuggled closer to the Saurian of Gravity, tightening the grip she had on the girl with her arms.

Michiru chuckled and shook her head. It was kind of weird to see them hugging Gravitas, as if wanting to warm her, but still so touching... Still smiling, she went to the kitchen...

"Well-well-well... What do we have here." Michiru put her hands on her hips as she observed the kitchen. "An unfinished cup of coffee, a bitten chocolate piece, a chair lying on the floor... Haruka." She concluded and went to the garden.

Haruka and Chameleon had just finished their training session and were coming her way. When he noticed Michiru, Chameleon smirked at Haruka. "Well look at that, your mate's come to catch your tears of loss, my student."

"Che..." Haruka shrugged. "Hey, Michiru-chan, the great teacher demands chocolate as payment for the training." She said in a mockingly serious tone.

"Don't you know chocolate is bad for the teeth?" Michiru shook her head and rolled her eyes. "Well, okay, let's go."

"Meh, not eating is bad for your health," Chameleon retorted. He rolled his eyes. "Students and their mates, always acting like smartasses."

"Sure, sure..." Haruka said, entering the house. "Michiru, where's the normal chocolate?"

"There was a bar in the fridge, I think..." Michiru held a finger to her chin thoughtfully, then went to check the fridge. "Ah, here it is." She said, taking out an Alpen Gold bar with nuts and raisins. "Definitely not the best, but a sweet enough payment." Michiru smiled and handed it to Chameleon.

"I thank you," Chameleon grinned, his eyes shining with glee. Then he looked at Michiru sceptically. "If this is that awful kind of chocolate again like before, it'll be your turn to train, Michiru-san."

"You just have an average taste." Haruka said, sitting down on the chair and returning to drinking her now cold bitter coffee and finishing the chocolate bar Chameleon found too bitter.

"Alright, that's it, next time, I'll train you the Nightmare-way," the Saurian of Camouflage growled mock-threatening at Haruka, before opening his chocolate reward and starting to devour it. "Anybody else up already?"

"Minako and Nightmare are, but they don't seem to be eager to get up..." Michiru chuckled. "They very cute, you know, hugging Gravitas like that."

"I think my ears are still sleeping," Chameleon muttered. "I just heard 'Nightmare' and 'cute' mentioned in the same sentence." He took another eager bite of his chocolate, when a voice came from the living room, almost making him choke on it.

"I heard that, useless!"

Michiru chuckled again. "Some things never change, no?"

"It would be a pity if they did," Chameleon answered with a shrug, not caring for Nightmare's outburst at all. Let her hear it, he had no problems with that. He sat down on a chair and took a deep breath. "Aaah… Well, anyway, what's today's schedule?"

"For me, it's rehearsing, rehearsing and rehearsing again." Michiru answered. "For Haruka, too. As for the rest of you, I haven't thought about it."

"Question probably is what we _can_ do…" a new voice came, and Ignika sleepily dragged himself into the kitchen, absentmindedly rubbing through his hair and yawning. "Morning Michiru-san, Haruka-san… Morning Chameleon…"

"Morning, Ignika. Slept well?" Haruka asked, opening her newspaper again.

"Wonderful," the Child of Life replied honestly, yawning again. "Until someone decided it was a good idea to go sparring loudly outside while others are sleeping."

Haruka raised her eyebrow. "Was it really that loud?"

"I didn't hear anything..." Michiru frowned.

"That's because you humans aren't light sleepers, and your hearing is inferior to ours," Ignika explained. "I'm surprised Traveller and Gravitas didn't wake up because of them… I tried to go back to sleep some more, but failed. When I heard you coming downstairs, Michiru-san, I decided to get up as well…"

"I see... I wonder if Makoto is still asleep?" Michiru said. "With so many people up, I'll need her help in cooking breakfast..."

"I didn't hear anything upstairs…" the white-haired boy answered as he sat down on one of the two remaining chairs. "So I'm guessing they're still asleep."

"Doesn't surprise me," Chameleon added. "Makoto's a deep sleeper. Last time when there was this check up thingie and the doorbell rang, I had to pinch her thigh to get her to wake up. Got all mad at me then, too, because I came into her room. But how else was I supposed to wake her up and tell her there was someone at the door? I still don't quite get it."

"Ehh... Exactly, there wasn't any other way in this case..." Haruka tried to explain. "But finding yourself wearing nothing but a nightgown while being looked at by a male that isn't family or your mate is quite embarrassing, especially if caught by surprise."

"So she wasn't really mad, it was shock from the embarrassment." Michiru summed up.

"Speaking of embarrassing," Ignika said, rubbing his tired eyes. "Michiru-san, Haruka-san, I don't have anything – well, I don't take offence to it anymore at least – against the fact that you two mate, like you did a few days ago. But next time you're mating, could please not make those weird cries so much, or at least not so loud? Traveller and I had quite a bit of problems sleeping that night, and I kinda forgot to say it until now." The tone at which he said it was casual, as if it was a normal thing to say at the breakfast table.

Michiru, who was going to pour herself a glass of water, gave a start and blushed crimson red up to the roots of her hair. The glass slipped from her hand and shattered on the floor.

Haruka was just speechless, opening her mouth as if wanting to say something, but having no words. She was blushing as well, even though not as furiously as Michiru.

Ignika looked confused and uncertain, from Haruka to Michiru and then to his brother and then back to the blushing pair. "Did I say something wrong?" he wondered aloud, uncertain and naïve. Chameleon, however, was smirking.

"Weird cries, brother?" he asked teasingly. "Like what?"

Ignika turned his gaze to his brother. "Well, cries like…"

Michiru squeaked and buried her face in her hands. Haruka sprang up, banging her both hands on the table and glaring at the Child of Life.

"Say it and no concert for Traveller!" She threatened, louder than she intended, but with the exact threatening and angry tone she wanted.

The Child of Life looked taken aback, uncertain and kind of shocked. Then he glared at Haruka. "Why bring my sister in this? She's got nothing to do with it! You're being very low!"

Haruka breathed out, sitting back down. "Sorry, it was the most effective way to make you quit I could think of."

"I don't get why I should quit!" Ignika replied, gesturing at Chameleon, who sat a bit bored in his chair, elbow resting on the table and his chin on the palm of his hand. "My brother asked me a question, it's impolite not to answer!"

"Ignika..." Michiru said, sad and obviously hurt. "We have told you all, you just don't discuss these things in human society."

"Especially not if it's someone else's intimate life. And especially not if you're going to quote it." Haruka said, clenching her fists.

"It's your fault for not taking us into consideration in the first place!" Ignika snarled angrily. "You know our hearing is superior to a human's! If you don't want these kind of things to happen, then keep us in mind for a change and don't treat us as something we're not, namely, humans!"

Michiru sighed. "We didn't know your hearing is _that_ acute..."

"Of course you didn't," Chameleon answered with a bored shrug. "Since when have you Senshi even been interested in learning anything from us or about us aside from things that can save your lives?" He looked wishfully at his empty chocolate wrap, wishing there still was some of the candy in it.

"Mostly it's you who have to learn things, since there's so much unknown to you." Haruka shrugged. "You learn about what is unknown to you, we learn about what is unknown to us."

"Fact is I haven't heard you ask much about our customs and way of life yet, and then when things like this happen, you always shout at us and grow angry at us for doing what we did and screaming at us that we're not acting human," Ignika's only brother calmly continued. "Never once standing still by the fact, or asking yourself if what we do is actually normal for us, and that by screaming at us for it, you're screaming at our entire culture _and_ way of life. Now that's not very nice."

"Yes, sex is a _very_ touchy subject for humans." Haruka frowned. "If it was anything else, we could have avoided shouting, and could have a nice discussion. But when you go discussing our private life _and_ even going as far as _quoting_ it..." She sighed. "Sorry, it's just too much."

"If we would have shouted at you every time you did something that was unacceptable to _us_ cultural-wise, you'd be deaf by now," Ignika growled, looking at the table, refusing to grant anyone even a simple gaze.

Haruka raised her eyebrow. "Like what?"

"Preventing a little brother from answering a question posed to him by an older brother, for example," Chameleon explained coolly. "You're not family. When I ask Ignika a question, he and he alone is to answer me, unless he himself asks you to do it for him. Until then, you've got no business with it. It's a family matter, and you outsiders should not interfere unless invited to do so."

"Breaking the rule of 'what should not be said should not be heard'," Ignika added. "If you didn't want your mating habits to be placed on the table, then make it so nobody hears. In our society, anyone has the right to ask an explanation or a question about _anything_ he has heard. For if it was something he or she was not supposed to know anything about, he or she shouldn't have been able to hear it in the first place."

Michiru lowered her eyes. "Usually it's indeed heard by nobody... At night, behind closed doors, when everybody else is asleep... Who knew you did hear..."

"You could, if you were actually interested in us outside of our use in battle," Chameleon noted dryly. Inside, to himself, he thanked the Great Beings for living with Makoto, who actually cared for him and had shown at least a little bit of interest in what he liked and what it was like where he came from.

Haruka sighed. "Alright. What else should we know about cultural conflicts?"

Chameleon just shrugged. "Too many to list. When next time it happens, we'll tell ya. But what's the point, anyway? It's not as if we're actually allowed to act like or go by what we always did and went by. We're just supposed to ditch all we grew up with and be perfect nice little humans who listen to their teachers and get chocolate when they behave, right?"

"No, not right." Haruka said. "Nobody says you have to ditch all. But you _will_ have to cope with some things."

"Such as not quoting our mating right in front of us and for all to hear. Fine, okay, discuss, but do it in private only, and don't let anybody else know!" Michiru said, throwing her hands in the air.

"See what I mean, little brother?" Chameleon said quietly to the Child of Life. "These two just assume they can give us orders and tell us what to do for some reason, and when we don't, they're mad at us. I don't understand how you can keep tolerating them."

Ignika merely shrugged, and said nothing. He crossed his arms and looked down at his feet, twitching his toes.

"It's not an order, it's a plea." Michiru said. "If you want to, we'll go somewhere else to mate so we meet your cultural rule, but just don't discuss it so openly!" Tears of embarrassment formed in the corners of her eyes.

Chameleon said nothing, merely climbed to his feet and made to leave. In the doorway, however, he stopped. "I'm not interested in your mating," he growled coldly over his shoulder. Then he left without looking back. Ignika sighed, still staring at his feet.

"I wish this had never happened," he whispered sadly. "I wish I had never come here, never met any of you… I wish I had never been born to live this life I lead. Then I didn't have to deal with all of this, especially not now, in the morning… Then I didn't have to keep peace between my brother and my hosts… Then I wouldn't say the wrong things that make things go wrong. Then I wouldn't have to adapt to a lifestyle and culture with rules that I feel uncomfortable with…" He clenched his fists, his nails digging in his skin, and his face was a mask of pain and frustration.

"I'm sorry, Ignika..." Michiru said quietly, coming over to him, wanting to hug him.

"It's inevitable when it comes to cultural clashes..." Haruka sighed. "Good thing we don't live in the same houses after all, else there'd be too much such argues..."

Silent tears ran down the face of the Child of Life and he buried his face in his hands. "It was just a simple request from me, I never wanted it to turn into an argue. And neither did Chameleon. But he's so quick to anger when he feels he's unjustly attacked, like just now, Haruka-san… In his eyes, he did nothing wrong, and by our rules, he didn't, but you grew angry and shouted at him, when he felt he didn't deserve it… And then he becomes like this. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry… Next time, if something bothers me, I won't tell it anymore, so nothing can go wrong anymore…"

"Shhh..." Michiru hugged the crying boy. "It's okay, Ignika... You can tell us anything. We were just a bit unlucky this time..." She stroked the boy's hair. "As for the request... We'll try to follow it, won't we, Haruka?" Michiru looked at her beloved.

The said beloved nodded and sighed in defeat. "Yes, yes, we will..."

Ignika just cried. It was too early in the morning for him to be able to cope with such matters.

"Shhh... It's okay." Michiru repeated and just let the boy cry while she comforted him. Sometimes it was better just to let your emotions flow through the tears, and Michiru knew it, so she didn't try to make him stop crying, but simply gave comfort.

Ignika leaned into the embrace of the Senshi of the Depths, quietly sobbing. "Why does it always end like this?" he wondered aloud, his voice tiny and smothered by tears. "Why can't I ever pull off this 'being human' right?"

"You did it alright, Ignika. It's Chameleon who shouldn't have asked..." Haruka said.

"But he wasn't wrong either!" Ignika protested. "From his point of view, he's right. I am his family, and he does have the right to ask whatever he wants of me without you or Michiru-san objecting… Even if it is bad to ask it as a human… But for Chameleon, being human is just another form of camouflage, like he'd usually use his powers for… He doesn't _want_ to be and doesn't _think _he is human… It's a façade for him, a disguise, a tangible lie. Underneath the appearances, he's a Saurian, and he wants to remain that way… And I can't blame him for that. Being human is way too hard."

"We know." Haruka sighed. "And it's nothing new among humans. Two people being completely right from their own point of view... It's how a lot of conflicts happen." Haruka looked at Ignika: "Perhaps it's best to let him calm down and forget it..."

Ignika nodded and wiped his tears away. "I know him, he'll probably cool off very quickly… Maybe I'll go ask Nightmare to tease him a bit so he forgets about it while he bickers with her…" The boy managed to smile a bit. "Hee hee, sometimes, he's too easy."

Haruka smiled. "It's a good thing. People who hold grudges for ages are very hard to live with."

"He's really not a bad person, Haruka-san, just a bit rash," Ignika defended his older brother. Then he reluctantly added: "Alright, make that, very much rash…"

Haruka chuckled. "And then he told _me_ I shouldn't be rash in battle. Hypocrite." She said, smiling, not meaning to insult him at all.

Ignika giggled. "That's how he is… He's my big brother." There was a tone of admiration in the white-haired boy's voice as he spoke about his older brother. For truly, Ignika appreciated the Saurian of Camouflage a lot. But then the white-haired child thought of something else, and he carefully, hesitatingly said: "Though, Haruka-san, Michiru-san, I do have a question… Formed from a purely scientific and curious point of view, so it's really not meant to embarrass but…" He looked uncertainly from one woman to the other. "How do women mate, anyhow?"

Michiru rolled her eyes and put a hand to her forehead. "Here we go again." She said, smiling.

"Oh well, since we need to make up for this argument and respect other's culture, anyhow..." Haruka sighed. "Listen up." And Haruka told him, without going into details, that human females usually bring each other pleasure with their fingers and tongues. She didn't mention things like sex toys, thinking it required too much explaining and not wanting to deepen the embarrassment.

Ignika listened attentively, never once was there even one sign of embarrassment on his cheeks or in his eyes. He merely looked curious, and nodded every now and then when Haruka told him something particularly interesting. When she was done explaining, the Child of Life looked very much deeply lost in thoughts.

"That was interesting," he muttered, having gone fully into 'study all forms of life and their behaviour' mode, which the Great Beings had 'programmed' into his brain, so to speak. "So the entire happening of female mating seems to be focussed on the aspect of pleasure and intimacy, sharing feelings of love."

He paused for a moment and tapped the side of his head rhythmically with a finger while he thought. "That sounds a lot like what Gravitas told me about the normal human mating process she read about in her books… Very intriguing. So it's not just the female mating process that is focussed on pleasant feelings, it goes for the entire human race… I wonder what caused this change of focus, from reproducing to intimacy and pleasure, to happen. I need to talk about and discuss this with master Angonce someday, no doubt he has also studied this matter, maybe even written a couple of books about it which he perhaps will allow me to read… That would be nice, and without a doubt fascinating…"

Ignika crossed his arms and frowned, still thinking out loud. "I've never actually had the chance to study life forms with the same level of intelligence, or maybe even higher intelligence, than Saurians before, so I'm really interested in what else I could learn about humans, species-wise… The culture may be confusing but, in the end, I'm not as interested in it as in the biological aspects… Maybe I should examine a human body a bit better for better understanding… Maybe Hotaru would be willing to help me with that…"

"Hey, hey, slow down a bit!" Haruka said, getting in a 'protective dad' mode. "It's Hotaru's business, of course, but don't get any wrong ideas!"

Ignika looked confused at the Senshi of the Winds. "Wrong ideas? I'm just thinking Hotaru would let me study the parts of her body that are right for non-mates to look at, and maybe help me find information about the rest in books or maybe on that computer of hers…" He tilted his head sideways. "What ideas did you think I was having, Haruka-san?"

Michiru just waved her hand. "Nevermind her, it was just a precaution. Study all you like." The Senshi of the Ocean smiled.

"I will!" the Child of Life answered happily, smiling widely. "Thank you for answering my question, too, Haruka-san. It was something that I was wondering about ever since I learned of your relationship. From a 'study Life' point of view, of course."

"Of course." Haruka muttered, drinking some more of her coffee.

Ignika frowned. "You don't believe me, Haruka-san?" he asked, pouting.

"Yes I do, I was agreeing." The blonde explained.

"Okay!" Ignika nodded cheerfully, before jumping off his chair. "I'm going to see if Hotaru's up already. Should I wake her up if she's not?"

"See for yourself, just don't pinch her like Chameleon did." Michiru said.

"I won't!" he chirped in reply, before rushing out of the kitchen and up the stairs towards Hotaru's room, leaving Haruka and Michiru alone in the kitchen, finally allowing the couple to recover from the ordeal they just went through.

* * *

In the living room, Nightmare had heard it all happen, and she had to roll her eyes at the argument turning into a questioning about mating and studying of life forms, but she was far too comfortable with embracing her sister together with Minako to really care and get up. She didn't really care about Chameleon, she knew he would go back to his normal cheerful self in no time. And since her little brother already felt better, she could stay where she was, snuggling against her sleeping sister of Gravity together with the blonde Senshi of Venus.

Nightmare looked at Gravitas' peaceful, sleeping face and had to laugh and raise an eyebrow at the same time. "Great Beings, just _how_ is she still asleep?"

"I dunno, maybe she's having a nice dream?" Minako suggested and pressed her cheek againt the Saurian of Gravity's back.

And so the three girls lay peacefully, safe and warm, not caring about the morning life going on around them.

* * *

**Next chapter: Feelings of Gravitas!**

* * *

**Author's note:**

I hope Chameleon doesn't come across as an $$ too much this chapter. It's true that he was invading on Haruka and Michiru's privacy and that from our point of view he should have minded his own business, but as explained by him and Ignika, from _his_ point of view, way of life and how he was raised, he had every right of asking and getting an answer. That collided with Haruka and Michiru's way of life, and their reaction was, in his eyes, too extreme. He doesn't like being shouted at, especially when he hasn't done anything wrong - from his point of view - and he reacts badly to it, as shown here. Shows that everyone has their flaws and breaking points, even a carefree soul like Chameleon.

* * *

**Review replies:**

SoulLoss: Thanks for the review! Good to hear of you again. I liked writing that scene, too, and I've been trying my best to ensure every character gets a scene or talk with every Senshi. It may be that I might mix some interaction pairings once this is done, but I'm doing my best. Thanks again! =)


	80. Feelings of Gravitas

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**80. ****Feelings of Gravitas**

Dark. Dark and warm. Dark, warm and safe. Safe and warm, curled up in her egg. Deep down in the ground, hidden from predators and rain…

Soon it was time to hatch. But not yet, no, not yet. She could hear noises outside. It was strange, she was in her egg underground, but still could hear noises.

Noises were all around her, and while they couldn't harm her while she was in the egg, they meant danger. She didn't want to hatch yet. No, not yet…

After a while, noises calmed down. She smiled. It was time… She turned over, reached up to the solid, but fragile shell of her egg, broke it…

And woke up.

Gravitas opened her eyes. The sunlight falling through the window greeted her, and she shielded her eyes with her hand. A dream. It had all been a dream. She wasn't in her egg. She was on the futon in the living room of the house of the Outer Senshi, sleeping. She was… The Saurian of Gravity frowned slightly as she looked around somewhat. She was being hugged by both Minako, her 'sister' and by Nightmare, her sister. Weird.

"Hey, you woke up!" Minako's cheerful voice came from behind her. "Good morning, sleepyhead!"

"Good morning," Gravitas replied tonelessly, inwardly being taken slightly aback by the forwardness and cheerfulness of the Senshi of Love. She looked down, to her sister, who was snuggling against her, looking very happy. Gravitas frowned. Was this normal?

"Had a good sleep?" Minako asked again, getting up a bit and supporting herself on her elbow so she could see Gravitas' face.

"Yeah, seriously, sis, you usually sleep way lighter than this. Sun rose a few hours ago." Nightmare said, smiling, hugging her middle sister.

"Why did you not wake me up then?" Gravitas asked quietly. "And why am I in the middle, being hugged by you both?"

"Well, Nightmare told me that if you're woken up forcefully, you'd be in a bad mood all day… We didn't want that." Minako explained, smiling.

"And why you're hugged… We wanted to make a surprise for you!" Nightmare said happily. "Doesn't it feel nice to wake up like this?"

Gravitas tilted her head sideways for a moment, wanting to say 'no'. But then she remembered her dream, and how nice it had been, and she slowly nodded. "Yes, it does."

"Yay!" Minako exclaimed happily and looked at Nightmare. "Told you she'll like it." She smiled.

"You looked so peaceful in your sleep, sister…" Nightmare said quietly and warmly.

"I dreamed I was in my egg," the aloof Saurian of Gravity explained simply, tonelessly.

"Ah." Minako said. "I see…"

"Hey…" Nightmare looked up at her. "I dreamed that the first time we slept together, too…"

Minako smiled. "So it's confirmed, she did enjoy it!" The Senshi of Love laughed softly.

Gravitas said nothing, thinking. She had enjoyed it? The woman frowned somewhat, then slowly nodded. Yes, maybe, or no, she probably had. It had _felt_ nice to be hugged by her sister and her 'sister', though why it felt so, she did not know. It confused her, and she didn't like being confused. But at the same time, being confused like this wasn't bad, nor had the feeling she had felt been bad… So she decided she liked it. But she had best ask Ami for a logical explanation later, too.

Minako smiled, let go of Gravitas and sat up on the futon. "Well, now that you're awake, we can go and see what's for breakfast! Makoto is already up, so it should be ready soon." Then she remembered something. "Oh, and, Gravitas, it's not necessary for sisters to remain in the same bed until both, or all, wake up. Sometimes one wants or needs to get out of it earlier, okay?"

The Saurian of Gravity stared at Minako intently for a moment, then nodded. "I understand."

"So no more gravity fields in your sleep, got it?" Nightmare said, getting out of her embrace as well.

"What am I supposed to have? You didn't give me anything."

Minako looked at her, confused at what she meant. "What?"

Nightmare rolled her eyes. "Get used to it, love dove." Then addressed her sister again. "'Do you get it?' means 'Do you understand it?', okay?"

"I understand," Gravitas said again. Then she added, slowly, unused to saying it: "Thank you, sister."

"You're welcome!" Minako said in Nightmare's stead. "Now let's go to the kitchen!"

Gravitas nodded and stood up, ready to follow her sister and 'sister' to the kitchen for breakfast and for an explanation of all the noise before.

* * *

A few moments later, the girls were already sitting in the kitchen, enjoying their meal of sweet rice with berries. The others had already eaten, as Makoto told them. Some left the house and went home, like Usagi, Chibiusa and Rei, and Haruka and Michiru left to rehearse in the concert hall. Traveller wanted to go with them, but they had different plans for the Saurians.

"You're all going shopping for evening clothes with Setsuna." Makoto told them, smiling. Seeing as Minako's eyes lit up, she added: "Saurians only, Minako-chan."

"Aww..." The Senshi frowned, disappointed.

"I don't wanna…" Nightmare whined, in a tone as if she was trudging to her execution.

"Well, you'll have to." Setsuna said, entering the kitchen with Traveller. "Going to Michiru's concert is a great honour, and it's only proper that you are dressed well."

"I never even said I wanted to go…" Nightmare grumbled. "I don't like 'classic' music."

Traveller looked at her sister. "But it is very important to _me_. And even though I don't look forward to... 'clothes shopping', either, I do want to show my respect to Haruka-san and Michiru-san by looking properly."

Minako nodded. "Besides, it's a team activity, we're all going. You wouldn't want to spend the evening alone watching TV, would you?"

"Anything is better than shopping for clothes…" Nightmare replied, sighing deeply.

Minako rolled her eyes. "Come on, I won't be there this time. Setsuna will make it quick."

The Senshi of Time nodded. "Yes, I don't waste my time squealing over every single beautiful piece of clothing that comes my way." Then she smiled. "Even though every single piece of clothing is worth that at the place I'm taking you."

"Triple joy," Nightmare cursed.

"Well, there's no way you can get out of it." Chameleon's voice came from the garden. "Even I have given up and decided to go."

"Fine, fine," the Saurian of Fear surrendered, sighing and shaking her head. "But any minute wasted on this shopping is a minute we'll be training _very_ hard, onee-chan!"

"I'll make sure no time is wasted, then." Setsuna said. "By the way, where's Ignika?" She looked at her symbiosis partner.

"I thought he went to check on Hotaru once he was done talking with Michiru-san and Haruka-san, I haven't seen or heard of him since then…" Ignika's oldest sister replied with a shrug.

"I see. Well, seeing as everybody wants this to be over as soon as possible, going shopping now is as good time as any." The dark-haired Senshi explained.

"I'll go get him then," Traveller finished, vanishing from the kitchen and going upstairs to Hotaru's room to fetch her little brother.

Setsuna smiled and went to check her car. It's going to be an amazing shopping trip, alright...

* * *

Setsuna was smiling, leading the Saurians through the richest shopping centre in Tokyo, her heeled shoes soundly tapping against the black marble floor with golden veins. They were on the third floor now, walking along the gallery, and on their left side were many boutiques, in every window of which stood wonderful, rich, and very expensive dresses. There was no crowd, only a few neatly dressed people, and one could spend hours admiring the detail of the clothing masterpieces, but Setsuna barely cast them a glance.

Traveller walked at her side, but her face betrayed some of her uncertainty and discomfort. She would do anything in order to go to the concert, but regardless of that going into the city always made her nervous. It was an unnatural place, to her, and she did not like being here, surrounded by all the unnatural lights, the noise and the smells. Behind the Saurian of Teleportation came the rest of the family, Ignika walking together with Chameleon, and closing the ranks were Nightmare and Gravitas, the latter hovering protectively over her younger sister, ready to guard her from any danger.

Gravitas' face was expressionless, Ignika looked alright, but both Chameleon and Nightmare didn't look in the least happy.

"Here we are." Sestuna said, stopping in front of the biggest boutique. She didn't hesitate much longer and entered it.

They arrived in a section of business suits, and Traveller was very surprised to see some of the designs she had seen in Setsuna's sketchbook being made into clothes.

The girl at the counter looked up, and her face immediately brightened up. "Meioh-sama!" The girl hurried over to them. "It is an honour to see you here again, Meioh-sama! Have you brought some new designs for Kazuki-sama?"

Setsuna shook her head. "I'm afraid not, Sachiko." She said sternly, addressing the girl by her name, not surname. But then smiled. "Today, I am shopping for evening clothes. My friends are going to Michiru Kaioh's concert."

"Ah! I see, Setsuna-sama. Let me lead you to the evening clothes section then." Sachiko bowed and mentioned for them to follow her.

"There's something different about this clothing shop when compared to the one Makoto took me to," Chameleon muttered as he looked around. "I can't put my claw on it, though… Everything looks… Well, I dunno… More shiny?"

"Dull," Nightmare offered bitterly. "That's what it all looks like." She glanced at some of the business suits and rolled her eyes. "They all look as if the one who made them hated colours."

Setsuna smiled. "It's because these outfits are made for business, and it doesn't presuppose bright colours. Evening clothes, however..." She went through the glass door Sachiko opened for them. "Are made to be colourful." She finished, letting the Saurians observe the many dresses set out there on mannequins. There were much more dresses than male outfits which lined the right wall, and they all looked marvellous.

Ignika looked around, his eyes wide and filled with awe. He almost let his jaw dropped. "That's a lot of clothes…" he whispered quietly. "So many colours, too, and so many shiny things on them. I kind of wonder what the use of that is, but it's pretty, I admit. Where do you hu-" He quickly stopped and corrected himself: "Where you people find these many gems and valuable minerals? Not to mention all those kinds of fabric, plenty of those I've never seen before in my life. Where do they come from?"

"Who makes all them?" Traveller added, looking around with just as much wonder in her eyes as her little brother. "Who comes up with some of these amazing designs? Are some of these yours, Setsuna?"

"Good thing most of these fabrics aren't natural. There'd be no animal left standing if all of these amazing things had to be made from fur," Chameleon agreed, observing every line of clothes he could see. He had gone shopping before, so he had seen so many clothes together before, and some of the designs he had already seen in the store he and Makoto visited as well.

"Well, it's colourful, I guess," Nightmare grumbled in her usual negative way, trying not to let it show that she was just as impressed as the others were. Well, the others except for Gravitas. The Saurian of Gravity just stared around a bit, her face aloof and emotionless as it always was. Only a slight, tiny sparkle in her eyes could tell one that she wasn't left unmoved either. But she said nothing, and her face betrayed nothing.

Setsuna chuckled. "I'm glad you are impressed. Now, one question at a time..." She smiled at them. "Most fabrics aren't natural, true, but some of them are. Like silk, for instance." She went to a beautiful cream-colored dress and touched it. "But it's not made from animal skin, it's made from cocoons of special caterpillars. Some fabrics are made from plants, but those aren't used here." She then went to another mannequin, dressed in a gorgeous dark-blue dress richly embroidered with transparent, silver and white beads. "The beads and the gems on them are mostly glass. Some designers do use real gems in their clothes, but that's way too expensive even for us." Setsuna turned around to face Traveller and answered the last question: "The most of these outfits weren't designed by me. I did give the owners several designs, but not sure if any of them are here."

"Your evening designs were all made into clothes, Meioh-sama." Sachiko, who had been silently listening to the conversation, said. "They were bought very quickly, but there is one still left."

"Oh?" Setsuna said.

"Yes. Allow me to show you." She led the group through the boutique, to the other end of it.

There, in a glass case that covered the entire wall, stood a single dress.

The dress was made from dark-green silk. Its colour resembled Setsuna's hair colour, albeit a lighter shade of green. The skirt of the dress was loose-fitting, and in front of the left leg there was a wide triangular slit going up to the thigh, through which one see the second layer of the dress, coloured silver. The dress left the arms of the mannequin fully exposed, as well its' left shoulder and back down to the shoulder blades. On the left shoulder of the dress was a big silver flower. Lastly, the mannequin wore dark-green gloves that almost reached the elbow, and had wide silver edging. The edging went down the gloves in a triangular fashion and ended in the middle of the forearm.

The Saurian family looked at it, all finding it a very quaint but good-looking piece of clothing. Traveller looked admiringly at her symbiosis partner, stunned that she had designed something so pretty. Ignika and Chameleon thought it was very pretty, but aside from that didn't think very much about it. It was clothing for women, they both knew. And speaking of those, Nightmare wasn't very impressed because she didn't like the colours. She glanced at her sister by blood, expecting her to look aloof and uninterested, but to her surprise the Saurian of Gravity looked at the dress with an expression that was almost, _almost_, dreamy.

Gravitas raised her hand and pointed at it. "I want that," she said with her emotionless voice.

"Hiroko?" Setsuna said, surprised, but then smiled. "Of course. I am glad. Sachiko, we're buying it. See to it that the dress is prepared properly." The shop assistant nodded and hurried away to call some more people to remove the dress from the window, and Setsuna looked at Gravitas. "The dress is perhaps a bit too big for you, but do not worry, the shop's tailors will adjust it to you so it fits perfectly. So wait for them here, until they lead you to a room where you will try it on and they will make adjustments."

The Saurian of Gravity looked suddenly reluctant, not liking the sound of having to stay here with humans doing things to her when she was all alone. Suddenly, Gravitas found herself wishing Ami was here. "I want you to stay," she said coolly, a little bit of her worry seeping through in her voice.

"Well..." Setsuna said frowning. "I need to help others pick outfits... Kira-chan promised Minako a very severe punishment for every wasted minute."

Gravitas glared at her sister. "Kira will do no such thing if it is for the sake of her dear older sister, now will she?" Her eyes bore into Kira's, and the girl shrunk back a bit.

"I won't," Nightmare promised, a tiny bit meekly. On the other hand, however, she was kind of happy and touched Gravitas wanted her to stay with her to support her. It wasn't often that she showed this kind of dependence on her family, and it made Nightmare happy. Her sister was improving indeed.

"We need to support each other as a family," Gravitas continued, droning out that line thinking it was good to say that now, based on what she had been told and had experienced so far. "So don't do such stupid things as taking it out on our sister just because you can't behave for a moment."

"Fine, fine, I won't train the love dove extra hard once we get home…" the Saurian of Fear crumbled. "Except for the time it takes useless to get done."

Setsuna smiled. "Alright, I'll stay with Hiroko until the dress is ready for the fitting, and you can go look at the outfits in the meantime."

"Can't we all stay and see how our sister looks in that dress, Setsuna-san?" Ignika asked innocently.

"You will, but fitting and adjusting the dress takes a while. So it's best to find other outfits in the meantime."

"But we have no idea what looks good or is acceptable for people our age and size," Chameleon interrupted, looking around uncomfortably at the clothes surrounding them.

Setsuna smiled. "Just look around and see what you like. Once you find something, tell me and I'll decide." She fell silent as the shop employees came to open the glass window and remove the dress from the mannequin.

"I'll stay with my sister," Nightmare said determinedly, grabbing Gravitas' hand. To her pleasant surprise, she felt the Saurian of Gavity squeeze it slightly.

Setsuna shrugged. "Alright, but we'll both go when they begin adjusting it. Don't worry, it's not scary."

"Why do you have to?" Gravitas wondered, still a bit worried. Behind her, the rest of her family carefully and hesitatingly began to wander through the store, observing the clothes displayed very carefully, often with distaste or confusion on their faces.

"Because, my dear Hiroko..." Setsuna took her hand and caressed it. "Seeing the end result is so much better than the making process... I want your whole family to be amazed at your looks, and I want to see how my dress looks on you myself in perfection. Seeing it being sewn and pinned... Is not as good."

"You're supposed to take care of me, of us!" Gravitas reminded the Senshi of Time sharply.

"Am I not doing so?" Setsuna replied.

"I don't want to be left alone with humans I don't know doing things I don't understand to me," Gravitas explained, finally voicing her fears. "The time in master Angonce's laboratory was enough to last my whole life. I'm scared." She frowned, then added: "I think."

Setsuna smiled. "But it's not scary at all. Those people will simply make you wear the dress, pin the fabric so it fits your figure and has the right length, and make a few stitches to make the fabric stay in place. Then you'll go out of that room and show your beauty to us all."

Nightmare squeezed Gravitas' hand. "You can do that, right, sister? You're not a coward, I know that. You've been through much worse."

The middle sister of the family slowly nodded. "I suppose so…" She let out a deep sigh. "Very well…"

At that moment, Sachiko approached them again. "The dress is ready for fitting... Hiroko-sama." She said, not knowing her last name.

Gravitas looked uncertainly at Setsuna. "I go now?"

Setsuna smiled encouragingly, nodding. "Yes, Hiroko."

"Follow me, Hiroko-sama." Sachiko bowed politely. Hesitatingly, Gravitas nodded, and then followed the shop assistant to the fitting room to fit the dress. She looked back over her shoulder at her sister one last time, and Nightmare smiled proudly at her older sister, prompting Gravitas to feel – at least she thought she was feeling – better.

Setsuna watched the closed fitting room curtains for a while, then turned to Nightmare. "Well, let's see what the others are up to."

"I hope she'll be okay…" Nightmare muttered. "I've never seen her admit she felt vulnerable and scared before."

"I think she will." Setsuna replied. "All she has to do is stay still, and the tailors will do the rest."

With those words, she went into the direction of males' clothing section, where Chameleon was thoughtfully studying an outfit. When he saw his sister and Setsuna approaching, he turned to face them and smile. "Heya sis, hello Setsuna-san… Is Gravitas okay?"

"Yes, she seemed quite fine when she went to the fitting room, and I think she'll cope with it." Setsuna smiled back. "Picked anything?"

The Saurian of Chameleon gestured at the outfit he was studying moments before. "Tell me what you think, you're the expert here, from what I gathered."

Setsuna looked at the suit thoughtfully. It was an elegant sand-coloured suit, consisting of pants, a jacket and a vest. The design and the fabric itself seemed simple, but only at a first glance. A truly rich person would see the quality and the designer's eye. Setsuna nodded approvingly. "Excellent choice." She commented. Then cast a glance to her side. "We'll need a white silk shirt, a silk bow-tie and amber-encrusted cufflinks to complete it."

An employee that was standing in the direction Setsuna looked carefully wrote everything down. "Will be done, Meioh-sama." He bowed.

"I didn't get half of that," Chameleon shrugged, looking sheepishly from the employee to Setsuna, scratching the back of his head as he did so.

Setsuna smiled. "You don't have to." She then addressed the employee. "This suit is to be adjusted after Hiroko has the adjustments on hers finished."

"Yes, Meioh-sama." The employee bowed.

"I thought I'm the one supposed to wear this, I like knowing what I'm going to wear," the disguised reptile replied, raising an eyebrow in amusement at Setsuna. Then he sighed and shook his head. "All this just to go listen to some music, Great Beings… Sheesh… They're just clothes."

"Heh..." Setsuna chuckled. "Perhaps, but like I said, you can't go to the theatre dressed casually. Let's go look for Eiju and Amane now." The three of them continued on through the shop, when Nightmare suddenly stopped.

"Hold your rock steeds," she said. "Eiju and Amane can wait, I've just had something catch my eye."

Setsuna nodded and curiously followed Nightmare to the dress that caught her interest. Having approached it, she carefully took it in. It was eye-catching indeed.

A vibrant red long tight-fitting dress made of flowing, silky fabric. What caught the eye was the design of it, way too daring for a teenager like Nightmare. It left the shoulders and chest fully exposed, save for the two thin straps that held it in place, and the décolleté on the back reached lower than shoulder blades. From the top left part of the chest piece to the middle of the waist ran an embroidery of orange, red and black beads, and the dress came along with black netting gloves and a semi-transparent black tippet. The final detail, however, defined as it being too daring. It was the long slit at the right thigh.

Setsuna raised her eyebrow and looked at Nightmare. "Kira, you're thirteen."

"So?" The Saurian of Fear put her hands on her thighs.

"You're too young to wear thigh-length slits." Setsuna frowned.

"And why's that?" Nightmare demanded angrily. Had she finally picked something that she did like, this darn older Senshi decided to be difficult! It wasn't fair. Nightmare liked this dress. It had a nice colour scheme – red and black, what's not to love? – and the fabric felt nice. Plus, the design was quite simple, with just straight forward colours and no frilly layers of any kind. That's how she wanted her clothes to be.

"These kinds of fashions are for older women who want to stress and expose their sexuality. You're still but a teenager." Setsuna explained patiently.

"Well, technically, she's all ready to mate, has been since she was seventy," Chameleon chimed in calmly, looking curiously at the dress Nightmare had picked. It suited her, that was for sure. He did not really understand what was so wrong about Nightmare wanting to wear it.

Setsuna glared at him. "Masahiro, don't forget yourself. You're lucky none of the employees were next to us to hear that. By our laws, girls are officially allowed to have a sexual partner when eighteen years old."

Nightmare snarled viciously at both Setsuna and her brother. "What are you two going on about about mates and sexuality? I want this dress because it's pretty, and I don't like saying that. And if it's risqué, all the better, I like shocking and being daring." She crossed her arms and glared hard at Setsuna. "It's this or nothing, and I don't give a damn if Amane will have my hide for it."

Setsuna helplessly looked around. True, this season red wasn't the most popular colour, and Nightmare would never wear multiple-layered skirts and fashions acceptable for her age. Setsuna sighed. "Fine, fine, but don't blame me if you get raised eyebrows and weird glances."

Nightmare grinned widely and looked genuinely happy. "Yay! Thanks a lot, time lady!" If Chameleon, who was looking wide-eyed at his sister, didn't know her better, he'd say she was about to squeal in delight. But of course that wasn't possible. He hesitated. Was it?

Setsuna mentioned for an employee to come over and pointed at the dress. "Prepare this one. For Kira." She put her hand on the girl's shoulder.

The employee's eyes widened, but she quickly regained composure, wrote something down and bowed. She knew better than to voice her opinion to clients, especially to the ones who are friends with their owner, Kazuki-sama.

"I beg your pardon, Meioh-sama." Sachiko came over and bowed. "Adjustments on Hiroko-sama are complete."

Setsuna smiled. "Very well. Find Amane and Eiju and lead them to the fitting room. They all must see this."

The shoppers all quickly gathered before the fitting room, waiting eagerly but tensed and nervous for the curtains to open and show Gravitas in all her pretty glory. The Saurian family wasn't sure what to expect. Looking at these kind of clothes and actually wearing them were two entirely different things. The dress had looked pretty on its own, but would Gravitas look good in it? Would the Saurian of Gravity herself feel comfortable enough wearing it? Those were the kind of questions that plagued their mind, and they waited in silence.

Finally, the curtains of the dressing room opened, held by two complaisant employees, and Gravitas slowly, hesitatingly stepped out. It was obvious she wasn't sure how to walk wearing ankle-length skirts, so she made small, careful steps not to step on the fabric. The dress now fitted her young figure perfectly, almost as perfect as the colours of the dress matched her silver hair and green eyes. Gravitas looked up at her family, unsure and somewhat dazed.

Her family all stared at her, mouths wide open, indicating they were clearly impressed and very pleased by what they were seeing. It was Nightmare who voiced the thoughts of them all: "Sister… I… You… wow…"

Gravitas smiled very, very faintly, then looked very, very slightly confused at Setsuna. "I look good?" she asked emotionlessly.

"You look excellent, Hiroko." Setsuna said warmly, smiling.

"Allow me, Hiroko-sama." A young man came over to Gravitas, bowed and offered his hand. Gravitas looked at Setsuna, confused, and Setsuna indicated she should give the employee her hand. Gravitas obeyed, frowning, and the employee led her to a huge mirror that covered a whole section of the wall between two glass mirrors.

The reptile disguised as a human looked at herself from all angles in the mirror and gasped slightly at what she saw. This was not the Saurian girl shivering in the cold rain wearing a crude, ragged hairy tunic. This was not the Saurian girl with a family wearing a proper tunic. It wasn't even her human disguise wearing proper human clothes. It was… Gravitas didn't know what or who it was, but she did know that it wasn't her. It couldn't be. There was no way that she could look so… _elegant_, attractive or even regal. And all that because she was wearing a… she searched for the word… a dress, yes.

"I… don't recognise myself," she said, astonished, staring at the reflection in the mirror.

Setsuna came over and smiled at Gravitas' reflection. "Believe me, Gravitas, hearing such words is the best reward for me as the designer." Her smile widened as she stood behind the girl. "This image is not complete yet. A silver necklace, earrings, shoes... And your hair, we'll put them up like this." Setsuna took her hair and gently lifted them up so the hairstyle would resemble a bun.

"I like my hair the way it is…" the Saurian girl complained.

Setsuna smiled. "Very well. You're right, you have beautiful hair. But we'll still add the necklace and the shoes."

"That, I don't have problems with," Gravitas agreed with a nod.

"Good." Setsuna nodded. "You can enjoy yourself a while longer, but then you'll have to take it off so it can be sewn properly. They all will be delivered to us the morning before the concert."

"I'd like that," Gravitas replied quietly.

* * *

**Next chapter: A simple transformation!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

mako-yuy-chanformer litaxken: Thanks for the review and the compliment! Glad you enjoy the story. And yeah, other readers, listen to Mako, review! =p **  
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	81. A simple transformation

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**81. ****A simple transformation**

Setsuna nodded. "Alright." She then turned to Chameleon and Nightmare. "Masahiro, it's your turn to get your suit adjusted. It won't take as long as Hiroko's, so Kira, wait for your turn near the dressing room. I will help Eiju and Amane pick something in the meantime."

"Alright!" Nightmare said happily. Now that she had seen how good her sister looked in her dress, she couldn't wait to try out her own choice. They could go home sooner then, too. The Saurian of Fear moved over to stand besides her sister and took her hand. Happy, she noted Gravitas squeezed it slightly as they stood together, watching the reflection of the Saurian of Gravity in the mirror.

First of all, Setsuna went to the kids' clothing section, since picking an outfit for Ignika would probably take less time than with Traveller. She arrived to the corner of the boutique where children's clothes were set out, and found Ignika looking around and frowning.

"Something wrong?" Setsuna asked.

"Oh, hello Setsuna-san," the Child of Life greeted, startled slightly by her sudden appearance. "Well, yes, something's wrong, I guess," Ignika answered reluctantly. He gestured at the clothes. "They all have short… pants."

Setsuna shrugged. "What's surprising you?"

"What do you mean? I don't like it," Ignika replied, a bit irritated. "Why can't there be something like Chameleon picked, my size? I don't like these short pants. It doesn't look good. Had they been tunics, then yes, but I thought pants were meant to cover legs, not expose them. It feels uncomfortable."

"Well, you see, Eiju, here in Japan, boys and girls always wear such short pants and skirts until they enter middle school." Setsuna explained. "It's considered normal, and also helps to condition children to cold in winter and build up their character and willpower. Long pants for kids are simply not made here."

"Then I won't get anything here," the boy said determinedly, crossing his arms stubbornly. "If all the others can get things of their own choosing, I should be able to, too."

"You don't like any of the outfits presented here?" Setsuna raised her eyebrow.

"Like I said, I don't like short pants," Ignika explained with a sigh. "I'd like something like Chameleon picked much more."

"And if you don't consider the pants length?"

"Even then I still have some complaints," the disguised child continued sheepishly. He scratched the back of his head. "There's nothing white and gold, that's not fair."

Setsuna smiled. "Humans usually don't wear that combination of colours. It seldom looks good with human designs. With male suits, it's mostly black, dark-blue and brown, sometimes beige, sand-coloured or another light shade of brown." She looked around, there indeed wasn't much to choose from here. "Are you sure you don't like anything? If you don't, we will perhaps have to go to a specialized children's boutique, but there I don't have such a good relationship with the owner, and getting long pants for you will be... Troublesome."

"Ehm, I don't know, I guess I'm just not good at picking clothes…" Ignika muttered, feeling uncomfortable. He stared at his feet. "I'm sorry, Setsuna-san…" He sighed deeply and bowed apologetically. The Child of Life let his eyes wander around the boutique again. The children section had nothing, perhaps, but maybe for young teenagers he could find a design he liked? Then he just had to convince Setsuna to let him wear that and…

After a few minutes, he suddenly came to a halt as his eyes picked up something. He rushed over, and a smile formed on his face. He had found something he liked! "Setsuna-san, come over here, please!"

Setsuna came over. "Yes, Ignika?"

"I like this," the boy replied, gesturing at the clothes on the mannequin he was looking at. A formal, plain but nice white shirt with long sleeves, and over that a black sleeveless vest. Accompanied by that were long black pants like those you'd find with a normal formal suit. Most peculiar, but pleasant to the whole picture all the same, was the light-yellow wide sash tied around the mannequin's waist. It was certainly original.

Setsuna raised her eyebrow. "Interesting." She turned to the nearest employee. "Who's the designer?"

"That would be Kazumi Kenji-sama, son of the boutique owner." The employee bowed.

"I see. I thought I recognize the style." She nodded. "We're taking it."

Ignika turned his head and looked up at Setsuna, hesitation and disbelief in his voice. "We are?"

Setsuna smiled. "Yes. And now let's go to see what Amane is up to."

"You don't mind that it's not for children?" Ignika pressed on.

Setsuna shook her head. "If Kira can get a thigh-length slit on her dress, you can wear this outfit just as well. Prepare it." The last phrase was directed at the employee, and Setsuna, not saying a word, went to another section of the boutique in hopes of finding Traveller. Ignika happily skipped after her.

"I think it was very kind of you, by the way, Setsuna-san," Ignika said softly.

Setsuna smiled at him. "I'm glad." Quietly, they kept searching for Traveller. They found her standing surrounded by all kinds of blue dresses, but the Saurian of Teleportation was staring at a particular one. When she saw her brother and her symbiosis partner, she smiled and nodded her head at them, acknowledging their presence, before she resumed gazing at the dress she had picked out.

Setsuna gazed at the dress as well. It was a satin dress in a lovely royal blue shade of colour. The skirt was long and flowing, looking straight and simple in its design, except for the beautiful drapes. It was the top part of the dress that made it unusual, however. It left the chest, shoulders and back fully exposed, and seemed to consist of a length of finely pleated satin cloth wrapped around the body in a criss-cross manner, although one of course could understand that it was sewn on. The dress had no decorations, but it didn't need them, the shiny texture of the fabric made it beautiful on itself. Two gloves of the same material, half the forearm in length, seemed more as a contribution to the tradition than a necessity.

"A great choice, Amane." Setsuna nodded approvingly.

"You like it?" Traveller asked in reply, smiling. Her face held something dreamy, just like before when Gravitas had stared at her choice.

Setsuna nodded. "Yes. Simple in form, excellent and elegant in performance... Just like you, my friend." She smiled.

The smile of the Saurian of Teleportation widened. "Thank you," she said brightly. Between the two women stood Ignika, and he felt a bit ignored, but at the same time was happy his sister had such a good friend in Setsuna.

"I like it too, sister," he told his older sibling, unnecessarily.

Setsuna smiled at him and looked over Traveller's shoulder at an employee. "We're taking it."

The employee bowed. "This a dress by Kazuki-sama herself. Excellent choice, Meioh-sama."

Setsuna merely nodded. "Let's go to the fitting room then. Masahiro and Kira should have their adjustments finished by now."

They went back to the fitting room and found Chameleon waiting there for them, already dressed in his chosen suit, admiring himself in the mirrors. It looked kind of strange, really, to see the so rash and reckless Saurian of Camouflage dressed in something that made him look regal, calm, composed and an utter gentleman. It was a strange clash of personalities, that for some reason made the look _work_. When he noticed the others, Chameleon turned around and smiled sheepishly.

"I'm gonna copy Hiroko and say I don't recognize myself," he grinned. "I feel like a piece of wood. All stiff."

Setsuna chuckled. "Well, you'll have to bear with that, because you look amazing." She came over to him and put his long chestnut hair in a ponytail. "But like this, it will be even better."

Chameleon tilted his head and looked at his reflection. "Hey, you're right."

Setsuna smiled. "Of course I am. We'll get you a hair band later to hold it in place."

"Sounds good," he said, then whirled around to face his family again. "And what do you guys think?"

"Same as Setsuna," Traveller replied, smiling. "For once you look reliable, too," she added, teasing, causing Ignika to snigger and Gravitas, who had joined them in silence, to slightly lift up the corners of her mouth.

Chameleon stuck out his tongue. "Very funny, sis."

Setsuna frowned. "Don't stick your tongue out, it's impolite."

"Who said I am?" Chameleon protested. "It's not my style. Just because we're going to this concert and have to go dressed as wood doesn't mean we should act as stiff as wood, too! Common, be reasonable, Setsuna-san."

"As a matter of fact, you do." Setsuna crossed her arms. "You'll have to follow at least the basic etiquette rules."

"I'm beginning to more and more take the option of hiding myself that day into consideration," the oldest brother of the family hissed angrily.

"I dare you to do that, brother," Traveller snarled in response, casting an absolutely incinerating glare at Chameleon, who stood his ground. Ignika hurriedly put himself between the two.

"Calm down you two…" he pleaded. "Masahiro, I'm sure you can cope for one evening, right?" Chameleon just rolled his eyes and said nothing, returning to stare at his reflection, conversation over.

The situation was saved by Sachiko, who quickly came over, smiling as brightly as ever. "Kira-sama's adjustments are complete."

"Excellent." Setsuna smiled.

Gravitas looked up from where she was standing quietly, looking suddenly very attentive and interested. In silence she looked longingly at the curtains of the fitting room, wanting them to open so she could see her sister.

The rest of the group also came closer to the curtain. And then, in one swift, sudden movement, the curtain flew open. Nightmare came out fully realizing her daring challenge to the human norms. She stood so that her young, shapely right leg could be fully seen through the thigh-length slit, the black tippet casually hanging on her forearms while she placed her hands on her hips. If it wasn't for Nightmare's smile, this pose would look unacceptable or even ridiculous on a thirteen-year-old girl. But her smile was daring and feral, and it made the whole outfit look just right.

"Well?" she asked with a wicked, feral grin, her eyes holding something savage and wild. Together with her outfit, it made her somehow look stunning.

Gravitas smiled a true smile for the first time since their arrival. "It's perfect, sister."

Setsuna also smiled, surprised. "I didn't expect it to fit so well. I'm pleasantly surprised to find myself proven wrong."

"That's a good sign," Nightmare said, dropping her feral grin and sighing relieved. "Now I want to see myself and judge, too."

"Let's go then." Setsuna led Nightmare to the mirror.

The Saurian of Fear gasped as she saw herself. It was a gasp of surprise, a pleasant surprise, and stars formed in Nightmare's eyes as she looked at her reflection. The sight that greeted her was that of a beautiful girl, with stylish clothes and a dangerous gleam in her eyes that would make her like a femme fatale had she been older. She did a couple of different poses and replaced the black semi-transparent fabric wrapped around her shoulders a few times.

"I'm almost speechless," she said quietly, clearly in awe. "I… I actually feel like I'm a girl and beautiful for once…"

Setsuna chuckled. "That's good. That's what dresses are made for. To make you feel like a true beauty..."

"It's a big thing if Kira says that, Setsuna-san," Ignika whispered. "Remember, she's never been treated like she was a girl or beautiful by others, so it's a big change for her." He then smiled at the Saurian of Fear. "I think you look stunning, sister."

Traveller nodded eagerly. "Yes, I definitely agree. A very good choice, Kira."

Setsuna nodded. "Yes, just need to add a few details... A haematite necklace, earrings... And most definitely different shoes."

"A what necklace?" Nightmare repeated, confusion clear on her face. "And what's wrong with these shoes?"

"Haematite is a black mineral, though it shines more like metal than polished stone." Setsuna explained. "And these shoes don't fit with the dress. We need to buy different ones, black and preferably heeled. If you can walk on those, that is." She turned to Traveller and Gravitas. "That goes to you as well, girls."

"More shopping?" Nightmare asked, groaning.

Setsuna raised her eyebrow. "I thought you like the dress and the impression you make. You wouldn't want it to be ruined by inappropriate shoes, would you?"

"I suppose not, I just hate shopping," came the reply.

"Don't worry, I'll make it as quick as possible." Setsuna smiled. "Now, Eiju-kun, it's your turn to adjust clothes."

"I beg your pardon, Setsuna-sama." Sachiko interfered with the talk. "Eiju-sama's clothes require much more adjustments than Amane-sama's. The dress chosen by Amane-sama is approximately her size and length, so perhaps it would be wise to let Amane-sama go first."

Setsuna turned to the Saurians. "What say you?"

Ignika smiled at his older sister. "I have no problem with that at all. Go ahead, sister, I know you're impatient." He winked at her, and Traveller returned his smile and nodded.

"You know me too well, little brother," the oldest sister of the family muttered quietly. She placed her hand on his shoulder and squeezed it briefly, then turned to Sachiko. "I'm ready, please show me where to go and what to do."

The girl bowed and led Traveller to the fitting room.

Nightmare still stared at her reflection and sighed dreamily. "I really feel pretty…" she whispered, hugging her arms around herself. She glanced at Setsuna over her shoulder. "You sure you're okay with it? You seemed pretty antagonistic to this beauty of a dress before, time woman."

Setsuna shrugged. "I didn't see much better variants that would be more appropriate. Besides, you wouldn't agree even if I insisted." She smiled then. "But this dress indeed suits you very well. I didn't expect that."

"That'll teach you to underestimate my eye and taste," Nightmare grinned in delight. "I know myself, time woman, I know what works for me."

Setsuna merely nodded and smiled.

They waited for a while in silence, Nightmare spending it watching and observing herself some more, flanked by Gravitas who also observed her from every angle, finding her sister to look very daring and appealing in her dress. Ignika sat on a low chair, twiddling his thumbs and humming a toneless tune while Chameleon tried to figure out how to move better in his suit. That all stopped when the curtains were opened again and Traveller re-emerged.

Traveller stepped out gracefully, like a queen. The royal blue dress flowed with her movements, not hindering her in the slightest, shining beautifully in the lights. Unlike her sisters, she had the developed, grow-up beauty that was perfectly emphasized by the dress. She stopped and smiled modestly at everybody. "How do I look?" She asked.

"Stunning, simply stunning sister…" Ignika replied cheerfully and honestly, clapping his hands together. "That dress was simply made for you! The colour suits you perfectly!"

"I agree with Eiju," Nightmare added with a nod, having crossed her arms and observing the Saurian of Teleportation intently. "You look as good as me!"

Gravitas and Chameleon both looked impressed and pleased as well. Traveller then looked at Setsuna, waiting for her answer.

Setsuna was smiling. "As I said before, Amane, this dress is perfect for you. The colour, the fabric, the design... It reflects you. Come, let you see it with your own eyes." She took her partner's hand and led her to the mirror.

Traveller followed and looked in the window, and when she saw herself she became nearly teary-eyed. She had been awed when Nightmare and Gravitas had been presented in their new dresses, but now it was her turn. And study herself in awe she did. She had to echo Nightmare's words from before: wearing this dress, she felt pretty. She felt beautiful. Traveller never had been one to act vain, and she didn't really want to, but she couldn't help it. She felt pretty, regal, classy… Perhaps it was a bit silly to think a dress could change one's stature, but it had changed her self esteem somewhat. And she liked it that way. Traveller did a spin, making the dress wave in her wake.

"I feel good…" she said quietly. "I'm sorry for being vain but… It's the truth… I feel pretty."

Setsuna smiled and took her hand. "You are beautiful. You all are." She smiled at the other girls and Chameleon. "It's just that sometimes, the beauty needs to be revealed." She gently removed Traveller's long hair from her shoulders and held them in a ponytail. Her shoulders and back were very beautiful, and Setsuna didn't think she should hide them.

"Well, of course I am," Nightmare said, shrugging and rolling her eyes.

"Thanks for saying so," Chameleon grinned appreciative.

Gravitas merely nodded her head acknowledging, liking the compliment but not feeling or seeing the need to say so out loud.

"Well, all that's left for us to do now is wait for Eiju to get dressed." Setsuna said.

"Follow me, Eiju-sama." Sachiko bowed to the boy.

"Finally!" the Child of Life said eagerly, and he followed Sachiko to the fitting room.

Another employee came from the business suit section and approached the group. "Meioh-sama." He bowed. "Kazuki-sama has arrived, and wishes to speak with you."

Setsuna frowned for a moment, but then nodded and smiled. "Very well. It's impolite to make old Mikoto wait..." The employee twitched, hearing his owner called that, but Setsuna wasn't looking his way. "Well, wait here, it'll probably take a while." She said to the Saurian family. Then turned to the employee again. "Tell the other employees not to bother them until Eiju's adjustments are finished."

"Are you sure that's alright, Setsuna?" Traveller asked quietly, nervously looking around. "After all, I mean… We're not used to something this…" She tried to find a good word, but could come up with none.

Setsuna smiled. "I am sure you will be alright, Amane. Besides, gives you time to get used to these outfits, no?" She chuckled.

"I suppose…" Traveller agreed reluctantly, glancing at herself in the mirror again, and had to smile as she saw herself in the dress. She looked at Setsuna again. "Please, just don't take too long, my friend. We need you here when Eiju is done…"

"Of course." Setsuna smiled back at her. "But refusing to go would be a very impolite and improper thing to do. I'll try not to be away for long."

With those words, Setsuna followed the employee and left the Saurians alone. The family all turned to look at each other, formally dressed as they were, even if it wasn't entirely perfect just yet. And as they looked, each and every one of them had to smile and look amazed once more. The disguised reptiles all realized how far they had come, from reptiles with tunics made out of animal hide surviving in the jungle, to people disguised as humans wearing the finest of clothing. It was a change that was hard to grasp.

"Look at us," Chameleon said with a grin. "Who thought we'd ever get to dress like this, huh? I sure didn't, when I came out of my egg."

"We didn't even know such things existed." Gravitas said quietly.

"True," Nightmare agreed, posing before the mirror. "But hey, for once I'm glad we learned of this, for a change." She glanced at her Gravity-wielding sister. "Don't you agree, sister?"

Gravitas nodded, her lips forming a small smile. "I do."

Traveller whirled around in her dress again, liking the feeling of waving fabric, and she smiled at Gravitas as well. "What do you like most about these dresses, my sister? The colours? The design? Or the feeling of the fabric, perhaps?"

"I guess... All at once..." Gravitas said hesitatingly. Then added, sounding more sure: "And the way it makes me look."

The Saurian of Teleportation nodded in understanding. "Yes, I quite agree," she said, glancing at each and every one of them. "It's as if these dresses show what we could be or become, if we wanted to, don't you think so?"

Gravitas frowned slightly in confusion. "How so?" She asked.

The oldest sister of the family just shrugged, her smile widening. "It's because of something Michiru-san said to me… She said that one day I could become as good a musician as her and Haruka-san… Michiru-san surely wears a dress as proper as this one, too, when she plays… So when I look at my reflection, I see myself, how I could become…"

Chameleon grinned. "I'm sure you will, sis. Say, why don't you play us something when this whole thing is over? Need to know what music we'll be listening to, after all." He winked.

"I'd be delighted," Traveller replied eagerly. "Believe it or not, but I have made my own composition, too, and Haruka-san and Michiru-san were both impressed."

"Really?" Nightmare asked. "Well, that's good, perhaps that wouldn't be as boring as the classic music Minako gave me."

"It's kind of a sad melody," the oldest sister of the family explained. "Because I thought I could never become as good as my teachers… They said I was wrong, though. And now… I believe them, even if I know that it will take a lot of work."

"It is good." Gravitas said, then looked at herself again. "Ami said I could become a... scientist one day. But this dress says nothing about that..."

Traveller smiled again. "I suppose not, but it does show what a pretty woman you are, sister."

Gravitas smiled slightly at the compliment. "Thank you." Then, having thought a bit, added: "You are, too."

"And of course nobody comments on my good looks or my future," Chameleon said, rolling his eyes in mock-annoyance. This gave Nightmare an excellent opportunity to taunt him a bit, and she grabbed the chance with both hands.

"That's because we don't want to lie, useless," the Saurian of Fear grinned in delight, rubbing her gloved hands together in glee.

"Hey!" the older brother of the family protested in a whiny voice.

"Hmm, that reminds me..." Traveller said thoughtfully. "You never told us what's life with Makoto like. Haruka and Michiru teach me music, Ami studies with Gravitas, Minako takes Nightmare to... 'vol ee bal'."

Chameleon sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "Ehm… Well… Makoto never took me anywhere or taught me anything special… Aside from letting me help her cook."

"Well, waddaya know, useless is indeed useless." Nightmare taunted, rolling her eyes.

"Oh shut your trap, Nightmare, before you became all cuddly with Minako you weren't worth a bone either," the Saurian of Camouflage replied on an equally teasing tone. "Must say you're quite adorable when you're all cuddly. Did Minako teach you that?"

"At least I have someone to be cuddly _with_." Nightmare stuck her tongue at him. "Can't say you have the same luck with your human mate."

"I'm at least not a crybaby who _needs_ it," Chameleon retorted.

"Stop it." Gravitas said sternly, finding the last sentence too... harmful? No, offending to her sister. Sisters should protect each other, right?

"Fine, fine, it's her fault for starting it, though, and no amount of protecting will change that fact, Gravitas," Chameleon answered. He pointed at Gravitas' little sister. "She needs to stop being so out to insult herself, and as her big sister, it's your responsibility to see to that, Gravitas."

Gravitas tilted her head slightly and looked at Traveller for confirmation.

The Saurian of Teleportation had to grin. "He's not entirely wrong, Gravitas."

"Not entirely wrong... So not entirely right, either..." She frowned. What did she have to do then?

Seeing her confusion, Traveller elaborated: "He's right about you having to watch out for Nightmare's behaviour and language, to see to it that she doesn't offend the wrong people, especially her family."

Hearing that, Gravitas nodded. "I understand. Alright."

Nightmare swallowed hard. "Damn…" she muttered, almost inaudibly, causing Chameleon to burst out in laughter upon seeing her pouting face.

Gravitas, however, heard it, and Nightmare got her lower jaw being pushed up by gravity, not hard, but enough for her sister to bite her tongue. This caused Chameleon to laugh even harder, earning him a slap on the head in turn by Traveller, who put her 'little' brother in his place.

At this moment, Setsuna approached them. "So, I see you weren't bored without me." She said, smiling. Traveller returned her smile.

"You might say that, my friend," she grinned. "What were you doing, if I may be so bold to ask?"

"Ah, just having a few words with the owner." Setsuna chuckled and shook her head. "Her son, Kenji Kazumi, studies in the same art university as me. And that woman keeps trying to make me marry him." Setsuna laughed softly. "So I have to, politely, gently, sweetly, decline every time." She rolled her eyes.

All Saurians raised eyebrows at that. "Why isn't that son then proposing to mate you himself?" Gravitas wondered, her voice cold and aloof. "I though that was the entire point of it. Who ever heard of a mother asking a possible candidate to mate her son? It's ridiculous."

Setsuna chuckled. "Call it an old mother's quirk. Kenji doesn't propose because he's not interested in me. Neither am I, to be honest. But his mother refuses to acknowledge it, and keeps thinking we'd be a great couple, but are shy or hesitating or something... Everybody has quirks."

"Well, to me, it just sounds weird, and disgusting," Nightmare snapped, her face twisting with distaste.

Setsuna just waved her hand. "It's harmless, but playing my role helps to keep a good relationship with her. Now, let's go, Eiju must be done with his outfit by now."

"I'm very curious about how my little brother will look," Traveller said eagerly, a bit of a dreamy look on her face.

"Me as well." Setsuna smiled. "Kenji likes unconventional elements in his designs."

The entire group moved back to the fitting room, where the curtains were still closed. The Saurian family waited impatiently until those were shoved aside so the youngest of them could be revealed in his new formal clothes. They had no doubt Ignika had picked something that looked as good as what they had picked, but they were still curious to see what exactly that was, and how he looked wearing it.

The curtains soon opened, and Ignika came out. He wasn't happily skipping, but one could see he's just as glad that he got clothes of his choice. The vest and long pants indeed suited him, and the yellow sash made it look quite original. He smiled at his family, happy but a bit shy, and waited for their verdict.

Traveller smiled widely. "You look very good, Eiju. Simple but effective, like how I know you prefer it. I like the yellow thing, it makes the whole picture complete somehow."

To everybody's surprise, Gravitas spoke next: "I agree. You look like one of those 'princes' I've read in the fairytales in Ami's book. Only small. A little prince."

Setsuna also smiled at Ignika. "This outfit indeed suits you very well. Even though I can see that the idea behind it was different..." She cut herself off before she started rambling about the specifics of Kenji's designing style. "Heh, nevermind me." She shook her head. "You've picked a good outfit."

"Thank you, Setsuna-san," the Child of Life replied happily. "I feel… neat in it. I know it's very bold of me to say so, but now I kind of feel regal, like a true son of Angonce."

Setsuna smiled. "I think it is a fitting description. See for yourself." She led the boy to the mirror. As soon as he saw himself, Ignika's smile widened.

"I was right!" he said eagerly, studying himself from every direction and angle. "They fit so well, too, and the fabric is of very high quality, very soft… Though the high collar of this shirt will take some getting used to…"

"Welcome to the club, little bro," Chameleon said with a wink. "I need to get used to feeling as stiff as a tree, too. But hey, at least we look good. Though in my case, that goes without saying." That last part was added with a teasing glare at Nightmare.

"You do look like a perfect gentleman, but unfortunately, don't act like one." Setsuna shrugged.

Chameleon decided to take the joke a little further. "Maybe, but hey, what can I do? I can't even resist my own reflection." He pretended to swoon as he saw himself, causing Ignika to giggle in amusement.

Setsuna rolled her eyes. "That is easily fixed." She said. "Shopping is over."

All Saurians were pleased, but it was Nightmare who nearly jumped in joy. Liking the dress she had picked or not, shopping was still an utter bore to the Saurian of Fear, and she probably never would change her mind about that.

"We're not taking these outfits home, they still need to be sewn properly." Setsuna continued. "That's why you will now go to the fitting room one by one and change into normal clothes."

The Saurian family obeyed and quietly went inside to change back into their normal clothes. Nightmare was the last to part with her dress, feeling so comfortable and happy in it, something that surprised and amused her entire family. But eventually the youngest sister had changed back, too, and everyone was ready to go home.

"By the way." Setsuna said as they walked to the exit of the boutique. "I forgot we still need to shop for shoes."

The boutique was then greeted by the collective groan of four disappointed - and one very depressed - Saurians. Setsuna simply smiled and led them away.

* * *

**Next chapter: Apologies and backstories!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

mako-yuy-chan: I update every sunday every week, if everything goes according to plan. Thanks for trying to encourage other people to review, I appreciate it, though I don't think it'll help. People review when they want to. Thanks for reading! =)


	82. Apologies and backstories

_Mistakes of the Great Being_

**82. Apologies and backstories**

"For the last time, love dove, I'm _not_ telling you what my dress looks like!" Nightmare all but screamed at her older 'sister'. "You've been asking me that for over a billion times by now ever since we got back. I didn't answer then, so what makes you think I will now? I want it to be a surprise for you!"

"But I'm so curious! I'll die of curiosity if you don't tell me!" Minako whined. Truth to be told, she was a bit sad she didn't get to go shopping with Setsuna, even though she perfectly understood that Setsuna may want to pay a great sum of money for Saurians' designer clothes, but definitely not for hers, and she'd only leave the boutique feeling upset about not being rich.

"It's just one more day until the concert, anyway! Surely you can wait that long, onee-chan?" Nightmare retorted, crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow. "You'll see me and the others in our fancy rags tomorrow, so be patient!"

Minako sighed. "Still so long..." She plumped herself on the couch and looked at the ceiling. There was absolutely nothing to do today.

"Say, Minako…" Nightmare began hesitatingly, nervously fiddling with her hands.

"Yes, imouto-chan?" Minako asked without looking at her.

"When is there training again?" the Saurian of Fear asked quietly, turning away, her back to Minako so she couldn't see the fear on her face. "Of the volleyball, I mean."

"Hmm... Well, Miyuki said she'll phone us all when there's an opportunity for a training, but I haven't heard from her yet." Minako said thoughtfully. "Why?"

"I wanted to apologise, remember?" Nightmare forced herself to say, the word 'apology' leaving a bad taste in her mouth, and she shivered.

"Yeah... I remember." Minako said quietly. She frowned. "I'm sorry for what happened then, by the way... Shouldn't have pressed you so much..."

The black haired girl shook her head slowly and silently. "It was my fault, and my fault alone…" she whispered painfully.

"Well, it's all in the past, anyway." Minako smiled gently, and was about to go and hug her adoptive sister when the phone rang. Nightmare nearly jumped out of her skin, but quickly calmed down and cursed herself. No matter how many times she heard it, the ringing of the phone still managed to startle her and take her by surprise. It was annoying.

Minako went over and picked up the phone. "Hello?" Then she grinned widely and nearly squeaked with joy. "Miyuki! Finally!"

Nightmare, recognizing the name, perked her ears and listened attentively.

"Yes, I'm alright. No, those invasions always seem to avoid harming us." She winked at Nightmare before continuing to listen. "Uh-huh. Oh, really? Okay. So when's the next training? Today?"

Minako's adopted sister's eyes widened.

"Of course I'll come! Oh? Takako's coming, too?" Minako said, surprised. "And Rumi-chan? That's good. Yes. Well, okay, see you there. Three o'clock, right? Okay, thanks! Bye!" Minako hung up and smiled at Nightmare, waiting for her reaction.

"Today, huh? That's fast…" Nightmare muttered.

Minako smiled. "Well, Miyuki is a person of action, she doesn't like to sit around doing nothing. Besides, three days have passed, and that's quite a normal schedule for volleyball trainings."

"So, we will go?" the Saurian of Fear pressed on, dreading the answer.

Minako paused, thinking. "Well... I will go... And you... I won't force you if you don't want to." She said hesitatingly.

"I'm scared," Nightmare admitted reluctantly, hugging herself. And it was true, she was afraid. Afraid of apologizing. Never, ever, in her entire long life, had she apologised before. Not even once. It went against her nature. But now, now she was… calmer, perhaps, and more sensible, certainly. And she knew that if she wanted to keep playing this game, she had to apologize. Otherwise, she wouldn't be allowed. So she had to. And it scared her.

Her blonde sister came over and pulled the Saurian in a hug. "I know. But I'm sure you can overcome it." She said gently. "However, I won't force you. If you're not ready yet, you can wait for another training..."

Nightmare shook her head. "No… It's best to get it over with… As soon as possible…" She looked pleadingly at her blonde sister. "You'll stay with me, won't you, onee-chan?" she pleaded.

Minako smiled warmly. "Of course I will, imouto-chan. I'll apologize together with you." She gently stroked her sister's hair.

"Why do you have to apologize?" Ignika's youngest sister wondered. "You didn't do anything wrong… I did…"

Minako frowned slightly. "I brought you there, I talked the girls into the match, I didn't prevent you from hurting Takako. That is my fault, and I need to apologize for it. I am responsible for you, after all."

"But I didn't listen to you…" Nightmare began.

"True." Minako interrupted. "But it's still my fault for letting it happen. For not considering the consequences when I got that stupid idea. I was just trying to prove you wrong, and didn't think about anything else..."

Nightmare sighed deeply, out of shame. "I'm sorry…" she whispered, her voice strained, as if she was about to cry again.

"I know you are." Minako hugged her. "And that's why we'll go and both apologize, okay?" She broke the embrace and smiled gently at her sister.

Slowly, the disguised reptile nodded. "O… okay…"

* * *

"Rumiko! Don't try to chat with Rin, keep your eyes on the ball! Takako, easier with Miku! Chiara, Reiko, good work." Miyuki, the volleyball team captain, was carefully watching her team's training. The day was perfect for training outside – sunny and warm, and while the gym was still being repaired together with the rest of the school, they needed to use every opportunity to train. At least, Miyuki thought so.

Not very far away, Nightmare and Minako were nearing the training ground, though the Saurian of Fear was obviously stalling, trying to go as slow as possible. Ignika's youngest sister was hesitating, obviously doubting what she was doing. She shivered.

"I don't know, onee-chan…" she whispered with difficulty, her voice strained. "Maybe this was a bad idea after all… I'll probably make things worse instead of better…"

"No, Nightmare, I don't think so." Minako answered assuring. "A proper apology simply can't make things worse. Besides, I know those girls. They'll forgive you."

"I can't do it… I'm too scared…"

Minako smiled and tucked a strand of hair behind Nightmare's ear. "Come on... You're a Saurian of Fear, surely you can control your own?"

"I thought you said I can't use my powers, love dove," Nigjtmare retorted.

"Not on humans, definitely. But why not ease your own fear a little bit? Or..." Minako smiled. "You want to overcome it without using powers?"

Nightmare hesitated to answer. Nervously, she nodded then. "Yeah… I don't like using my powers on myself… It never works as well."

"Well, that's understandable." She put her hand on Nightmare's shoulder. "Well, gather your courage then, 'cause we're going." Minako's adopted sister took a deep breath, steeled herself and nodded.

Smiling, Minako took Nightmare's hand and led her to the training ground. They still haven't quite reached it when Minako waved her hand and greeted her captain: "Miyuki-chan!"

The purple-haired girl turned around and smiled: "Why, Minako-chan! Hello! You're late, as usual." But then she noticed Minako wasn't alone. "Oh, I see you brought Kira, too."

"Y-yeah..." Minako said. "Kira has something to say to all of you, right, Kira-chan?" She looked at her Saurian sister.

Miyuki put a finger to her chin in thought. The black-haired girl avoided her gaze, and looked very ashamed. She indeed seemed different from the last training, though Miyuki couldn't quite put her finger on what had changed. However, she remembered how haughty she acted last time, how hatefully she looked at them and how furiously she played. Then again, everybody has bad days. That didn't cancel her inhuman strength, however.

The disguised reptile hesitatingly and reluctantly stepped away from Minako's side and came to stand before the trainer of the Volleyball team. Inwardly taking another deep breath and trying to calm herself, she proceeded to bow like Minako had taught her and whispered, obvious discomfort in her voice: "I'm sorry for what I did."

Miyuki noticed that, but still frowned. "I am glad to hear that, but for acting the way you did, you have to apologize before the whole team."

Nightmare helplessly looked at her 'sister', pleading for some aid with her eyes.

"Allow me to apologize before everyone, too, Miyuki-chan. She's my cousin, after all." Minako asked her captain. Then looked at Nightmare apologetically. It was all she could do for things to be right.

"I'll do it…" Nightmare sighed, realising resistance was futile. She was going to be executed no matter what now, so she might as well get it done with sooner than later.

Miyuki took the whistle that was hanging around her neck and blew it once. "Time-out, girls." She declared. "Come over here, everyone. Kira wishes to apologise for her behaviour."

Chiara looked at Takako, taking her time to readjust the hair band on her shoulder-length ponytail. She expected Takako to dislike Kira, but to her surprise, the dark-green haired girl just shrugged it off and went over to the captain. Sighing, the black-haired girl followed her friend. She didn't trust Kira. She was too furious last time...

"Umm... Who's that girl?" Rumiko asked Rin, nervously playing with one of her light-brown pigtails. She had missed the last training and had no idea what was going on.

"Too long to retell." Rin sighed. "In short, she acted very rude and improper last training, and hurt Takako."

"Oh." Rumiko blinked, then hurried after Miku and Reiko.

At last, all the girls were standing in a semicircle front of Nightmare, waiting to hear her apologies. 'Kira' swallowed hard and had to calm herself again, but once she had done so, she quickly went on to bow again and repeat what she had said before to Miyuki.

"I'm sorry for what I did."

Minako, who was standing next to her, whispered quickly: "That's not enough, elaborate."

Sighing, Nightmare nodded, and corrected herself. "I'm sorry for what I did last time." She hoped it was good enough now, for she getting physically ill from apologising. It just went against her nature, and she couldn't stand it. It didn't feel right to be nice to people who weren't her family or Minako. Instinct screamed at her to treat them badly out of self-defence, but Nightmare tried her very best to suppress those instincts.

Chiara was unimpressed. "For your actions, for your behaviour..." She said in a bored tone while looking at her nails. "Need I go on, or you'll list it yourself?"

Minako frowned and was about to say something, when she glanced at Nightmare and had to do her best not to gasp audibly. With her head bowed, none could see Nightmare's face, and perhaps it was for the better, because the Senshi of Love could see the Saurian girl was quickly, _very_ quickly running out of patience. It wouldn't take long before she couldn't keep those urges to be her normal self under control any longer, and then all her efforts to apologise would be for naught. She had to do something… It was taking all of Nightmare's willpower not to growl.

Minako quickly bowed and said: "I apologize for suggesting and making you carry my stupid plan and not predicting the consequences." This wasn't quite a proper way of wording it, but she had to do something. She glanced at Nightmare sideways and whispered: "Be patient."

"Umm, what plan?" Rumiko asked Miyuki, clueless as she was.

Chiara sighed, rolling her eyes. "Kira had six of us play against her, and frankly, she was a good opponent, but she hurt Takako. And _that_ is the thing I didn't hear any apologies for yet."

"I did," Nightmare whispered, dangerously quiet. "I apologised for what I did. But if you're out to humiliate me further, then I'm out of here. I said what I wanted to say." Part of her wanted to get up now and walk away, but she wasn't sure if she should…

Chiara was about to say something else, when Takako interrupted her. "Enough, Chiara. I accept her apology." She said calmly.

"What? Why?" The girl with the ponytail asked her short-haired friend.

"There's no point in being high, mighty and stubborn." Takako replied. "She did come, she did say sorry, what else?"

"Umm... I think so, too." Rumiko looked at Nightmare uncertainly. This Kira was sure a strange, but very intriguing person. She didn't want her to be upset because her apology wasn't accepted.

"I say we accept her apology." Miyuki spoke up. "Anybody against that?"

Chiara and Reiko raised their hands, though Reiko put hers back down again quickly. Chiara sighed. "Fine."

"Apologies accepted." Miyuki looked at the two bowing girls. "You may stand up now."

Stopping herself from growling in annoyed relief, Nightmare straightened her back, glanced at the volleyball team and then at her 'sister'. She'd done what she wanted to do, but she knew the feeling that hung in the air all too well. She was not welcome here, they'd prefer her gone. "Let's go home, onee-chan," she said quietly. "I'm done here."

"Oh?" Rumiko raised her eyebrow. "You're not staying for the training?"

"I know when I can be missed and when I've overstayed my welcome," came the curt reply, borderline on snapping, from the disguised Saurian girl.

"Too bad." Takako said. "Because I'd like to train with you."

The whole team, especially Chiara, looked at her with an 'are you out of your mind?' type of stare. Nightmare smirked bitterly and scoffed. "Yeah, right. And I'm a reptile."

"No, really, I am curious." Takako said. "Despite your age, you are exceptionally fast and strong, and play volleyball quite well. You're interesting as a player."

"Umm... I find Kira interesting, too." Rumiko perked in. "Even though I haven't seen her play..."

"Hmph... If Takako says a player is interesting, it's worth something." Chiara muttered. Helplessly, Nightmare looked at Minako, asking her with her eyes what the heck she was supposed to do or say here. Not being either embraced by love or scorned hatefully made her feel uncomfortable. Nightmare was not used to middle grounds. Her life had been extremes, always.

Minako just smiled. "Miyuki-chan, may we stay here and train with you guys?"

Miyuki, who had been considering the pros and cons, thought for a while, and nodded. "You may."

"Sweet!" The Senshi of Love said with a shining, cheerful smile. "Thank you all, girls!" Her adopted sister just remained silent, still not sure of what to do exactly or how to react. Being nice was a lot harder than it seemed at first glance, Nightmare thought. She almost started to regret having a personality change thanks to that symbiosis. Almost.

"So!" Miyuki clapped her hands. "Let's not waste any more valuable training time! Chiara, Reiko, train at the net." The said girls immediately obeyed the captain's command. "Takako, you and Rin go to the other side of the field. Rumiko, you're with Kira. Miku, rest for a while. Minako..." She stopped her commanding tone and lowered her voice. "Need to talk."

Nightmare glanced at her sister, who only gave her an assuring nod. Sighing, the Saurian of Fear conceded and went over to the girl she assumed was Rumiko. In her head, Nightmare began to debate if she should bother to memorise the girl's name or not, while also constantly reminding herself to stay weak and not to use her strength.

Meanwhile, Miyuki and Minako went some distance from the volleyball ground, so they could talk in private.

"What is it, Miyuki-chan?" Minako asked.

"Well, Minako..." Miyuki paused and put her hands on her hips. "I'd like to ask you about Kira."

"Umm..." Minako said. "Okay. What do you want to know?"

"Anything you can tell me." She replied, putting her hip-length purple high ponytail on her shoulder. "We let her play last time because she is your cousin, but as it turned out, knowing just that is not nearly enough." Worry for her teammates was obvious in her voice. Despite the fact Nightmare had apologized, she wanted to know Minako's reasons for bringing her here, and also the cause of such behaviour.

The Senshi of Love, who knew her captain all to well, began to tell her version of Nightmare's background.

"Well..." Minako started. "Kira is... A difficult teenager. She's an adopted child."

Miyuki gasped slightly. That explained a lot from the start. Orphanages are harsh places to grow up in.

"Yeah... Well, in her orphanage, she was... an outcast. For various reasons..." Minako lowered her eyes, hoping Miyuki would understand she doesn't want to elaborate. "Always being bullied, having no friends... Only an older sister. But that didn't help anyhow..."

"Why?" Miyuki wondered. Kira's life seemed to be far from easy, but a sibling is someone who will never leave your side and will always help... The only family bond an orphan has.

Minako sighed. "Her older sister... She's... She's autistic." Minako lied, but she knew that's what human psychiatrists would diagnose Gravitas with.

Miyuki gasped. The whole concept of Kira's family life turned upside down. "So she was both bullied... And had to take care of her sister?" She said in disbelief.

"Yeah... Hiroko is heavily autistic, although she has improved a lot since they were adopted." Minako kept going. "But anyway... She and her sister were adopted into a family which already had children. And, frankly, didn't get enough attention... Amane, the oldest child, was always too busy caring for the youngest, Eiju, Masahiro, the second oldest, is too reckless and carefree himself... Everybody looked after Hiroko, but Kira didn't get much, if any, attention..."

Miyuki shook her head. "Five children? What are they thinking there in Europe?" She exclaimed.

Minako wondered where she got that from, but just nodded. "Agreed."

"But anyway..." Miyuki continued. "You didn't mention anything about their parents."

Minako sighed, bowing her head. "They died. Two years ago. A car accident. Amane managed to do so that nobody goes to the orphanage again, though."

Miyuki was simply speechless. "... Is that why you're taking care of her now?" She managed to ask.

Minako nodded. "Yes. And that is why I brought her here. I... I hope it will help her with her issues..." Minako looked at the ground again. "She needs to understand that nobody is prejudiced against her, that she doesn't have to verbally attack everyone who comes within her range, needs to learn teamwork, to trust others..." Minako sighed.

Miyuki stood speechless, looking at her blonde friend. Minako had changed. The team captain, who knew her very well as a player, would never think that this blonde sunny girl has enough responsibility and strength to take care of such a difficult child... Teenager.

"Minako..." She said, still shocked. Then bowed. "I am sorry for how we treated her today. If we knew..."

"You don't have to apologize, Miyuki-chan." Minako smiled. "Just don't be prejudiced or against her anymore, that's enough. She's a really nice girl underneath that prickliness."

Miyuki stood straight and smiled. "I'll take your word for that. Well, let's go, we have training to do!"

Minako nodded, smiling as well, and followed her captain. The lie was smooth and believable. Now, Minako must not forget to inform Nightmare of it.

* * *

Said Nightmare had been training with the girl named Rumiko while her 'sister' had been talking to the trainer. At first, she had been playing very, very weak, at least to her standards, using only a fraction of what she was capable of so as to not overwhelm Rumiko. It took a lot of self-control for the Saurian of Fear, but for Minako's sake, she'd try. Slowly, Nightmare increased her strength and speed, wanting to see what her training partner was capable off. Nightmare judged people by their strength, after all.

Rumiko, however, proved herself to be quite a capable player, despite being near-sighted and wearing glasses.

"So..." She began. "Are you from Tokyo?" Rumiko really wanted to get to know Kira better after everything she has heard about her, but was afraid that Kira wouldn't have time or desire to speak after training, so she decided to ask everything now.

"No," Nightmare responded curtly, constantly telling herself to not snap no matter what. It was difficult, but she tried to focus on the ball and tossing it, and not on snapping or being her usual self. She had to make a better impression now, she knew. If not for herself, then for her onee-chan, who wanted her to try and be nice to these people, even if that was hard.

"Me neither." Rumiko replied happily. "I come from a village near Osaka. Have you moved in recently?"

"Few weeks ago," the Saurian of Fear replied, still curtly, short and to the point. She didn't see the use for long winded answers. It would only threaten her disguise, and risk her secret being found out.

"I see. I'm here for half a year already." Rumiko replied. She was used to such short and curt replies. Her classmate and best friend was like that. They passed the ball in silence for a while, then Rumiko continued: "Big cities are so overwhelming at first, no?"

"Yes, and they smell," Nightmare replied, grumbling a bit and her face twisting in distaste somewhat as she remembered her first impression and moments in the 'city'.

Rumiko was about to raise her eyebrow, but then understood what she meant. "Oh. Well, yeah, true. All those cars..." Rumiko sighed. "The air in the countryside is so much better..."

Nightmare didn't know what 'countryside' meant, so she just nodded and passed the ball. Then a question popped up, and she found herself asking: "Why didn't you stay wherever you were then instead of coming here? Seems kinda dumb to me."

Rumiko frowned a bit at the choice of words, then sighed. "I guess, but... I came to study in college to get good education and get a well-paid job... I didn't want to leave my grandpa alone, but he said I definitely must go."

The disguised reptile didn't know what 'college' or a 'job' were, so she just shrugged. She knew what education meant, though, and from what she knew getting good education was indeed not a waste of time. "I suppose it's a fair trade."

Rumiko smiled. "True. I still miss home, though..."

"I never really had a home. Until now, now onee-chan's home is my home," Nightmare said, though just why exactly she told this to Rumiko, she had no idea. That stranger had no business with how she was feeling, so why the heck was she telling her things like this?

"Onee-chan?" Rumiko asked. It was nice to get an elaborate answer for once, and Rumiko smiled.

"Minako," Nightmare explained with a tone that said it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh. Oh, right, she's your cousin!" Rumiko smiled as she guessed. She was just about to ask what she meant by never really having a home when Miyuki came back and declared they will be practicing serves now. "Ah. Well, okay, I had a nice time talking." Rumiko told Nightmare. "Now go to the other side of the field, Minako's there." With those words, she hurried to the edge of this side of the training ground.

Left alone, the reptile turned human wondered what the heck this talk had been about just now, and why that girl had been so eager to talk to her in the first place. The others didn't really seem to like her very much, so why was this girl any different? Nightmare wasn't used to it, to strangers acting kind to you, and she wasn't sure how to deal with it or how to react to it.

But damn the Great Beings if it hadn't felt nice, somehow.

* * *

**Next chapter: Preparations!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

BookLoverAF: I'm very happy you liked the shopping scene, I was a bit worried about that that people would find it either boring, Sue-ish or irrelevant. Though me and my co-writer had a lot of fun writing it. Wasn't easy coming up with something for every Saurian! And yes, Gravitas is thawing out, at a speed that would make a snail seem supersonic. =p Thanks for the review!

mako-yuy-chan: I welcome all reviews, so thanks. Glad you enjoy the story!


	83. Preparations

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**83. ****Preparations**

"I thought I'd never get out of that bathroom," Chameleon grumbled as he walked down the stairs of the Outers' house. He had been forced to shower thoroughly, with nobody to help him since he was a boy and apparently that mattered. Once he was done with that, his hair had been dried with something noisy called a fan, he had donned his brand new suit and then had his hair combed neatly. Quite the ordeal for the Saurian of Chameleon who was so used to casualty.

"I thought it was nice," Ignika commented, walking at his brother's side. He'd showered and gotten ready before Chameleon, and had been waiting, neatly dressed in his new stylish clothes, for his brother to come out of the bathroom. Now it was their sisters' time to get ready, with Setsuna and Michiru helping for some reason. Why they got help and the boys did not, neither of them understood.

"Too much to do just for one lousy concert," Chameleon rebutted, hands in his pockets. "I mean, jeez, even when we had an audience with a Great Being we didn't do this."

"True, but Master Angonce pays such mortal things like appearance no heed," Ignika explained calmly. They arrived downstairs and emerged in the living room, where Haruka was waiting.

Haruka smiled brightly when she saw them. "Well, well, well, what do I see here?" She said, putting a finger to her cheek, her eyes shining with surprise and admiration. "A perfect gentleman and an elegant-looking little boy. Setsuna did a great job, you look awesome."

The Senshi of Wind herself was wearing a perfect white suit. She didn't wear any make-up, though she did keep her earrings on. A single red rose was decorating her smoking.

"Dunno if it interests you, Haruka-san, but we picked our outfits ourselves," Chameleon told her with a smirk, liking the compliment however.

"Thank you for the compliment, Haruka-san," Ignika said politely, making a small bow.

Haruka nodded approvingly. "So, then I must compliment your tastes, Chameleon and Ignika." Then looked attentively at Chameleon. "Hmm..." Then she calmly went over to a cabinet, opened the door, took something from it, came over to Chameleon...

And sprinkled him with cologne.

Chameleon snarled in discomfort, his eyes watering and he covered his nose, rubbing it frantically. Even Ignika made a face, pinched his nose and backed away from his brother. "Great Beings," the Child of Life said. "What is that awful smell?"

"It's burning my nose!" Chameleon howled in agreement.

"Awful?" Haruka raised her eyebrow. She checked the bottle, sniffed it herself. "No it's not. A very pleasant and expensive cologne, I'll have you know."

"It's burning our noses like a cloud of acid," Ignika whined, still pinching his nose. "You have to remember our noses are much more sensitive than yours, Haruka-san!"

Haruka sighed. She went over to the window and opened it wide. "Here, have some air." She said in a low tone. Her words weren't even cold yet or the two Saurian boys were hanging out of the window, taking in deep breaths of fresh air greedily.

"I'm saved…" Chameleon groaned over-dramatically.

Haruka just shrugged. "Don't worry, it'll get weaker over time. Believe it or not, but sprinkling ourselves with pretty scents is also a human tradition when going somewhere official."

Chameleon dropped his head in defeat. "All this for just one lousy concert… This must be some kind of weird, twisted, cosmic joke the Great Beings are playing on me…"

Ignika patted his brother on the back encouragingly. "Even they aren't this twisted," he said with a weak grin.

Haruka put her hands on her hips. "Don't call Michiru's concert lousy. If you knew just how much people are willing to pay for a chance to come..."

Chameleon didn't answer, just kept hanging out of the window feeling miserable. Ignika, who recovered more quickly from the smell because he didn't have it on him, went away from the window and sat down in the couch. He smiled sadly and fiddled with his yellow sash a bit.

"I wonder if my sisters are undergoing such drastic measures too, at this moment?"

Haruka smiled wickedly. "They're girls, Ignika. They're going through even more drastic measures..."

* * *

Nightmare was annoyed. That didn't seem so very surprising, since she was Nightmare, after all. But there she was once again, her arms crossed, her face a thundercloud as she stood in Setsuna's room, watching the Senshi of Time apply make up to Gravitas. The Saurian of Fear knew what make up was, her adopted Senshi sister used it on herself, after all. But that didn't mean she wanted to use it herself, damn it! And yet Setsuna insisted. Bloody woman, always wanting her way.

"Don't look at me that way." Setsuna said, applying some more silver eyeshadow to Gravitas, who was sitting calmly and as still as a statue. "It's also a tradition, and the end result is worth it."

"I'm beautiful enough on my own and with this dress," Nightmare sneered, glaring at the green-haired woman again. She was wearing her dress again, together with delicate shoes with small heels. She was just glad Setsuna didn't force her to wear heels as high as Gravitas had. Gravitas was wearing proper dark-green stiletto heels, and the only reason she got them was because she could use her Gravity powers to aid herself.

"True." Setsuna agreed, adding dark-green eyeshadow to the picture. "But coming without even a light make-up is improper for someone your age. Hotaru can go without one, but she still does wear it."

"I just don't see the point," Minako's "imouto-chan" grumbled.

"The point is to emphasise your beauty and hide imperfections. Besides, a well-done make-up makes a good impression on people, shows the woman takes care of herself and has a good taste." She finished applying the eyeshadow and looked at the result. "Hmm... Open your eyes, Gravitas."

Gravitas silently did as requested.

Setsuna observed her for a while, then nodded to herself. "Good. Now close them again." She ordered and took a black eyeliner. Again the aloof Saurian obeyed without a sound.

"Sit still and don't move or twitch your eyelids." Setsuna said and started carefully applying the eyeliner.

Nightmare growled. "Why do you let her paint your face, anyway, sister?"

"Why not?" the Saurian of Gravity asked in reply.

"You're pretty enough! Like me!" Nightmare pouted.

"I trust this woman's judgement," Gravitas explained, sounding bored. She kept sitting perfectly still, even her jaws barely moved while she spoke.

"Thank you." Setsuna smiled. "I'm almost done. Open your eyes now." Gravitas obeyed. Setsuna observed her for a while, then nodded to herself. "Good. Now..." She paused, thinking. She still needed to add mascara and lipstick to complete the make-up, but Gravitas would have to apply the mascara herself. So Setsuna took a lipstick, frowned, took a different one with a lighter pink tone, and applied it to Gravitas' lips.

"It's not poisonous, is it?" Gravitas asked tonelessly once Setsuna was done.

"No, just doesn't have a very good taste." Setsuna admitted. "You still need mascara on your eyelashes, but for now..." Setsuna smiled and turned Gravitas' chair to the mirror. "Look."

The Saurian girl gazed at her reflection in the mirror and smiled. If she hadn't recognized herself before by just wearing a pretty dress, then the reflection on the mirror right now wasn't hers. "I feel… pretty," she admitted tonelessly.

Setsuna smiled. "That's the point of make-up. And what shall you say, Nightmare?" She turned Gravitas to face her sister. The Saurian of Fear looked at her sister with a critical eye, then had to smile in awe a bit.

"It's as if she came right out of one of that manwoman's mate's paintings," she said.

"Excellent. I'm pleased to hear that." Setsuna smiled. "Now, Gravitas, we need to finish it and apply the mascara. Look." She took the mascara and a pocket mirror. "Now, you paint the lower eyelashes like this..." Setsuna applied the mascara to her right eye, looking in the mirror. "Carefully, not to let any get anywhere but the eyelashes. As for upper, you simply blink over the brush like this." Setsuna showed her again.

Gravitas nodded, and started to do as told. Meanwhile, Nightmare was eager for her turn now, having seen the nice end result on her sister by blood.

"So, Nightmare." Setsuna smiled at her. "Changed your opinion about make-up?"

"A bit, maybe," the Saurian girl shrugged, unwilling to admit she had before Setsuna. "I'll let you give me some, if you promise to make me look as good as my sister."

"Well, your make-up won't be as bright as hers, but I'll try to make it stunning." Setsuna smiled.

"Then do it," Nightmare said simply, taking place and waiting.

"Close your eyes." Setsuna said gently, picking light eyeshadows. "And sit still."

After a while, Nightmare's make-up was ready. It wasn't bright at all, and all the colours used were perfectly innocent and fit for a girl her age. The trick that made this make-up stunning was the eyeliner. The way it was applied made Nightmare's gaze simply captivating. All in all, wearing her dress and this make-up, she looked like a beautiful, yet dangerous young witch.

The Saurian of Fear studied herself in the mirror and nodded approvingly. "I like how I look now…" she muttered, in fact she loved it, but she didn't say that out loud. She adored her dress, naturally, having picked it herself, and had to admit Setsuna did a nice job with the 'make up'. It didn't feel quite as bad as it looked at first glance. She touched her cheek with her gloved hand.

Setsuna smiled. "I'm glad. Now, girls, remember – make-up is a delicate thing, so no touching or rubbing it, you'll not only ruin the make-up but also stain your gloves."

Nightmare dropped her hand, and both she and Gravitas nodded. "We'll also try to keep this 'a tee ket' in mind that you taught us," the Saurian of Gravity said quietly, going over all the rules of good behaviour she'd been taught in her head.

"Excellent." Setsuna nodded approvingly. "Now, you may go downstairs, I need to do my own make-up and get dressed."

"What about Traveller?" Nightmare wanted to know as she got to her feet and straightened her dress.

"I think Michiru will finish preparing her any moment now." Setsuna said. "You can check on her, if you want."

Nightmare shook her head and took Gravitas by the hand. "No, it's alright, we'll wait for her downstairs with Ignika and useless." She smiled at her pretty silver-haired sister. "Shall we go, my sister?"

Gravitas nodded and lifted the corners of her mouth slightly. "We shall, little sister."

* * *

Downstairs, both Saurian boys had recovered from smelling the cologne Haruka sprinkled Chameleon with, and were now quite bored. That changed immediately when Gravitas and Nightmare descended the stairs.

"Charming. Simply amazingly charming." Haruka said, playing a gentlemanly role with a twinkle in her eye. "Is this Setsuna's work? I can see her style." Haruka said, coming over to Gravitas and taking her hand, seemingly helping her descend the stairs. "And Nightmare, Setsuna did tell me your dress was daring, but this... Is simply marvellous. Never thought that such a fashion can look so good on someone your age." Haruka smiled.

Nightmare smirked widely, feeling smug and happy thanks to the compliment, and she showed off her body and looks a bit more, putting her hands on her hips tauntingly. Regardless, she couldn't stop herself from saying: "I'm twenty times your age, manwoman, and then some. Thanks for the compliment, though."

Gravitas nodded her head in acceptance as well, and let Haruka help her down the stairs, knowing about this thanks to some very quick lessons on etiquette from Setsuna. "Thank you," she said tonelessly. "You look… charming, yourself," she copied, flatly droning out the words.

"Thank you." Haruka said, gently kissing her hand. Then muttered to herself: "Hmm, something's missing..." And went over to the cabinet, unnoticed by everybody because Ignika and Chameleon came over to admire their sisters.

"You two look great!" Ignika said, clapping his hands together while he stared at his two older sisters in awe and with starry eyes. "Those dresses were great before, but now you both look complete and so pretty! Any mate would want you, if you were interested in that."

Chameleon nodded in agreement, studying the two girls while a hand scratched his chin. His eyes took in every bit of his sisters' looks, and he liked what he saw. "I agree with our little brother, any Saurian would be heads over heels for you two."

"Only a little thing is missing..." Haruka said, smiling, coming up to them with a small bottle.

Chameleon's eyes widened and he gasped. "Oh no, she's going to..."

But Haruka had already sprinkled the Saurian girls with sweet, flowery perfume. What followed was an exact copy of the situation moments before, with the Saurian family scrambling to the window gasping for air.

Haruka chuckled. "You'll get used to it."

The only answer she got was a collective groan from the miserable family.

* * *

Michiru, happily humming a tune, finished brushing Traveller's hair. The Saurian's make-up was already done, and the shimmering blue eyeshadow looked especially good on her. Now all that was left was to pick jewellery and decide on a hairdo.

"Now, let's see..." Michiru said thoughtfully. "What would look good with this dress..."

"I think you should try that silver necklace you once wore." Hotaru, who was sitting on Michiru's bed, said. She was already dressed in a dark-purple silk gown with a knee-length slit on the left. "You know, the one with bird-shaped glass jewels."

"Ah. Good idea, Hotaru-chan." Michiru complimented her daughter and started searching for the said necklace. Silver would go well with this dress, and shimmering flying birds would suit Traveller very well.

"Do you think I need such a thing at all?" the Saurian of Teleportation wondered, sitting down with her dress neatly folded beneath her. She didn't doubt the superior knowledge of the two women when it came to dressing up correctly for a concert – something she took really serious – but she was just curious.

Michiru smiled. "I think so. Necklaces look very well with such dresses... Aha, here it is." Michiru took the necklace and looked at the earrings that went with it, sighing. "Too bad you don't have your ears pierced..."

Traveller's face twisted in distaste. "No offence, but I do not feel like self-mutilating my ears. I do not see the appeal."

Michiru chuckled. "You sure?" She lifted her hair so that her own earrings could be seen.

"Positively sure," Traveller confirmed with a nod. "That's not to say they do not look beautiful on you, Michiru-san, but I'd rather not. A necklace will be fine, I think."

"It's okay, Michiru-mama, I still have clips." Hotaru said and quickly went to her room to get them.

Michiru put the necklace on Traveller and said: "Well, most human women have their ears pierced, even some men do. Earrings are a very beautiful accessory."

Traveller put her hand on the necklace and let her fingers run over it, studying its every shape and angle, smiling. "I think this is very beautiful too, Michiru-san," she whispered quietly. "Besides, I'd rather not overdo it with accessories. Instead, didn't you mention something about my hair?"

"True." Michiru smiled. "You have really beautiful hair, Traveller. Which makes me wonder..." Michiru started looking through her box of various hair accessories. "Why do you always keep it undone? Here, in the city, it's all okay, but it must be very hard to take care of in the jungle..."

"Ignika keeps it healthy, of course," Traveller answered with a wide smile.

Michiru chuckled. "I see. But don't they get in the way? Tangle in bushes or young trees or something?"

"Sometimes, but then we just cut it off, Ignika can make it grow back right away, anyway," the Saurian of Teleportation explained, remembering the few times such an event had occurred, and she smiled wistfully at the memories.

Michiru chuckled again. "Alright, I have no questions anymore." Then frowned, looking at her accessories. They were all beautiful, and most could look good on Traveller, but they weren't quite right. Sighing, Michiru opened a drawer...

Her eyes fell on a light-blue satin scarf. It was short, and quite thin for a scarf, and yet perfect for... "A ribbon." Michiru whispered and quickly picked a simple black hairband from the box. Taking it and the scarf, she went over to Traveller. The Saurian woman looked at the pretty piece of cloth with interest.

"What is that, Michiru-san? Is it like what Nightmare wears around her shoulders?"

"Yes, but not quite." Michiru explained. "This scarf is meant to be tied around the neck. However, we will use it differently." She said and carefully tied Traveller's hair in a low ponytail with the hairband, then tied the scarf over it, making a beautiful big bow.

The reptile turned human immediately looked enthusiastic about the idea, quickly taking a liking to it. "Pretty!" she exclaimed happily, as she took her hair and held it in front of her to examine it and the ribbon.

Michiru smiled. "Stand up and turn your back to the mirror." She said. The Senshi of Neptune's musical student immediately obeyed the command, rising to her feet and going over to the mirror. "Now, take this one." Michiru gave her another mirror. "And move it until you can see your own reflection from the big mirror."

Traveller did as instructed, and was able to look at her back this way. Smiling, she observed how her new hairdo looked when other people saw it, and the result still pleased her. Gratefully, she handed the mirror back to Michiru and made a small bow. "Thank you for dressing me up this beautifully, Michiru-san. And for letting me come to your concert."

Michiru smiled back. "You're welcome, Traveller." She was about to say something else when Hotaru came back into the room.

"I've found the clips!" She exclaimed happily. Then her eyes fell on Traveller and she smiled. "This ribbon looks good on you." She complimented.

Traveller bowed lightly to Hotaru as well. "Thank you, Hotaru-chan. I feel pretty, too, if I may say so myself."

Michiru smiled and put the clips Hotaru brought on Traveller. The clips were in the shape of round glass 'gems' similar to the ones on the necklace.

"Now you can go to meet your family." Michiru smiled. "Oh, one last thing..." Before Traveller could ask what that thing was, the Senshi of the Depths... sprinkled her with perfume. A few seconds later, Traveller was hanging out the window, gasping for breath, pinching her nose, just like her two brothers and two sisters downstairs.

* * *

"You seem hell bent on making me glare at you, manwoman," Nightmare growled harshly while she was hanging out of the window, gasping for air. Make up? Acceptable. Pretty dresses that made her look daring and risqué and shocking? Wonderful. Perfume? The only way a human could torture a Saurian legally. She hated it and, looking at her family, she didn't look like the only one.

Haruka smiled. "Don't worry, you'll get used to it. Besides, isn't it an excellent way to hide your scent?"

"I happen to _like_ my scent," the Saurian of Fear snapped.

"Well, I think that changing it a bit for a while will do no harm, and also, will confuse enemies." Haruka said seriously, then chuckled: "Though, truth to be told, I've thought of the last advantage _after_ I sprinkled you."

"You didn't ask for my permission to do so," Nightmare grumbled, retreating to the couch now that her nose was burning less from the strong scent.

Haruka shrugged. "Would you allow me?"

"Would you listen if I said no?" the black-haired girl shot back.

"Fair enough." Haruka shrugged again. But then the bickering was interrupted by Traveller coming downstairs. She tried to be as graceful and dignified in her descend as possible, keeping well in mind all her dearest friend, Setsuna, had taught her about manners and etiquette, including how to walk properly.

Ignika was the first to see her, and his eyes widened somewhat as he gasped in awe. Traveller looked divine, a true well-mannered human woman. He knew that if she took place behind a piano right now, it would look perfect, an image that would be just _right_.

"Sister…" he whispered, smiling widely as he watched her.

Haruka smiled and bowed: "Milady, you look amazing."

Traveller nodded briefly with her head, still smiling. "Thank you, Haruka-san. You are stunning yourself."

"Thank you, too, Traveller." Haruka replied and then checked her watch. "Hmm, the car Matsui-san sent for Michiru should be here in half an hour. I'd better go tell her and Setsuna to hurry up." With those words, Haruka went upstairs.

The family of Saurians now crowded together, admiring each others' 'formal' looks. The change from reptilian humanoids surviving in the wild jungle to civilized, well-mannered humans was now complete, and at the same time hard to grasp. In just a few weeks and days, they had undergone much more changes than in all the rest of their many years combined. The question was if that change was for the better or not. There were many advantages and nice sides to their new identities, for sure, but none of them could deny that at the same time it felt alien and unfamiliar, a part of their mind constantly reminding them that this was not who they truly were, that this was not who they were born as. They were Saurians acting and looking like humans, but nothing more.

Soon enough, Michiru and Setsuna came down the stairs, followed by Haruka and Hotaru. Setsuna was dressed in a black tight-fitting dress with exposed shoulders and a thigh-length slit. Michiru had put her hair up in a bun, and was wearing a flowing white dress that left her shoulders and back exposed, as well as a white scarf around her neck. In her hands she carefully carried her priceless violin, safely put in its case.

Their guests turned to face them and smiled. Though Chameleon was the first – again – to frown and complain again. "Lemme guess," he said. "We have to go in those vehicles of torture again?"

Haruka raised her eyebrow. "How else are you going to get to a place Traveller doesn't know?"

The Saurian of Camouflage just shrugged and shook his head, letting out a deep sigh of defeat. Traveller glared at him for a moment, then turned back to Michiru and Haruka. "Michiru-san, Haruka-san," she began. "Can we leave now? And what about the other Senshi?"

"The other Senshi will go to the concert hall on their own." Michiru replied. "As for leaving... We shall leave as soon as Matsui-san's car arrives."

At that moment, all of them heard a car horn coming from outside. All Saurians nearly jumped out of their skin at the unknown, sudden shrill sound. Alerted, they glanced around, ready for any attack that might come at them.

Hotaru chuckled: "Don't worry, you guys, it's just the car's driver signalling that he has arrived."

"Well, I guess it's time to go." Michiru smiled. "Haruka, Hotaru, Ignika and Traveller will go with me, and the rest with Setsuna in her car. Is that alright?"

Traveller and Ignika agreed immediately, and looked questioningly at their family. Chameleon and Nightmare glanced at each other and smiled evilly, something that was noticed by Gravitas. She sighed, exasperated, grabbed her brother and sister with an iron grip by the arm and nodded at Michiru. "That will be alright." She looked at Setsuna, expectantly. "Let's go. And you two," she said, glaring at the family she held in her grasp. "Behave."

The Child of Life and his oldest sister grinned at the sight, then Ignika walked over to Hotaru, made a polite bow and then offered his arm to her, like he had been told a gentleman does for a lady. "Would you give me the honour of letting me guide you to your car, young lady?"

Hotaru smiled shyly. "Thank you, I will gladly allow you that." She said, accepting his offer and giving him her hand.

Haruka chuckled and Setsuna looked at Ignika approvingly. Michiru sighed dreamily. Hotaru and Ignika looked like such a lovely couple! The Child of Life blushed a bit as Hotaru took his hand, and he unsurely glanced at Setsuna, the one who had taught them all etiquette.

"Did I do it right, Setsuna-san?" he wondered innocently.

"Perfectly right, Ignika." Setsuna said smiling.

Just then the car horn sounded again.

"Ah, let us not waste any more time." Michiru said and went to the front door. "Let's go!"

The Saurians nodded and went to the front door. Ignika taking along Hotaru by his arm, Traveller elegantly striding at Setsuna's side and Gravitas dragging along her younger sister and older brother. Haruka and Michiru closed the ranks, smiling at the antics of their reptilian friends. As they closed the house behind them, both musicians could only think that it was going to be one interesting evening for sure.

* * *

**Next chapter: The concert!**

* * *

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	84. The concert

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**84. The concert**

The Inner Senshi and Chibiusa gathered at the concert hall an hour before it started. That was done on purpose, so that even Usagi and Chibiusa, who came twenty minutes late, still were on time. However, the six Senshi were now facing a problem...

"You don't have them, either?" Makoto raised her eyebrow.

"Nope..." Usagi smiled meekly.

Rei sighed, annoyed. "So what are we gonna do? Michiru didn't give us the tickets..."

At that moment, a security officer came over to them. "Pardon me. Is there an Ami Mizuno here?" The man asked.

"Yes, that would be me." Ami answered.

The officer nodded. "And you are Usagi Tsukino, Minako Aino, Makoto Kino, Rei Hino and..." He looked into his list. "...Usagi Tsukino?"

"Yes." The girls replied in unison.

The officer bowed. "Michiru Kaioh-sama informed us of special guests. Please follow me."

The problem was solved, and the girls eagerly followed the security officer into the concert hall, not only because they looked forward to the concert, but also because they couldn't wait to see the Saurians in their new outfits.

Meanwhile, the said Saurians were sitting in one of the two 'boxes' they were allowed to occupy together with the Sailor Senshi. They didn't understand, however, why those two rooms were called 'boxes', for they looked more like balconies, with seven seats in each. However, it was a bit too boring to sit there all the time until the concert starts. Nightmare and Chameleon didn't like sitting still doing nothing and wanted to look around, but the Outers vehemently forbid them to do so. The less they were outside in public view, the better. A valid point, but it didn't make them any happier and gave them a feeling of being locked up in the 'box'.

Traveller had taken a seat already, and was politely observing her surroundings. The concert hall was a strange building she decided, though beautiful and elegant in its design. Not quite up to par with the architecture of the Great Beings – of course – but she didn't doubt that the humans who had build this had done their best for it. She glanced down at the normal seats below, watching the people coming inside and taking their places. All people who shared her love for Michiru's music, she thought.

Ignika was close to his sister, and he kind of shared her thoughts about the architecture and design, though he was less impressed by it, having seen more of the things the Great Beings could do than his sister. It would take a lot for humans to impress him in a pleasant way.

Gravitas had taken her seat and was now sitting regally and unmoving, like a statue. Her passive, emotionless gaze didn't take much interest in the building. Architecture was not one of the Saurian of Gravity's points of interest. So she sat still, patiently waiting for the 'concert' – a word she still found strange, since 'music' was also still an enigma to her – to begin.

Nightmare and Chameleon were restless. Both didn't care for architecture, each for their own reasons, and sitting around doing nothing was next to impossible for either of them. Though nobody told them, they were quite alike when it came to this. Nightmare had crossed her arms and was leaning against the wall, tapping her foot, while Chameleon sat on the back of his seat, swinging back and forth like the pendulum of a clock.

Setsuna and Hotaru were looking at the Saurian company, especially at Chameleon, with half an amused smile (Hotaru) and a raised eyebrow (Setsuna).

"We should definitely not leave them in the same box when others come." Hotaru whispered.

A few more minutes passed by in which absolutely nothing happened, but then Ignika suddenly perked up and sniffed the air. He moved away from his family a bit to avoid their perfumes and colognes disturbing his sense of smell, and then sniffed again. He smiled, there was no mistaking the scent he picked up. A lot of perfume came their way, but amidst those he found one normal scent at least.

"Looks like Chibiusa-san and the others have arrived," he announced quietly.

"Oh finally!" Chameleon exclaimed and jumped from his seat. Nightmare smiled and went towards the exit from the box.

"Where are you going?" Gravitas asked emotionlessly.

"To meet them, duh." Her Fear-using sister replied. "Come on, Minako has been bugging me _all day_ trying to find out what my dress is like, and it's too dark here for her to see it properly."

Traveller thought of remaining where she was for a moment, because Setsuna had already seen her in her new clothes, but she supposed the other Senshi might want to see it as well. For some reason, human girls seemed very interested in that sort of thing, which was a bit weird. Sure, Traveller liked looking pretty, but she didn't go giddy all over it like for example Minako did whenever you mentioned the word 'shopping'… The Saurian of Teleportation rose to her feet and looked at Gravitas. "Won't you come, my sister? Or do you not want Ami to get a good look at you?"

Gravitas realized she hadn't thought of that yet, nodded and rose to her feet as well. She gave Traveller a slightly grateful look. "I do," she said simply, then joined the others in going outside. Ignika went over to Hotaru first, and once again asked her to accompany him like a true little gentleman. Hotaru accepted his offer, so they exited the box hand in hand, followed by Setsuna and Chameleon.

The Inner Senshi, who were already walking towards the box, froze in their places and let out a collective gasp. The Saurians looked amazing, their outfits and make-up simply breathtaking, and the Senshi could only stare at them wide-eyed, and feel a bit ashamed that their dresses weren't as good.

The Saurians, meanwhile, observed the Senshi, too. Their dresses were simple, but still quite elegant and beautiful. Minako was wearing a sunny yellow knee-length dress with a wide skirt. Her chest, shoulders and back were exposed, save for the quite original lacing in the front and the back. Rei was dressed in a formal, tight-fitting red dress, also knee-length and with a small slit on the thigh, as well as short white gloves. On her neck was a pearl choker. Ami came wearing a baby-blue flowing ankle-length dress with a knee-length slit, and carried a silver tippet with her. Makoto was wearing a pale-pink dress. It fit tightly around her body, and widened abruptly at knees, leaving beautiful drapes. Makoto was one of the only ones with neither the chest nor back exposed, her dress left only the collarbones open. It was neatly accessorised with a loosely hanging silver chain belt, and a pair of white net gloves. Usagi had a long smooth pale-yellow dress reaching down to her ankles, with long sleeves that clung to her skin, except for at the wrists, were they became very wide and wove out. She had a pretty pearl necklace around her neck. Chibiusa was wearing a dress similar to Usagi, only it was knee-length, gentle pink, and had a puffy multiple-layered skirt.

Ignika smiled at the Senshi, then bowed politely before Chibiusa, letting go of Hotaru's hand for a moment. "Good evening, Small Lady, it is a pleasure that you and the others could make it, and allow me to say that you look stunning."

Chibiusa smiled and curtsied. "It is my pleasure, Eiju-san. Thank you for the compliment."

"You're quite a gentleman, Eiju-kun." Usagi said, smiling gently. The other Senshi looked at each other and nodded in agreement. The display of gentlemanly manners was lovely, even though it was just an act, and very cute.

Ami smiled shyly. "You all... Look absolutely stunning." She said, looking at Gravitas with shining eyes. The Saurian of Gravity smiled slightly and walked over to her blue-haired friend, taking her hands in her own gloved ones.

"You don't need a pretty dress to be stunning, Ami," the Saurian of Gravity said, her emotionless voice strained, as if she was trying to force it to have emotions, but not quite succeeding. Gravitas didn't really feel anything, but she tried to remember all lessons about emotions and feelings she had gotten, and now she thought this was the right moment to say such a thing. It was logic, not feeling.

Ami smiled. "Thank you, Hiroko." It was good that Gravitas was trying to show her emotions. Though the dress made her look so otherworldly that the emotionless behaviour somehow... _worked._ Ami was very glad to be with Gravitas now and see her like this.

Nightmare approached her adopted 'sister', the Senshi of Love, with firm, sensual paces, making sure to show off everything that made the dress so risqué and shocking as much as possible. Then she grinned sweetly at the blonde. "So, onee-chan, how do I look?"

"Whooptie-do, how do I put it?" Minako put a finger to her cheek and looked somewhere at the ceiling. "If you were five years older, you'd definitely have to worry about boys flocking around you." She smiled brightly.

The Saurian of Fear looked a bit disappointed. "That's all you have to say, love twit? I expected something more… elaborated." She stuck out her tongue playfully.

"Don't stick your tongue out, you'll ruin the lipstick." Setsuna interfered. "And coming from Minako-chan, it is quite a compliment."

"I know," Nightmare shrugged. "It's just… Ah, never mind." She smiled at her friend. "I'm glad you like how I look, Minako. I was afraid you'd be like timelady over there and think it inappropriate for someone as daring and good looking as I." The Saurian of Fear hugged her sister. "You look pretty too, onee-chan."

Minako smiled at her sister. "Thank you!" But when Nightmare was about to turn her head to say something, Minako quickly cupped her face. "Ah! Careful with the lipstick, okay? It's hard to wash off..."

Nightmare nodded understandingly, liking it when her sister cupped her face. Meanwhile, her oldest brother went over to his own host, and performed the same gentlemanly bow before her like Ignika had moments before. "Allow me to greet this stunning jewel that has caught my eye," he said smoothly, with a wide grin. "Good evening, Makoto-san."

Makoto blushed, unused to such attention. "Masahiro-san..." She couldn't tear her eyes off Chameleon. It was quite a shock to see him like this. He looked so well-groomed, so handsome, so... perfect. A perfect gentleman...

Setsuna's verdict was strict. "You're overacting."

"Yup," Chameleon said without a care. "But at least I do so with style."

Makoto smiled, then laughed softly. "Agreed."

"But really, I'm not kidding," the Saurian of Chameleon continued, taking one of Makoto's hands in his own. "You do look beautiful, my dear host. Well, not that you usually don't look good, but hey, tonight it's even more obvious."

Makoto smiled shyly. "Thank you, Ch... Masahiro." She said, a bit stuttering. "You look... Very unusually good today..."

Chameleon raised an eyebrow. "You mean I usually don't look good?" Behind him, Nightmare laughed, causing the disguised reptilian boy to glare at her.

"N-no-no, I don't mean that." Makoto quickly said. "Just... Today..." She looked at the ground shyly. "You look..." Makoto smiled and whispered: "Perfect..." Chameleon grinned and was about to say something, when he was interrupted by his younger brother.

"Hey, what about Traveller and me? Don't we deserve a bit of attention, too?" the Child of Life asked, but his tone was light and cheerful, and he smiled, looking mock-offended.

"Why, of course you look amazing, Eiju-kun!" Chibiusa smiled cheerfully. "I really like your sash."

Rei nodded. "Amane-san, you look lovely in that dress. That big bow is also an unusual, but a very beautiful accessory."

"You all look amazing, guys!" Usagi summed everybody's opinions up.

The Saurians were pleased with the comments. If the Senshi said so, then it probably had to be true, and that meant that they had succeeded in pulling off the 'civilized humans' look. However, each of them thought the Senshi looked positively good as well. Maybe the girls thought that their dresses weren't as good as those of the Saurian family, but the reptiles honestly didn't see the difference. Nice clothes were nice clothes for them.

At that moment, a bell rang, two times in a row. The Saurians were startled, but Setsuna quickly explained: "The concert is going to start in ten minutes. We should take our seats."

The Saurians shared glances. It was Ignika who voiced their thoughts: "Well, ehm, how will we sit? Just us family together, or will we mix our groups? I know Traveller wouldn't mind sitting next to you, Setsuna-san, and Nightmare…"

The Saurian of Fear grabbed hold of Gravitas and Minako before either could utter a sound. "My sisters are sitting with me!" she announced determinedly.

"That was what I was going to say…" Ignika muttered. He turned to Hotaru and Chibiusa. "Will we sit together, Hotaru-chan, Chibiusa-san?"

"Yep." Chibiusa said simply.

"Of course, Eiju-kun." Hotaru smiled.

"I'll sit with you as well." Rei said. "Somehow I have the feeling that Kira and Masahiro won't give me a chance to listen to music properly..."

"I want Ami to sit with me…" Gravitas whispered tonelessly.

"Of course." Ami smiled. "I'll be glad to."

"Well, and I'm with Ami-chan as well." Usagi decided, not feeling like being teased by Chibiusa for every single thing she does wrong or unladylike.

"It's decided then." Setsuna nodded. "Let's go."

Everybody nodded, and the two groups went into the different boxes. Ignika took the two other children by his arms, like a true gentleman, and sat down in the seats the most left of the box, closest to the stage. Ignika sat in the middle, Hotaru to his right and Chibiusa to the left. Next to the Small Lady Setsuna took place, followed by Traveller and finally Rei.

In the box next to it, Nightmare plumped herself down in the middle, with Gravitas and Minako at her sides. Ami had no choice but to sit to Gravitas' right. Chameleon and Makoto took place to Minako's left, and Usagi sat next to Ami.

"How long is this 'concert' thing gonna be, anyway, onee-chan?" Nightmare asked as she looked down at the stage while the lights in the hall began to dim. This startled the Saurians somewhat, as well as confused them. Why did it have to be dark? Sure, you didn't need your eyes to listen to music, but why couldn't you see the one who made it? That made no sense.

"About two hours." Minako answered. The second question was answered by itself, as the stage lit up. A man came up the stage. Everybody applauded.

In the box next to them, Ignika looked confused, and he asked in a whisper: "Why is everybody clapping?" He glanced at the Senshi in the box doing the same. "Are we supposed to do it too?"

"Yes, Ignika. Just follow everybody's lead." Hotaru said.

The man, meanwhile, waited until the applause died down, and said: "Ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to Suntory Hall!" Everybody applauded again, and then the host continued: "We are pleased to see you all at the charity concert of Michiru Kaioh..." A round of applause and cheers from the crowd interrupted him again. "...accompanied by Haruka Tenoh." A small round of applause. "Please, as a form of respect towards the performers, turn off your cellphones." There was some movement and murmur in the audience, and the man added: "Photographing during the concert is also prohibited." The host waited until the crowd fell silent again. "And now, the Suntory Hall proudly presents, Michiru Kaioh!"

The hall exploded with applause as the man left the stage. The noise was deafening, much to the displeasure of the Saurians' sensitive ears. Nonetheless, they applauded as well, be it perhaps less loud, but not less enthusiastic. Traveller was nearly on the edge of her seat, excited that it would finally begin.

The curtain opened, but at the same time the lights on the stage died out, and the hall was pitch black for a few moments. Suddenly a circle of the stage was lit with cold white light. In the light stood Haruka and Michiru. Haruka was at the piano, her eyes closed, hands hovering over the keys, ready to play the next chord. Michiru was in front of the piano, facing Haruka, frozen in a fluid motion of an emotion-filled melody.

The Senshi and Saurians in the boxes had their eyes focussed on their two friends. Even Nightmare and Chameleon managed to hold off their boredom for a second, waiting in respectable silence until the true event began.

The performers held their pause in complete silence, until Michiru broke it with a single long note. Haruka followed by a few notes on her piano. Michiru played several notes again. Haruka played a longer piece. Michiru's violin began a slow flowing melody, with Haruka accompanying with light, sad notes. The light gently changed into a warmer one, the two lovers began to move, taking upon more relaxed and natural poses. Gradually, the melody increased speed and warmth of the tone, the change perfectly in tune with the light, until it changed to orange and then, suddenly, to normal yellowish light. Michiru was now smiling, her eyes closed, playing her piece with passion and gentle warmth, letting happiness flow through her notes. Haruka was smiling as well, looking at the keys some times, other times at her lover. It was their own composition, "The Coming of Spring".

Traveller was immediately swept away by the music, her face in a trance, almost like when Gravitas read books. Ignika was just smiling, liking the music, it made him remember the happy days of his youth. Nightmare wasn't really as much into it, the music wasn't her style, but she tried her best not to let it show. Chameleon was sitting still for the first time that evening as he listened, and even Gravitas felt a speck of warmth inside her chest as she listened with glazing eyes.

The melody flowed on for a while, and then ended in an array of fast rising piano notes and a long, gentle violin note. The audience listened to the last traces of sound in the silence for several seconds, and then broke into applause. Traveller perhaps gave the loudest applause of them all.

In the box next to her, Nightmare raised an eyebrow. "That was it?"

Minako chuckled. "Don't hope for that, it's just the end of the first composition." Groaning, the Saurian of Fear sank a bit deeper in her seat and sighed. It just wasn't her style, what could she do? She glanced at the balcony next to theirs. Traveller looked ecstatic.

"Figures," the Saurian of Fear grumbled, almost inaudibly.

Michiru, meanwhile, has bowed to the audience together with Haruka, and came to the microphone in the centre of the stage. She was smiling, and was greeted by another round of applause.

"Thank you for coming to my concert." She said sincerely. The audience broke into another round of applause. "We musicians can perhaps do little for restoring the city, or protecting it from danger..." Michiru paused. "But we have our music, and as long as your hearts can listen, we will give it to you!" Michiru reached out to the audience with her hands. The hall applauded again. Michiru smiled and added: "All the money gained from this concert will go on charity." She then left the microphone, and nodded to Haruka. Together, they started playing Vivaldi's Four Seasons.

Chameleon frowned, and glanced at Makoto. Softly, he whispered: "What does charity mean, Makoto?"

"Don't you remember?" Makoto whispered back. "It's helping people in need. You did it together with me with our work, Michiru does so with money." The Saurian boy nodded in understanding, and turned back to the stage, listening attentively.

Gravitas broke out of her trance for a moment to look at the others. Ami seemed to enjoy it as well, which pleased the Saurian girl. This music did weird things to her, made her 'feel' things, something she wasn't sure she liked or disliked. It was hard to say for sure, or to make up her mind about it.

Ami looked at Gravitas as well. Through their bond, she could feel the air around Gravitas felt somehow... Different. Not as empty anymore. Ami smiled.

"Do you like it?" She whispered to her friend.

The Saurian of Gravity paused, then tore her eyes away from the stage to give her human friend a small smile. Slowly, Gravitas nodded hesitatingly. "I think I do."

Ami smiled and touched her hand. "I'm glad. I'll introduce you to other instruments and genres when we get home, okay?" Ami then returned her attention to the stage, smiling happily. Music definitely had a good influence on Gravitas. Really, why hadn't she thought of it before? Probably because Gravitas and music just didn't seem to fit together...

Ami thought: "Hmm, need to remember to thank Michiru later."

Nightmare, trying to fight her boredom in silence, heard her sister speaking, and saw the small smile on the Saurian's face. It made the Saurian of Fear happy, if only a little. Seems like this music wasn't as useless as she thought. But still… It bored her. Involuntarily, she yawned.

Minako turned to her, looking sympathetic. "What, don't like it?" She whispered.

"It's not my thing," her little sister shrugged, leaning forward and resting an elbow on the ledge, letting her chin drop on her hand. "It's boring."

"Well, you wouldn't get the dress otherwise." Minako rolled her eyes.

"True enough, I guess," the Saurian of Fear replied, smiling as she glanced at herself once more. She still felt really pretty, regardless of the fact that the 'new' of her outfit had vanished. Nightmare sighed deeply. "How much longer, onee-chan?"

"Oh, still a long time..." Minako replied as Vivaldi's composition ended. She applauded together with everybody else. Nightmare just groaned, and bowed her head in defeat. All she wanted was for this music to be a bit – okay, a lot – harder and faster, instead of sounding so sickly sweet.

In the box next to them, Traveller sighed, but not out of boredom, but pure enjoyment. She had a dreamy expression on her face as she listened to the heavenly notes Michiru and Haruka created with their instruments. This was heaven, the Saurian of Teleportation thought. Or as close to heaven as one could come while being alive. From where he was sitting, Ignika observed his sister with a smile, very happy that his sister was happy. He quietly nudged Chibiusa and Hotaru, and once he had gained their attention, indicated at his sister.

"She's enjoying herself greatly," he whispered.

Chibiusa nodded quickly: "Yeah, I like the way they play, too. But Traveller... This is something." She smiled at the Saurian of Teleportation approvingly.

Hotaru smiled. "She's different when she plays something herself, though."

Traveller wasn't even aware of their conversation, fixed on listening to the music, truly in a trance. Ignika giggled politely. "She doesn't even hear us," he whispered. "Then again, it's really nice, what Haruka-san and Michiru-san are playing, so no surprise there."

And so, in silence or to quiet conversation, the concert went on. Vivaldi replaced with Paganini, followed by Bach, Mozart and Handle... Traveller seemed to sink deeper and deeper into a musical trance the longer the concert went on, and for her there was nothing anymore, nothing but herself and the two musicians on the stage. She knew somewhere inside that it was selfish to not think of her brother, but she couldn't help it, she was enjoying the musical notes far too much.

After finishing yet another piece, Michiru went over to Haruka and said something to her. Haruka smiled proudly and stood up from her place, making her way to the microphone. A murmur went through the audience as everybody wondered what that was about, and Traveller fell out of her trance. Haruka cleared her throat and said:

"Ladies and gentlemen, tonight, for the first time ever, we shall play a piece not announced in the programme." Haruka bowed politely and left to take her place by the piano again. Up in the boxes, the Saurians, Traveller the most, wondered what this was all about. The audience murmured as people quietly shared their surprise of such a turn of events.

Michiru and Haruka waited for a while, and then Michiru played a few notes to get everybody's attention. It worked, for the audience fell silent immediately. Nodding to each other, Michiru and Haruka started playing...

The alien, new, fascinatingly sad notes filled the hall. Strange was the fact that the violin seemed to be accompanying the piano, strange were the note combinations, alien was the melody... Traveller gasped as she realized it was her composition. Ignika recognized it as well, and he perked up, excitedly turning to his sister.

"Traveller, that's your composition!" he said happily, before looking back at the stage and enjoying the piece.

The Senshi who didn't know of this surprise, namely Chibiusa and Rei, looked at Traveller wide-eyed. Making a composition? Having learned how to play for barely weeks? Have her composition played by Haruka and Michiru in Suntory Hall? It was absolutely unbelievable.

"I can't believe it…" the Saurian of Teleportation muttered quietly. "My composition isn't good enough to be played here… so why…?"

"Michiru has her reasons." Setsuna said. "You may not understand it, but such style, such emotion and such rendering are completely new and unheard of. It will cause a furore throughout the musical world. All because of your small composition."

"I didn't make it to become… 'rich', as you call it…" Traveller answered quietly as she listened. "I made it because I like music."

"I know. And money is not Michiru's reason, either." Setsuna said and fell silent, listening to the melody. Her symbiosis partner did the same, as did the rest of the box. They all listened with great attention to the Saurian-composed notes that filled the hall. Even in the box next to them, Nightmare was listening with unfamiliar attention. None of the people there knew that this was a Saurian composition, but the three disguised reptiles present felt that there was something different about the current piece played, even if they couldn't pinpoint what it was exactly. It felt different from the former pieces, and, in a strange way, far more familiar than anything they heard previously.

"It's strange..." Ami muttered.

"Eh? What is?" Usagi asked, looking at the Senshi of Water.

"This composition." Ami explained. "I know classical music quite well, but this..." She motioned to the stage. "Is unlike any composer I heard before. It's very strange in style."

Gravitas looked thoughtfully at the two musicians playing on the stage, then glanced at the box next to theirs, seeing Traveller's shocked face. Putting two and two together – additions were the easiest form of mathematical sums, after all – the silver-haired girl whispered tonelessly: "It's Traveller's… this music… she made it."

The Senshi's eyes widened looked they all looked at Gravitas. "WHAT?" Minako shouted in a whisper.

Gravitas' brother and sister nodded, realization having dawned on them. "Gravitas is right," Chameleon said, scratching his chin as he looked from the stage to his oldest sister and back. "I thought this kind of music felt familiar for some reason, even if I never heard music before. Now I know why."

Nightmare, for a change, agreed with her older brother as well. "Indeed, it's made by Saurian claw, that's why it sounds so different to you, and so familiar to us." She smiled at Gravitas. "Sharp thinking there, sister."

Gravitas shrugged emotionlessly. "It is what I do. Did you expect anything less?"

"Of course not." Minako smiled at her. "But don't talk about it carelessly. It's your talent, and we really appreciate it, right?" She looked at Nightmare and the rest of the people in the box. They all nodded.

Gravitas frowned. "Why can't I state the obvious truth that I am smart?" She got no reply, though, as the composition ended. The silence was absolute for several moments, and then the hall exploded with applause. Some even applauded while standing up. Forgetting about an answer for now, the Saurian girl joined in the applause, since the melody had indeed been nothing short of touching and emotional, enough to make even Gravitas feel something.

Michiru and Haruka came over to the edge of the stage and bowed to the audience. They were greeted with cheers and applause. Michiru then went to the microphone, and the audience held their breaths, waiting for an explanation, for the name of the composer. However...

"I thank you with all my heart for coming to my concert." Was all Michiru said. The hall begun to light up, indicating the concert is over. Michiru and Haruka bowed again, greeted by applause, and accepted the flowers brought to them. The hall was filled with noise now, as people stood up from their places and left the hall.

"It's over?" Nightmare asked, wanting it confirmed, turning to her adopted 'sister'.

"Yeah, it is." Minako smiled.

"Does that mean we can go now?" the Saurian of Fear asked again, a bit impatient. Traveller's composition had been nice to listen to, but the rest had bored her.

"Yep." Minako smiled. "Still, it's best to wait for Michiru..." Minako started. Then got an idea. "Wait. Can't Traveller take us all home?"

"We came with the car," Gravitas interjected from the other side of Nightmare, her eyes gazing off in the distance. She was still pondering about her unanswered question from mere moments before.

Usagi raised her eyebrow: "Wasn't that because Traveller didn't know the place?"

"Don't forget Setsuna's car is still here." Makoto told her Princess. "She'll have to drive home regardless." Gravitas nodded in agreement. That was what she had been thinking about when she had said that they had arrived here by car. It seemed unlikely to the Saurian that the Senshi would just leave their cars here.

"So, do we move out of this box now? Or are we supposed to keep sitting here until… something happens?" Chameleon asked, looking curiously at the Senshi in the box.

"Oh, we can move out." Usagi said. "But it's better for you Saurians to leave together with Setsuna and Hotaru in a group, so nobody gets lost or left behind."

Ami nodded. "You might also have to wait for Haruka and Michiru, and that can take a while."

Chameleon's frown only deepened. "Why do we have to go back with them? I live with Makoto, don't I? Same for Gravitas and Nightmare…"

"Umm... Why did Gravitas say you came in the cars then?" Usagi asked, confused. "I thought that meant you want to go back by car instead of via Traveller..."

Gravitas pointed at Minako. "She said, and I quote: 'Can't Traveller take us _all_ home?'. I said we came by car to provide reason as to why her suggestion was not possible." The Saurian of Gravity shrugged. "That's all."

"Ah. I get it. Hahaha..." Usagi laughed awkwardly.

"Well, let's get into their box and see if Traveller and the others have left yet." Makoto said standing up.

Those others hadn't left yet. They were still sitting respectfully in their seats, watching the hall become empty. Traveller was sitting in her seat, her jaw dropped as she stared open-mouthed at the stage. She could still barely believe that her composition, her very first composition as well as her only one, had been played before all those people. It was unbelievable.

"That was… amazing…" she whispered in awe, referring to the entire concert. Silent tears of sheer happiness ran down her face. "Beautiful…"

Setsuna smiled, feeling all that happiness and fascination Traveller felt through their bond. "I'm happy to hear that." She said.

Chibiusa smiled happily. "Yes, the concert was very enjoyable."

Rei nodded. "Your composition was out of this world, Traveller."

Traveller blushed, but shook her head. "You're just saying that…" she whispered. "But really, it wasn't… Not good enough to be played here in the magnificent hall, at least. I don't know why Michiru-san and Haruka-san did it… They shouldn't have."

"Well, what's done is done." Hotaru smiled. "Now all the people in this hall will wonder who composed this piece, and all the musical mass media will be buzzing about it for weeks, if not months."

"Popularity." Rei nodded.

Again, the Saurian of Teleportation shook her head. "I don't want popularity. Or my music to be popular, either. Not until I've become good. I've barely begun playing, I'm not good enough to be popular yet."

"It's alright." Setsuna assured her. "Michiru just creates a mystery. Making yourself popular is hard. Michiru, however, has given you a place in the musical world, and quite a high one. People like mysteries, and Michiru will keep it unforgotten. So when you are ready, when you're good enough to perform yourself, you'll come on stage and become popular immediately, for the mystery will be solved."

Traveller just nodded. Ignika smiled happily, remembering well the applause his sister's composition had gotten. He looked at the two children at his side. "Are concerts always this entertaining?" he asked aloud.

"Mostly, yes." Hotaru replied, smiling. "It depends, of course."

"Well, I enjoyed it," the Child of Life said. "Not as much as Traveller, I think, because that's impossible." He giggled, then asked curiously: "So, what do we do now? Are we supposed to remain here or something?"

"Nope, we can go home now!" Chibiusa said cheerfully.

Setsuna nodded. "Except for me, I still need to get my car home. And Haruka and Michiru would probably be busy with the press and Matsui-san for a while."

"I was of the opinion we should have come together and talk about our experience with this concert, though," Ignika muttered quietly, crossing his arms in thought. "You know, to keep that whole 'getting to know each other' going?"

Setsuna shrugged. "I have to drive either way. You should ask others about it, especially your family."

Rei shook her head. "I need to go home. I have a lot of duties in the Shrine to do tomorrow, and it's becoming rather late..."

Ignika nodded in understanding. "I'm sorry to hear you won't be joining us, Rei-san, but I understand. Duty is something to take serious, after all." The Child of Life rose to his feet and made a polite bow before the Miko. Then he went over to his sister and helped her up, smiling at her. "Let's go home, sister. We can talk about this wonderful evening in comfort there."

Traveller, snapping out of her daze, smiled and nodded.

* * *

**Next chapter: Felnas the Disruptor!**

* * *

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	85. Felnas the Disruptor

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**85. Felnas the Disruptor**

Rei was quietly making her way up the stairs of the Hikawa Shrine, lost in thoughts. The concert was amazing, and Rei's mind kept going back to the melody Traveller composed. It was so alien and beautiful... No doubt the news of a mysterious composer would soon go on TV and quality newspapers.

Suddenly, Rei looked up sharply and gasped. There was an evil presence ahead, she sensed it, and it was overwhelmingly strong. Having her henshin wand at the ready, Rei rushed up the stairs. As soon as she set a foot on the shrine grounds, a massive, uprooted tree was tossed her way with great speed.

Rei had next to no chance of dodging it, yet still somehow managed to do it by falling on the ground, and used her chance to henshin. "Fire Soul Bird!" She fired her attack, and in the light of the flying bird she observed the shrine grounds.

Then something strange happened. The light of her fire bird began to intensify, brighter and brighter, until it rivalled the blinding light of the sun. Then, its flames began to grow and flicker wildly, wisps of it escaping the form of the bird and searing in random directions. This continued for a few seconds until the bird no longer was a bird, but a scorching hot ball of flame that looked highly unstable, and indeed, it exploded the next moment, some of the flames passing dangerously close by Sailor Mars.

Mars gasped and dodged her own fire. "What the?" Was the only thing she could mutter. She then jumped to her feet and looked around the Shrine grounds frantically. "Who's there? Show yourself!"

"Allow me to congratulate you," a calm voice replied. It was the unmistakable voice of a Saurian, but the calm in it made it all the more threatening, as if the speaker was a snake ready to strike. "Your mental control on that little trick of yours was greater than expected, I had to do my best to disrupt it." A low chuckle followed, and then a large threatening figure stepped out of the shadows and into the moonlight.

His skin was as dark as the night, and his scales and hair had a sickeningly green colour, like poison. From his shoulders grew large, mighty wings, covered in black feathers, and his body was protected by plates of green armour, light but strong. His overall appearance was that of a menacing dark bird, cloaked in shadow, ready to strike at any moment. The Saurian smirked and spread his raven wings, casting a menacing shadow on the shrine ground.

"Immoral One..." Rei realized, but didn't let the fear that struck her heart show. First thing she had to do now was calling for help... "Burning Mandala!" She fired, aiming all the rings at the Phantoka's wings, hoping that'll distract him enough for her to contact others.

The Immoral One flapped his feathered wings, the force halting the rings in their tracks. Unbeknownst to Sailor Mars, he had already triggered his own immoral power, and the rings underwent the same fate as Mars' Fire Soul Bird. The attacks went wild and flew in all directions, causing the transformed Miko to have to dive for cover. The invader grabbed this opportunity to strike, and he summoned a heavy bisento to his hand and sped to Rei. Before she was well aware of it, he was upon her, and with one swift and precise slash of his weapon, had severed her communicator from her wrist. The Immoral One caught it, then retreated back a few steps. He wasn't going to finish her. Not yet.

"Tssk, tssk, how rude," he said with a chiding tone, shaking his head. "You didn't waste your time making a pretty speech telling me who you were. And you didn't even give me the time to introduce myself either." The Saurian glanced at the communicator in his hand. "Of course, I know who you are already, so no need for introductions, but I wanted to humour you." He sent her an evil smirk. "You were going to call for help with this, right?" His smirk widened, and the following moment he crushed the communicator in his clawed hand. "I don't think so. We need no intervention of others. Just you and me, all by our charming selves."

"What do you want from me?" Rei asked, observing her foe carefully. Things were going extremely bad. He made all her attacks go wild, and now there was no chance of calling others for help... Mars realized with dread that she had no idea what to do now, or if she'll be able to survive this battle.

"I'm here to kill you, of course," the Immoral One replied with a casual shrug. "You Senshi have become an… annoyance in master Zyglak's eyes, so we have been tasked to remove you from the face of existence. Of course, as you well know, my predecessors Jutlin and Avsa both failed to do so when they took you all head on… So I, Felnas the Disruptor, played it smarter. I hope you enjoyed my little test invasion from a few days earlier, I did it to figure out some weak links in the Senshi formations, as well as your homes… And guess who I found to be the most suitable candidate to kill first? Common, take a guess, it's not hard." Slyly, he added: "Let me give you a hint: it's not any of those who had that pesky symbiosis yet."

"Damn..." Mars thought. "It's true. I was the only one who was alone that night..." Then, in a mere second, Rei felt all of her fear and dread vanish. A second more, and a different strength and emotion flowed through her.

Mars smirked. "You expect me to bow and beg for mercy?" She asked in a low tone.

"No, spare me that, because you won't get it," Felnas answered calmly. "I'd expect you to be smart. You know you can't beat me. All of you creatures combined stood no chance without that symbiosis bond against one of us. How could you even hope to survive? Are you that dense that you don't recognize death when it stands before you?" The Immoral One sighed and shook his head. "I'm making you a good offer: if you surrender calmly and without a fight, I will kill you painlessly. If you choose to resist, then any pain you'll suffer, and that will be a lot, will be entirely your own fault." The Disruptor scratched his chin with a black claw and thought for a moment. "Just be glad that you are about to be killed by me, and not by Mohtrek, that… that…" Felnas gagged in utter disgust. "Beast. Well, anyway, what's it going to be? Surrender, I hope, for the sake of us both? That way we can both save some time, me some boredom and you a lot of pain."

"A Senshi's duty is to fight to the end. I've never run away before, and I won't run away now." Was Mars' reply. In the back of her head, there was her voice that cried 'What are you doing, you can't win this fight!', but it was instantly silenced by a loud, echoing 'Hush!' from two other voices.

Felnas growled darkly, and set a menacing step forward. "So you'd rather suffer pain while dying than to die painlessly, am I right?" he hissed, dangerously quiet. His hand tightened around his bisento.

Instead of an answer, Mars fired a Burning Mandala, and sent a Fire Soul Bird to strike her foe from behind. Trying to make sure to keep the foe distracted, she fired a powerful Fire Soul at Felnas.

"Then who am I to deny you?" Felnas muttered, silently, and his sarcastic playful, taunting tone and posture vanished, revealing his true nature. A creature of the shadows, a dangerous bird of prey, craving to sink his claws into Rei's flesh, wanting nothing more but to rip and tear her apart, to provide her with the pain she so obviously desired. But Felnas shook his head, and repressed those animalistic urges. He was a higher Saurian now, not a beast like Mohtrek. He snarled again. Well, maybe he wasn't entirely rid of his natural impulses. Still, he would bring her pain in a far neater way than ripping and tearing.

The Immoral One spread his wings and triggered his powers, dismissing the attacks sent at him by making them grow wild and out of control and no longer targeted at him. If that Senshi thought he was stupid enough to let himself be caught from behind like that, she was even dumber than he had expected. Felnas swung his bisento, severing several thick trees with one mighty blow. He stabbed the blade of his weapon in one of the plants and then swung it at his foe, followed immediately by three more. Then he took to the air and dived into the shadows, invisible, a stalking death waiting to strike.

Sailor Mars fired a Burning Mandala, slicing the trees into logs and then burning the ones that flew directly at her to crisp with Fire Soul. She then sent a Fire Soul Bird into the sky to find her foe. Yes, it was futile, yes, she probably won't even hit him, but sit around and wait to be attacked? Never! ...Though, somewhere deep inside her, she realized acting this way was not like her at all.

Her fire bird came much too late, however, as Felnas' bisento blade was stabbed through her from behind, and came sticking out of her chest on the other side. "Oh, don't think you'll die from this, Senshi," Felnas' voice hissed in her ear. "You wanted to die painfully, and I'll make sure you'll be filled with pain to your heart's content." The Immoral One's clawed hand closed around her throat, and he triggered his power of Disruption, focussing it entirely on the elemental power within Rei. Then, he did a step back and slid the blade of his halberd out of the Senshi and retreated even further. He placed the blunt end of his weapon on the ground and waited patiently for the Senshi's screams that were sure to come.

At first, Rei couldn't utter a sound, her eyes open wide, gazing upwards and not seeing anything, breath frozen in her lungs. Then she screamed, long and painfully, not only from the pain of the wound, but also from her power. Her core, her power of Fire, was slipping out of her control, melting, flowing through her veins like magma, and it was excruciatingly painful.

As blood dripped from her wound, Rei fell to her knees, and had she not stopped herself with her hands, she would have collapsed totally. Her blood seemed to be boiling, her flesh burning alive, her brain cooking, but it was just the beginning. The power she wielded was building up and building up, constantly increasing, running wild. Her body already screamed in protest, ringing the alarm bell in her brain. Her flesh couldn't stand or house all this power building up inside her. It had to be released, or she'd be destroyed from the inside out. But if all that flame power was unleashed without her controlling it, who knew what damage she'd cause, not in the least to herself?

Rei screamed again as the power kept increasing, her mind bursting under the pressure of all that power, until her body could not stop itself from acting anymore. It happened then, her body snapped, and every single cell began to pour out the fire power that had been build up inside Mars' body. Flames began to well up spontaneously all around her, and they kept growing, growing bigger and hotter with each passing microsecond, while inside her body the power _still_ kept growing. It all seemed to explode then, as Rei's body was wrecked by it unleashing all of the energy in one gigantic eruption of power, and a column of searing hot flame shot up from Sailor Mars' body, reaching hundreds of metres into the sky. It was like a tornado of flame, a true inferno, which spewed and threw deadly flames all through the sky and into the city. And within this monstrous display of power was the unfortunate Miko from who it had all originated, and with her powers out of control there was nothing to guide the heat and flames away from her, and she was effectively hit both from the inside and the outside by the full magnitude of her own power.

"Now that's enough." An unknown voice came. The Immoral One turned around just in time to parry the attack of a bisento with his own. The wielder of the said bisento was a human girl with hip-length black hair, partly put up in two flat round buns at the sides of her head. The girl was dressed in a deep-red leotard with a big black star brooch. The black star had six points, the lowermost point being twice as long as others. Behind her back were four triangular-shaped transparent white wings, with a matching bow on her hips. Black eyes glared at the Immoral One, and there was something bird-like in this glare.

Felnas wasted no time asking questions. He lashed out with his free hand and grabbed the newcomer by the throat. Seeing as how she had attacked him, this was an enemy, and had to be disposed. He had never seen her before, during all of his observations and studies of previous battles his brethren had had. But it mattered little. He could sense she had a power in her, so she was dead meat. He triggered his Disruption powers, making her suffer the same fate as Sailor Mars, then tossed her away carelessly.

"Indeed, it is enough," the Immoral One said, as the effects of his attack began to surface. "I am tired of having constant interruptions while trying to kill one measly weak little Senshi. Master Zyglak is coming, and I will have the way paved for him."

Before the attack overwhelmed her completely, the girl dressed in red had managed to do one thing. With amazing speed, she flew to the Immoral One and grabbed him, so that he would be in the epicentre of her explosion of power. Meanwhile, her blue-dressed twin appeared behind him and slashed at his wings with her twin swords.

Felnas had heard her, however, with his superior hearing, and folded his wings protectively over himself. He blocked the swords with his bisento, then dug the claws of his free hand into the red girl's face. "Pests!" he snarled, as his tail snaked around the blue girl's leg and trapped her, followed by Felnas nearly cleaving her in half with a powerful swing of his bisento. The girl fell silently to the ground. At the same time, the explosion of her twin's powers started, and Felnas found himself washed over with waves of Terror. Acting quickly, the Immoral One tossed the red twin, who he still had by her face, away, making her land right on top of her twin sister. The girls were sentenced to death now, a quick mental conversation going within their dying minds.

"_It was useless."_

"_Yes."_

"_Meaningless."_

"_Yes. But it's against our nature to stand aside and see our master being killed."_

"_Yet she is left without our protection."_

"_The way we did it made her suffer. It's for the better."_

"_True. Farewell, Phobos."_

"_Farewell, Deimos."_

And the two Senshi, the two crows, died in the explosion of Terror. Felnas watched it, and he was pleased. Two less pests to bother his lord and master. Smiling, he turned to Sailor Mars, who was laying on the floor, her knees strangely bend beneath her. The Immoral One came closer, sniffed and frowned.

"Still alive?" he growled quietly.

"Senshi... never die." Came a quiet, hoarse whisper.

Glancing at the two dead bodies of Mars' guardians, the Immoral reptile laughed loud and harsh. "I'm sure those two will be more than willing to agree with that!" He tore a long branch, as thick as the handle of his bisento, of a tree and broke it over his scaled knee, creating a sharp end to it. Felnas then bent over the horribly wounded body of Sailor Mars, seized the woman by her throat and hauled her up. Rei coughed, wheezed and gagged, but was given no reprieve. "Well, since you're not dead, it means you obviously haven't had enough pain yet," Felnas concluded, then he casually impaled her on the tree branch he had just snapped off. Brutally, he used this to pin her to the wall of her own Shrine. "Regretting your choice now, perchance? Or do you want even more pain? I'd be happy to oblige."

Rei didn't reply, however. Only now she had realized there were two bodies on the ground. The human bodies of her crows and protectors, of Phobos and Deimos. Tears welled up in her eyes. She understood it all now. The vanished emotions, the skill to kill, the incredible tolerance to pain, being unable to give up – it was all their work. She was so used to their mental presences that she hadn't even noticed... Now they followed their own way, and died for her.

"Well, I'm not a sadist, unlike some other Immoral One I despise," Felnas said calmly. "Judging by your tears, I conclude you've had enough pain, and wish to die now. Finally you come to your senses, if far too late." The poison-coloured reptile approached the mortally wounded Mars, his bisento held calmly in his hand, ready to end her life with one last, quick stab.

Rei simply bowed her head and closed her eyes. With Phobos and Deimos gone, she was now able to realize struggling is futile. Besides, Senshi never die. Sailor Mars will live on for centuries to come. So now she simply waited for death.

"Oh brother," Felnas groaned as he stopped in his tracks. "Here comes the cavalry." He dismissed his bisento and folded his wings over himself. "I can't stay around to finish you, I don't want to be hit by one of those nasty symbiosis attacks… Who knows, maybe they'll save you? Then expect me to come back and finish the job. Or maybe you'll die, and that means score for me. Either way, since I killed those two, my master will be pleased. Bye now, Sailor Mars!"

And with those words said, Felnas the disruptor vanished without a trace or sound.

He wasn't even gone for a microsecond, or Traveller appeared on the shrine's grounds, Disruption Trident ready in her hands. She looked around attentively, not seeing an enemy right away did not comfort her in the slightest. She sniffed the air, but found nought but the scent of Senshi blood. Then she took in the dead bodies of Phobos and Deimos, and the barely alive Mars pinned to the wall.

"Rei-san!" she gasped, running over to the dying Senshi.

"T... Traveller..." She whispered quietly, struggling for her consciousness to remain in all the pain that washed over her now. She failed, however, and hung lifelessly on the stake she was pinned to the wall with.

"Hang on there, Rei-san…" the Saurian of Teleportation muttered. She took Rei by the arm and teleported, reappearing only a metre away again. It was the only way to get that stake painlessly out of the Senshi. She gently placed the Soldier of Mars on the ground. "The others are transforming, then will teleport here as well. I'm going to get Ignika, hold on, it won't take five seconds!"

Rei was silent. Only a light twitch of her eyelids showed that she had heard what was said. Traveller vanished again then, but not a second had gone by or a new light descended upon the shrine grounds, heralding the arrival of the Senshi by their Sailor Teleport technique.

The Senshi were all ready for battle, however, silence was what greeted them. The Senshi took in the battlefield...

"Rei-chan!" Usagi cried and rushed over to the fallen Senshi, followed by others. They crowded around her, until Ami pushed them all away, crying:

"Don't crowd, she needs air!" The Senshi quickly made their way back, and Ami fell on her knees next to Rei. "My goodness..." She said, observing the numerous wounds and burns on her friend. It was a miracle she was still alive.

Hotaru stood helplessly by her blue-haired friend. She had the power to heal, she knew she did, but this... There were so many wounds, so many burns, Hotaru didn't even know where to start healing. Quiet, confused, she could only stare.

It was good then, that Traveller came back with Ignika the following moment, and the Child of Life, having already taken all knowledge he could from his sister's mind, knew what to expect. He rushed to Rei and immediately bathed her in Life energies. Traveller ushered the other Senshi back.

"Give my brother some space," she snapped, not because she was angry but because she was worried. She glanced at the dead Phobos and Deimos. "And who are those two? Are they still alive?"

Everybody stared at the twin Senshi on the ground. Their uniform was unfamiliar, and nobody had any idea who they were or where they came from. Except...

"It can't be..." Setsuna said quietly in disbelief as she came over to the corpses and knelt besides them. She turned the red Senshi over and took in the black star brooch. "Phobos and Deimos..." She said, recognizing them.

"Who are they, my friend?" Traveller asked quietly of her symbiosis partner. She knelt down besides the two fallen Senshi as well, and felt their pulse. There was none, and she sadly bowed her head. Quietly, she said to the other Senshi: "They are dead."

"They..." Chibiusa said in a shaking voice and came over to the Saurian of the Teleportation. "Those are Rei-chan's crows... Her protectors."

Traveller opened her mouth and was about to say something, when she heard the soft groan coming from her little brother. Only now did she see how pale he looked, an indication that he had used a lot of his powers. Then she glanced at Rei, and saw that the Senshi barely looked any better than before the Child of Life had healed her. "Brother, what's wrong?"

"I… I can't do it…" the Saurian of Life said, breathing hard. "Any healing power I pour into her is soaked up immediately by her body… The internal damage is staggering, and her body is void of _any_ energy. It's a miracle she held out this long, but… It's beyond me…" He swallowed hard, and bowed his head in shame. "The damage is too severe… I've seen nothing like this before… And… I…" He hesitated for a moment, before saying: "I can't heal her."

Shocked silence rang through the air. That was hard and almost impossible to grasp. Ignika, the Saurian of Life, can't heal her. Can't heal her. Rei will die.

Tears ran down Ignika's face, and he buried it in his hands in utter shame. "I'm sorry… I'm sorry…" he began to mutter, over and over again.

Usagi slammed her fist into the ground. "There must be something we can do!" She cried, tears streaming down her face. "Everyone!"

All the Senshi nodded, understanding. They stood in a circle around Rei and Ignika, holding hands. "If it is a matter of power, we'll help." Saturn said.

The Senshi closed their eyes and let their energy flow freely out of their body, creating beautiful shining auras and a soft astral wind. Their tiaras were replaced by their Planet symbols. The Senshi gathered their energy... and let it flow through the Child of Life, who took the raw energy he was provided with and turned it into his element, sending it into Rei's dying body. He felt the flame of her life flicker up a tiny bit, and some of the damage began to heal.

Ignika got hope again. He pressed on. They could still save her, he thought. He just had to keep transforming the energy into Life and sent it into Rei's body. Then she would be healed, then she would be save. And then… The flow of energy stopped. Shocked, Ignika turned to the Senshi, only to see them breathing hard, looking exhausted. Had that been it, he wondered in panic. Was that all? He knew he was being unfair, since the amount of energy of all the combined Senshi had indeed been enormous but…

"It's not enough!" he cursed, punching the solid ground with his fist, not caring if it hurt him. Already, he felt the flame of Rei's life grow weaker. The amount of damage she had received had of course been unbelievably high. For Rei's life to be saved, Ignika would have had to be capable to provide her with a burst of healing energy of the same magnitude as the burst of fire energy that had nearly killed her in the first place. And though they possessed the required amount, none of them had the mental discipline to use it all in one time. It had to be transferred slowly and carefully, and that was not fast or good enough.

"NO!" Usagi shouted, crying hard. She tried to summon the Silver Moon Crystal, but it didn't work. And after their combined energies weren't enough, she doubted even it would help. Giving up, she broke down crying. Ami came over to her and hugged her, crying as well. All Senshi had tears streaming down their faces. Rebirth or no rebirth, death of a dear friend, of a comrade, is always hard...

It was Traveller who came with the answer. Seeing the emotional anguish of the Senshi, she was reminded of the inner pain she had felt herself some time ago, and with it, she remembered who had helped her then. She rushed towards Rei, grabbed her by the wrist and grabbed her brother by the other. She looked at Setsuna sharply and said two words, before she was gone: "Master Angonce."

The silence, interrupted by Usagi's sobs, was long. Then Setsuna said: "Of course... How could we not think of it before..."

Ami smiled. "Master Angonce will save her. He's a Great Being, after all."

At this, the Senshi smiled as well, and Usagi stopped crying. Yes, Master Angonce will save her. Everything will be alright. At least, so they hoped...

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**Next chapter: In a Great Being's care!**

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	86. In a Great Being's care

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**86.**** In a Great Being's care**

Warm. Soft and warm. That's how Rei felt when she woke up. It was not the blazing warmth of a fire, but a gentle, soothing warmth of something soft and pleasant. It wasn't fabric that surrounded her body, and if it was, then Rei couldn't recognize it.

Wait... Her body...? Rei gasped and her eyes flew open. At first she was blinded, because all around her there was only a pure white colour. She feared this was heaven, but upon closer inspection the Senshi realized the white was just the colour of the walls, walls adorned with golden, circle-shaped glyphs. Everywhere she could see – and this chamber appeared quite large – there were strange equipments and machines, the likes of which she had never seen before. A soft humming of the working machines reached her ears, and it was strangely soothing. She closed her eyes again, and took a deep breath of fresh air, provided to her by the tubes connected to her nose and…

Her eyes snapped open again. Only now did she realize where she herself was and what surrounded her immediately nearby. She wasn't in a bed, not one she was used to. The Miko was wrapped in some kind of white fabric from toe to neck, and laying down on a warm, transparent blue plate of unknown material. It was soft and warm, and fit precisely to the shape of her body. She did have a pillow to place her head on, however. The tablet she was on was floating, hovering still in midair, while above her a similar tablet covered her with soothing blue light. Light that she felt, somehow, wasn't there to illuminate the dark. All around her 'bed' were machines, displaying holograms of different parts of herself: her skeleton, her muscles, her organs… _everything_. Data of some sorts was constantly displayed on the holograms as well, but the alphabet was the same as the glyphs on the wall, so she could not read it.

From every machine – and there were plenty – cables ran to her and her body, no doubt transferring the status of her body to the holograms. They weren't attached by needles or sticky plasters. It was as if the circular ends – again, made of unknown material – just clung to her body all by themselves, leaving no mark of attachment behind. At least, that's what Rei thought, since the cable ends disappeared under the blanket wrapped around her that prevented her from moving. Oxygen tubes ran to her nose, and she had several other tubes with clear liquid in them attached to her, though not with needles. The machinery delivered its healing concoctions to her body by another way that didn't require her to be punctured like a pincushion.

"W... Where am I?" Rei tried to say, though it came out as a hoarse whisper. "Is... Is anybody here?"

"So, you've decided to wake up," a horrid voice that sounded like bones cracking sneered. A second later, Crast the Repulsive appeared at the foot end of Rei's "bed". His sickening head was tilted sideways, and his murderous eyes glanced at the holograms, and then at Rei.

Rei grimaced and closed her eyes not to look at him. "I didn't decide, I just did. And thanks for the information, since you're here, I'm in Master Angonce's mansion."

"Don't be a smartass, you inferior primate," Crast sneered. A shiver of irritation ran down his spiked back, as if it hurt him to be 'nice' to the Senshi and help her with her questions. "But yes, you are in our medical wing. And seeing as how I can't stand you, I will go and get the master." And with those words he was gone like a puff of smoke.

Rei sighed, relieved, and closed her eyes again. "Can't stand you, he says... Look who's talking..." She muttered quietly. The void of positive feelings Crast had left in her was quickly replaced by much needed warmth and comfort, and a melodious voice said, chuckling:

"Apologies… I am so unaffected by Crast's presence that I usually forget how normal beings react to it…" Master Angonce entered the medical hall via a hole in the wall that had just opened – a hole in the shape of the Vitruvius man. "Nevertheless, he means well, Sailor Mars."

Rei slowly nodded. "I am glad to still be alive..." She said. "Thank you, Master Angonce."

"You have your friends to thank," the Great Being replied as he started reading the information displayed on the holograms. "Had Ignika and the other Sailor Senshi not attempted to heal you like they did, nothing in my possession would have been capable of saving you. They rekindled the flame of your dying life, I merely made it grow to a bonfire again."

Rei lowered her gaze. Her friends... If she had just gone with them after the concert, none of this would have happened. It made Rei feel guilty. "How long have I been here?" She asked the Great Being.

"Four days, seventeen hours, thirty-nine minutes and eight seconds, to be precise," Angonce answered calmly. "When Traveller brought you here I feared for a moment it was already too late, you were quite far gone, Sailor Mars. You were very, very lucky. The physical wounds were nothing, but the internal damage caused by the disruption of Felnas… Well, let me just say I advise you to never let such a thing happen again. You won't be able to tell of it, rest assured."

Rei slowly nodded. "I... I had no other choice... It's..." Rei looked away again, remembering her crow guardians' 'help'... "I couldn't act otherwise, even though I wanted to..."

"Well, had you not done what you did, you wouldn't be alive at all, since Felnas would have simply killed you, albeit less brutally," the ancient divinity explained, still just as calm as before.

"True... Though... It's not my merit." Rei whispered quietly.

"I am aware," came the reply. The Kind did some typing on some of the empty slates that somehow served as control panels for the machinery, and the blue light shining on Rei darkened a bit and intensified. With that done, the Great Being turned to face the wounded Senshi once more. "Now you must honestly tell me how you think you feel. I have, of course, the physical facts and data right here on my screens, but often the mind feels better than the body, or the other way around."

"I think I am okay body-wise... Nothing hurts now, at least." Rei answered. "Power-wise... I'm not sure at all. After such an explosion... I wonder if I even am able to use them." She paused. "And... To be honest... I am afraid of them going out of control like this again."

"The power of Disruption is dangerous, as you've experienced… But for it to affect you directly, Felnas the Disruptor needs to come in direct contact with you while triggering his powers. Worry not, your powers are safe, and so are you," Angonce explained kindly. "You will need more treatment and rest, since so far you have recovered only for about sixty-four percent, but your life is no longer in danger."

Rei nodded. There wasn't much else to say.

"Keep resting, Sailor Mars," Angonce commanded, stern but polite. "It is in your best interest. I shall leave for now to contact your friends and tell them you have awakened. Should you be in need of anything, call upon Crast, he will come."

"Thank you, Master Angonce." Rei said and obediently closed her eyes, ready to sleep some more if that was what her body needed. One question made her open them again, though. "Master Angonce, what of the two Senshi that fought with me? Have they... Been buried properly?" This mattered to her. She didn't want her fallen protectors to just lie in the open air like Saurian corpses...

The Great Being, who had been walking towards the exit, halted in his tracks and turned around. "Buried? Whatever for?" He gestured to somewhere on the other end of the medical hall, which Rei could not see from her position. "They are kept in this same medical hall as you, for the same purpose: being nursed back to health."

Rei gasped, her eyes widening, and stared at the Great Being in utter disbelief. "WHAT? They're alive? But... I thought..." She finished in a shaking voice.

"They're alive…" the Great Being confirmed slowly. "But barely, their lives are still in critical condition, even after nearly five days of intensive treatment. Your friends thought they were dead, even Felnas thought so. I discovered they were not yet deceased, but in a critical state of suspended animation, as a last desperate attempt of their bodies to survive. I managed to pull them out of that state, and they are now in an artificial coma, and will be for weeks, maybe months, to come. A full recovery might perhaps not even happen, it is too early to say."

"My gods..." Rei whispered, tears streaming from her eyes. "Thank goodness... They have a chance..."

"Perhaps," Angonce continued quietly, his voice strained. "It is my machinery that keeps them alive, since they are not capable of doing even the smallest thing themselves, not even keeping their blood flowing. It is all done artificially, and will have to be until I can restore their bodies to the point where they can handle those tasks on their own again. The life they have now… Forgive me for paining you with these words, but, it is a life not worth living, and I wondered ever since they were brought here, if I should even continue with it at all, instead of letting them die and go to rebirth."

Rei closed her eyes. "Rebirth takes a long time... Powers finding a host, the host being born, the host growing up, the awakening of powers, the return of memories... Time it takes differs, but..." Rei shook her head. "What happened to us Senshi throughout our battles is not rebirth, but resurrection, and that is different. It's Sailor Moon who always does it, though how and why, even she can't understand. That's why we try not to die completely until there's no other way..."

"So I see…" The Great Being sighed deeply, then walked back to the exit. "They might live, they might not. They have a chance, as you said, so let that comfort you during your rest." And with those words the Kind vanished, and the hole in the wall closed.

And Rei was left all alone in the medical room, surrounded by alien glyphs and scans and images of her own body. Those were unnerving to look at. However, the rest was bearable, no matter how alien, and if it weren't for the fact the white fabric prevented any kind of movement, Rei would have felt at ease here. Sighing, she closed her eyes. She had nothing to do but sleep.

"You are… a Sailor Senshi?" a quiet, hoarse voice asked, from somewhere to her left, hidden behind the machinery.

Rei gasped and her eyes snapped open. "Who's there?" She asked, shocked and afraid by the sudden intrusion.

"Don't fret…" the voice ragged. "In my current state, I'm not going anywhere… I have been here… For days. Resting, sleeping, recovering, visits from the family… As my body is pieced back together…" There was a pause, followed by a soft groan, and Rei could swear she saw some ash flying up from somewhere behind the machines. "My name is Vulcan," the voice then finally introduced itself.

"I am... Rei." The Senshi introduced herself. "So you're from that other family of Saurians..." She said thoughtfully, remembering the unbelievable story the Outers told on the night after the invasion.

"So you have heard of us…" Vulcan muttered quietly. The Saurian of Magma was in a situation very much like Rei, laying on the strange bed, covered by the white material to his neck, surrounded by holograms of his body's status and many tubes connected to his body and nose. Only, while for Rei it was familiar if not really pleasant, for the Saurian it was a terrifying nightmare. He was glad to have someone to talk to, since his family wasn't allowed to visit much, since he needed so much rest.

"Yeah..." Rei said. "Such reasonable foes are very rare, you know. Up until now, we've only dealt with beings of pure evil, or corrupted ones..." She said, though she didn't know why.

"We just wanted to go home," the magma being answered quietly, after another ragged breath. "We don't care for the battles between good and evil… It goes beyond us… We just want to live our lives like they were meant to be…" The Saurian stranger let out a sorrowful sigh. "I don't want to be here… I am scared, but the Great Being says I won't survive if I'm not in here…"

"Don't be afraid." Rei tried to comfort the Saurian. "All these machines can't do any harm. They just do what they're made to do – nurturing you back to health." Rei looked up to the ceiling. "For us Senshi, life stopped being normal as soon as we got our powers. We still try to lead it when we don't have to fight, though."

"Saurians and machines don't belong together…" Vulcan whispered, shivering in fright. "It's not natural… I know they can't harm me, but they frighten me, I can't understand them…"

"Me neither." Rei said. "At best, I can imagine what does what, but the inner workings are beyond me. And that's not just because these are a Great Being's machines. We use a lot of machines, too, much more primitive ones, but most people have no idea how they work. And they don't really need to, just how to use them." She turned her head to the direction where the voice came from. "Don't be afraid. You'll adapt. Ignika and his family adapted pretty quickly."

"I am the only one here," the Saurian explained. "My family is in a… 'pocket dimension' with a jungle, our natural home… Only I am hooked to these machines… I do not want to adapt. I want to be rid of them, want to be free amidst the green, like my family."

Rei sighed. "Then you'll just have to be patient... I am sure Master Angonce will set you free as soon as it is safe for you to do so."

"I know, but it is not pleasant, and it remains frightening."

"I see..." Rei said slowly and sighed again. Apparently, she couldn't talk him out of his fear... Which is quite understandable and natural. She heard him sigh again.

"Why are you here?" he asked of her. "I was sleeping, I don't know how long ago, when the master comes in carrying you… I couldn't see or hear what was happening, and I don't have the courage to ask the Great Being himself…" Vulcan groaned in discomfort as he tried to move again, to no avail.

"I had been almost killed by an Immoral One..." Rei answered quietly. "'Almost' meaning it's a miracle that I survived at all. By all means, I should have died... But my friends managed to hold a spark of life in me..."

"I am still not recovered from my final attack against Sailor Saturn…" Vulcan told her without her having asked for it. "I am still not capable of keeping my body together, it keeps turning into magma… The master said, that's why I am in this…" He frowned in distaste as he looked at the white fabric melded over him. "Cloth. He said… he said it does for me what my mind cannot for now. I don't understand it. Cloth has no mind, it can't turn my magma back in my flesh."

"It's not exactly cloth, I think..." Rei said, looking at her own. "And I'm not too surprised it can control and hold elemental power. Mental energy is energy in the end, and any type of energy can be converted into another." She paused. "If it doesn't sound too confusing..."

The Saurian nodded slowly. "The Great Beings are great indeed…" he whispered in awe. "I didn't think cloth could hold magma…"

"Heh... Well, it all depends on how cloth is made." Rei answered. "A normal piece of cloth of course wouldn't manage to do something like that. Humans have managed to make cloth that doesn't burn in fire, but it's very hard to make."

"Why do you aspire to be like the Great Beings?" Vulcan wondered curiously, not understanding the use of that. To him, it seemed futile, as none could ever top the original, in his opinion.

Rei chuckled. "The Great Beings never visited our world, or even our dimension. We didn't aspire to become like them, we just go our own way."

Vulcan was about to say something, but was interrupted by a groan of pain coming from himself. He hissed softly and wriggled restlessly on his bed, trying to shake it off, futilely.

"What's wrong?" Rei asked worriedly.

The Saurian settled down again and took some deep breaths. "Nothing…" he growled slowly. "I'm in pain, that's all… The master, he tried to make it vanish by giving my body a strange kind of water but… with my body as it is, most of it evaporates by my magma before it can enter me…" Vulcan sighed again, blowing out a bit of ash as he did so. "It makes the working of his healing concoctions very slow and tedious… And means more suffering for me…" The Saurian of Magma closed his eyes in acceptance. "I suppose I deserve it."

"...Why?"

To her surprise, Vulcan chuckled softly, but he didn't answer her question. Instead, he asked, hesitatingly: "I've been wondering… Sailor Senshi… Do you hate us? Our race?"

"Hate...?" Rei repeated slowly. Then tried to shrug, but the movement was suppressed by the fabric. "No, not at all. Why do you ask?"

"Why don't you?" the other occupant of the room asked, pressing on. "By all right, you should, after everything me, my family and our fellow Saurians have done to you and your home."

Rei shook her head. "No. Hating an entire race is an utterly wrong thing to do. Especially if that race is _forced_ to invade our dimension. If it was just your Saurian race that wanted to destroy or conquer our world, then perhaps we'd feel negative. But as things are now..." Rei paused. "It's all up to you. If you come to us as enemies, then you're enemies. However, if you come to us as a friend, asking for shelter... Then you are a friend." Rei sighed. "Hating an entire race is wrong. Race is made up of individuals. And individuals are all different... Some want to come home, like you and your family, some desire nothing but power like those four that attacked me last time... But the truth is, you can't judge an entire race based on a few individuals. Even a hundred of individuals might not be enough to understand a race." Rei shook her head again. "Besides, we know who's the mastermind, so... It's not your fault, and you're not worth hating."

"So you think little of us, do you not?" Vulcan asked quietly, referring to the Miko's last sentence of "not worth hating". To him, it had come across as: you're not worth even the effort it takes to hate.

"I didn't mean that..." The said Miko answered. "Have you been listening to what I said before? We don't hate you, because it's not your fault that you have to enter our dimension and wreck havoc. If there's someone that should be hated, it's Zyglak and the Immoral Ones, not you Saurians."

But Vulcan shook his head. "No, pity the Immoral Ones, don't hate them… For their fate might very well be worse than that of the Saurians they sent forth to invade…" He took in a deep breath again, then continued: "I can't speak for all of them, and nobody will deny that 'sire' Mohtrek…" He spat out the word 'Mohtrek' with utter distaste and pure hate. "Has no sanity left, but… I think some of the others merely became who they were, out of fear. We all want to survive this crisis, and for some, becoming an Immoral One might have seemed the best way to do so…"

"Like I said, _should_ be hated..." Rei said, sighing. "But... We Senshi don't really hate the enemy generals, either. There've been several cases when some of them could be, and were, reformed and turned into a friend..." Rei sighed again. "If it is possible to understand our enemies, we try to. Like we understood your family. But in most cases..." Rei shook her head and didn't finish.

"How?" the Saurian wondered, confused. "How can you bring up such understanding for those who try to kill you?"

Rei smiled. "That's the ultimate kindness of our leader, Usagi... She's a pure soul, kind, loving everything in this world... She's the one who always tries to see through the enemy and understand him or her. Some evil beings turned to evil just to bury their pain and sorrow. And it is her who taught us this... We try to learn it from her."

Vulcan let out another ragged breath, breathing out some more ash as he did so. He was about to say something, when Angonce entered the room once more, as divine as always. As he passed Vulcan's bed, he smiled kindly at the healing Saurian. "I will come to you in a moment, Vulcan. First I have to inform Sailor Mars of a couple of facts." The Saurian nodded in quiet, respectful understanding.

"What is it, Master Angonce?" Rei asked, uncertain whether she should be worried or looking forward to what he had to say. The Great Being came to stand at Rei's side, and he gently placed one of his divine hands on her forehead.

"I have sent Crast to your friends, and he returned with the news that they are coming to see you right away. They also wished me to tell you that your grandfather isn't aware of what has happened to you, and they do their best to keep it that way," he told the recovering Senshi.

Rei smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Master Angonce... I am very glad to hear it." Indeed, she looked forward to seeing her friends. A Saurian is interesting to talk to, but sometimes it's nicer to talk to someone who's on the same level and terms as you.

"I must implore you, however, to not overdo it. I will allow them to visit you, but as soon as my equipment indicates a decrease in any aspect of your health, I will demand them to leave. You are not even close to full health, and you need a lot of rest. I won't force you to sleep, your body just needs rest, which it gets by not moving and being encased in this fabric, as well as the light you are bathing in." He gave her a stern look. "Do I have your word that you will send your friends away once you feel you're becoming too tired to handle it?"

"Yes, Master Angonce." Rei promised happily. "You have my word."

"Very well…" The Great Being then took what was undoubtedly a sphere of softly glowing, clear liquid out of a glyph in the wall above Rei's head. He put two of his glorious fingers into the sphere, and pulled a much smaller one out of it. Gently he put the sphere back in the glyph in the wall, then slowly lowered the palm of his other hand, the small sphere of liquid floating above it, to Rei's face. With a divinely feathery touch, Angonce used his other hand to lift Rei's head up somewhat. "I need you to swallow this medicine. It needs to be digested, and will greatly help to energize your drained body. But it needs to be taken while conscious, so I had to wait until you were awake, Sailor Mars."

Rei nodded and reached towards the liquid sphere with her lips, sucking and drinking it rather than swallowing it whole. Angonce patiently waited until she was done, then lowered her back on the pillow. "Rest now, until your friends arrive. Let my medicines do their work, and you will soon feel better." He touched her forehead with hand again.

Rei smiled, closing her eyes and enjoying the feeling of light, kindness and warmth coming from the Great Being. Being treated by Master Angonce himself was of course better than any human hospital could ever offer in their history. Rei actually liked the medicine, it was cool and had a sweet, yet somehow minty taste to it, not to mention it immediately began to work. Rei sighed contently and relaxed on the bed.

Angonce gave her one last encouraging smile, and then moved over to the other patient he was treating. He looked with compassion at the pained Saurian of Magma. "Vulcan, you slept for a long time today. How are you feeling?"

The Saurian in question refused to directly look at the divinity, feeling he was not worthy to do so. "Slightly better, master… But the pain is… Insistent."

The Great Being nodded in understanding, and placed his hand on the Saurian's snout, soothing him with the calm and peace his touch brought. "I am aware of your discomfort, and I deeply apologise for it," Angonce said apologetically. "Though it is no excuse, it has been eons since I had to treat a Saurian, and I had to dust off my knowledge of the anatomy of your race. No simple task, given that I lack plenty of the records and data I had to my disposal on your home world."

"You do not have to explain yourself to me, glorious master," the wounded reptile said, relaxing under Angonce's touch, but still not daring to look at him. "You saved my worthless life, the way how is of no importance."

"A life of a person with an active conscience and the desire to do good and repent for mistakes made, is not worthless," Angonce chided calmly. The Great Being broke contact with Vulcan, and his hands went to the control slates of the machines the Saurian was hooked to. "But let us forget about this for now, for I have come with good news. Your days of pained waiting are over, and better times are ahead of you." The Kind took a crystal vial out of one of the pockets of his robes, and in it was a bright golden liquid.

"If you take this in, the strength of your body should be back to normal very soon, and a healthy body means a healthy mind. And with a healthy mind, you can finally regain control of your powers once more, and stop turning into your element sporadically," the Great Being explained calmly.

Vulcan frowned somewhat. "But master… Please, forgive me for being so rude as to ask a question but… How can this medicine heal my body, when my body is in shambles, a mix of magma and flesh?"

The divinity looked a bit sad. "You don't have to fear asking questions, my good Saurian… Asking questions sharpens the mind, and proves a hunger for knowledge, which is the key to mental growth." He patted the reptile on the shoulder. "As for the answer… I will forcefully shut off your powers, and force you to take on your true form. Then you can take in this medicine, which will continue to work even if I let your powers slip from grasp again afterwards…" The immortal being paused for a moment, then reluctantly said: "However, shutting off your powers and returning you to a state of flesh forcefully will be painful, and require bravery of you… But trust me when I say that this is in your best interest, and after this pain you will have your full health and recovery to look forward to."

The Saurian inwardly winced and closed his eyes. He did not like the sound of it in the least. Already, he was frightened very much by the Great Being and his strange machines, but now he would be pained by them, even if it was for his own good. Oh, how he wished his family was here. His fears were eased somewhat, as he felt the glorious being besides him touch him once again, encouragingly squeezing his scaled shoulder.

"Be brave, Vulcan. I would not ask this of you unless I was certain you would benefit from it in the end. And you will, if you trust me."

Rei frowned. Shutting off powers... Rei wondered what it would be like, to have her Senshi powers taken from her. When Felnas disrupted her power, made it explode... If the pain from shutting powers off was the same, then Vulcan was in for one hell of a ride.

"It will last less than a minute," Angonce assured his patient. The Saurian took a deep breath and steeled himself, then nodded with closed eyes, indicating he was ready. The Great Being treating him then started to work quickly. He kept one hand over Vulcan's eyes, while the typed away on one of the control panels of the machines. Once he was done with that, the divinity opened the vial and held it at ready, then pressed one final button on his machines.

From where she was lying, Rei couldn't see much, but nothing seemed to have changed. Except that one moment, she could hear Vulcan's ragged, tensed breathing, the next she heard him howl in agony between clenched teeth. The pain the reptile felt was excruciating, as he was forcibly, mentally severed from something that had been a part of him all his life. With Angonce's overpowering mental strength having a firm grip on his mind, and thanks to the pain his body was going through, the Saurian of Magma wasn't even aware of his body unnaturally becoming normal again. Nor did he feel the Great Being sending the new medicine down his throat, running down and into his stomach.

And then, as sudden as it had come, the pain was gone, and Vulcan found himself lying back on the bed, breathing hard and staring up at the ceiling, tears in his eyes from the ordeal. Inside the cloth melded over him, his body had become partly magma again, and he felt the unnatural rift in his mind, between his powers and himself, had closed once again. But most of all, he could feel a new warmth and energy inside his stomach, slowly spreading out throughout his entire being, that had not been there before. It was the medicine of the Great Being already beginning to take effect, and he knew it.

"You did well," Angonce told his reptilian patient. "I have known others who suffered much worse when severed forcibly from their powers…" A smile formed on the immortal one's face. "But you have taken the medicine, and within a day, or maybe two, you will feel much better. I do want to keep you resting here until the end of the week, however, but once the medicine did its work, there is no need for you to be attached to all this machinery any longer, and your family can come visit whenever they want and for as long as they want. Which was something I could not allow so far, you needed too much rest."

Vulcan let out a relieved sigh and lowered his head respectfully before the Great Being. "I am very grateful for your good care, great master… And your words warm my heart and lift my spirits… I do not wish to offend, but this… room is not for me, a Saurian, and I long to be amongst the trees…"

Angonce smiled again. "I understand completely. We all have a place where we feel best, after all. Just have a little more patience, and you will see your family and the trees."

Rei smiled. "Congratulations, Vulcan." She said happily and sincerely. The howl was frightening, but now, things would be alright. Just a couple more days to recover, that was great. However, Rei realized such quick recovery was not possible for her.

Vulcan was about to thank her for her kindness, when all positive feelings in the room vanished without a trace, leaving only cold and misery behind. It was the typical thing that happened before Crast made his entrance, and sure enough, the Repulsive came walking right through the wall, an annoyed expression on his sickening face.

"Master," he said quietly in his awful voice. "The visitors for that Mars primate have arrived."

* * *

**Next chapter: Visitors and conflicting truths!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Anonymous: Thanks for reviewing, glad you like the story.

SoulLoss: Nah, you shouldn't feel guilty. =p I liked writing it myself, it's good to give the Senshi a wake-up call that they might not be as strong as they think they are. For sure, they saved the world five times, but they also died three times leaving it up to Usagi to do it on her own. Time to shape up! Glad you liked Felnas, I felt I couldn't have all Immoral Ones come with an army only to be smacked by symbiosis. Don't want them to seem incompetent when they really aren't, hence this chapter. As for Sahmad's Tale, my feelings are mixed. It's good to see the story end (it took far too long IMHO), but I'm not sure I like the way how it ended. I can't really sympathise with Sahmad. Even with his background, he's still an ass. And the Golden Fusion reeks far too much of Deus Ex Machina to me, he seems like Bionicle's new "solution to everything". I did like Anona, though, but I was bothered by the uselessness of Teluris his death. It added nothing to the story. Sure, Teluris wasn't exactly a vital character, he hardly had any, but I still feel he was done away with just so the cast could become smaller and Greg had one less character to worry about. In short, Sahmad's Tale started promising, and it ended okay, but there've been better serials. Thanks for the review! =)


	87. Visitors and conflicting truths

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**87. ****Visitors and conflicting truths**

Rei was smiling, her eyes closed. Just a few more moments... Angonce and Crast had left, and soon her friends will be here. She just wondered how long it'll take them when...

"Rei-chaaaan!" Usagi shouted in joy as she ran over to Rei's floating bed. Rei smiled at the sound. Knowing Usagi, she would have been undoubtingly jumped on and hugged to death, but lucky for her, her blonde friend remembered of her critical condition.

"Hi, Usagi-chan." Rei smiled.

"You're okay! Oh, we were so glad to hear that..." Usagi said as other Senshi approached the bed.

"True, we were very worried." Makoto said, coming closer to her bed. Even though she was happy, her eyes still betrayed the worry she had had the last few days. It warmed Rei's heart to see it.

"Master Angonce wouldn't let us nowhere near you for all this time..." Ami said, smiling gently at Rei, relieved to see her alive and conscious again. Though the Senshi of Mars looked pale and weak, she was recovering, and it made Ami happy.

"Congratulations on waking up, Rei." Hotaru smiled shyly at her.

Rei smiled back. "Thanks..." She looked at all the Senshi surrounding her bed. Usagi, Chibiusa, Setsuna, Makoto, Ami, Minako, Haruka, Hotaru, Michiru... All her friends, except for the Saurians, coming to visit her while she was recovering. Last time something like that happened was in primary school, when she was in hospital with a broken leg, and the whole class came to visit. It made Rei feel warm and happy inside.

"Girls... I'm so glad to see you all..." She said quietly. "Where are the Saurians, though?"

"Oh, they're watching over the Outers' house." Minako said carelessly.

"I see." Rei smiled and fell silent. She wanted to save her strength to be with her friends as long as possible.

The said friends, while being very relieved to see Rei alive, conscious and recovering, couldn't help but feel a bit overwhelmed by all the alien equipment surrounding them. It was very advanced and weird-looking, beautiful in design, yet at the same time unnerving because of all of the body scans. Still, they were glad to be allowed to come here and see their friend. Some of them looked a bit weirdly at the Miko, however, seemingly trapped in the fabric melded over her as she was.

"Ehm, isn't that uncomfortable?" Chibiusa wanted to know, carefully reaching out with a finger to touch the material.

Rei smiled. "A bit. It doesn't allow me to move an inch, but it's very soft and warm."

"You had us worried…" Ami said quietly.

Rei lowered her eyes. "I'm sorry..." She whispered. "Felnas didn't give me a chance to use my communicator..."

"Are you in a lot of pain?" Usagi wanted to know, looking like she was about ready to start fussing over her Miko friend any moment now.

"No, not at all." Rei assured her. "I think it's just the painkillers, though. Still have much recovering to do..." The others nodded quietly in understanding. They all looked solemn and uncertain, as if they had a tons of things they wanted to ask, but didn't dare to out of fear for her health. Chibiusa carefully poked the fabric encasing Rei, finding it to be very soft indeed. So soft and light, that she doubted Rei could actually feel it on her. She probably just felt the softness and warmth, as if wrapped in a blanket of warm air.

Rei observed her friends. "Well, now that you're here, don't be silent. Master Angonce allowed me to talk until I'm tired, so..."

"Aren't you… afraid here, Rei-san?" Hotaru asked, her voice quiet, and she didn't directly look at the recovering Miko. Being here in this medical lab, reminded the Senshi of Saturn of her previous life, of a laboratory and mechanical parts being implanted in her body. There was a difference, of course, as Angonce's laboratory was far more… light and pure, but the lingering fear, caused by being surrounded by alien machines, remained.

"No, not really." The Miko answered. "It's unnerving, but not scary. These are machines to help me recover, they're not harmful, painful or even uncomfortable in any way, so why should I be afraid?"

Hotaru just slowly shook her head and shrugged, doing a step back, slightly hiding behind her parents. "No reason…" she muttered, shivering slightly. The purple-eyed girl shut her eyes forcefully, wanting the memories to go away.

Rei frowned and lowered her eyes. "I'm sorry, Hotaru-chan... Didn't think of that..." She sighed.

"N… no, it's not your fault," the younger girl protested quietly.

"Still..." Rei sighed. Then smiled. "I'm glad you still came to visit me, though."

Hotaru smiled as well. "Well, we are friends, all of us, aren't we?"

"We definitely are!" Minako smiled and gave a 'V' sign, and all the girls laughed softly or smiled. Rei was happy to be with her friends like this, despite the pain she went through before.

"So how is it to be treated by a Great Being?" Haruka demanded playfully, her hands buried in the pockets of her trousers.

"Better than I imagined." Rei replied just as playfully. "The bed is soft, the medicines are tasty, the doctor is amazing, really, what else could an injured person wish for?" She chuckled. "One problem, though: Crast." She added.

All Senshi groaned collectively as they remembered – against their will – the disgusting dark side of Angonce. Then, suddenly, they could swear they heard the creature's delighted chuckling at their reaction echoing through the hall.

"Thank goodness he doesn't come here often." Rei said. "And how are things at home? Did any new invasions happen?" She asked worriedly.

The Senshi all shook their heads. "Nothing," Setsuna answered calmly. "Given what happened to you, and from what we know, Ignika thinks that no new attacks will happen for now because we are too much on our guard, especially after the attack on you. Felnas won't risk striking again. We have also made plans to ensure that none of us are alone at any moment."

"That's good." Rei sighed, relieved. Then looked intently at her friends again. "And what of grandpa? What did you tell him?"

"That's kind of what we wanted to ask you," Minako admitted, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. "For now, we've said you were staying with one of us, but I guess that won't fool him forever… What do we do? We can hardly tell him you were attacked by an alien from another dimension, right?"

Rei frowned. If she hadn't been at home for four days, Grandpa will definitely get worried. "What to tell him..." Rei pondered.

"Aren't you hungry or anything, Rei?" Usagi asked, breaking the mood of not knowing what to do about the situation with her grandfather. "Seems kinda hard with not being able to move and all. Speaking of which, wouldn't that make it difficult to…" Usagi shut herself up before she continued saying that embarrassing thought out loud.

Rei sweatdropped. "Usagi, I just woke up." She shook her head. "I was most likely fed intravenously or something. And the rest, well... I'm not the only bed-ridden patient in history, you know." Rei bowed her head, a bit embarrassed.

"Won't it be boring here all on your own, when you're awake and we're not here, I mean?" Makoto wanted to know. "Since you can't move and all…"

"Well, I have another patient to talk to..." Rei smiled. "He'll be alright in a week."

Two questions were then fired off at once:

"Doesn't it bother you that you can't move? It almost makes you seem imprisoned," Makoto asked. The active girl she was, she couldn't stand the idea of lying still all day, in Rei's case not even able to budge an inch.

"Another patient? Who might that be?" came the second question, asked by Michiru.

"Sure, it's a bit uncomfortable, but hey, it's not like I have a choice." Rei rolled her eyes, then looked at Michiru: "And the other patient is someone you know. It's Vulcan."

The Outers, save for Setsuna, gasped. They knew that the Saurian family would be living at Master Angonce's residence, but somehow didn't think that the severely wounded Saurian would be here. The medical chamber had been too overwhelming to think of that. The Outers, Hotaru especially, remembered how bad his condition after the battle was, and all wondered how he was now...

"Can we visit him?" Hotaru asked.

"Hmm... I'm not sure." Rei said. "Master Angonce didn't say anything about that... He got a lot better today, but still... Well, you could check on him, he's over there somewhere." She motioned with her head to her left where Vulcan was hidden behind machines.

The three Outer Senshi nodded. "If you excuse us, Rei..." Michiru said quietly.

"Of course." The Senshi of Fire nodded, understanding how important it was to them.

And so Haruka, Michiru and Hotaru went to find the Saurian of Magma. It wasn't that hard, they just had to go around the machines that hid him from Rei's view. They found him on a floating bed identical to Rei's, encased in the same kind of white cloth. His eyes were closed and his breathing even, as if he were sleeping, but the holograms around him showed his heart was beating very fast, indicating that he was just pretending, and very much awake.

Haruka smiled. "We can read some of the screens, you know." She said casually, without a trace of irritation or anything like that. "You're not asleep."

A sigh – and some ash – escaped the Saurian's jaws. Reluctantly he opened his eyes, but he avoided looking at any of them directly. "Why did you come?" he asked, sounding rather depressed and sad about it.

"How could we not?" Hotaru asked as if was obvious. She quickly came over to his bed. Putting her hand on it, she asked worriedly: "How are you?"

Vulcan still didn't look at her. If he could shrug, he would have. His scaled eyelids closed again. "The master takes care of me. I have just gotten a new medicine, and already I feel better. The master said I need to rest until the end of the week, however." He sighed again.

Hotaru smiled and sighed, relieved. "That's good." It was true that Hotaru was worried for him, even if she didn't tell it to anybody. Her mama and papa still stood where they were for now, allowing their daughter to talk with the Saurian.

"Why did you come?" he asked again, sounding annoyed. He didn't want to be rude to her, but he was still tired, and ashamed of his earlier actions. He had tried to kill her, and even if she understood his motives, why was she visiting him now? It didn't make sense. He could understand the wounded one talking to him, he'd never fought her directly…

Hotaru lowered her eyes. "I was worried..." She said quietly. "We fought, but... You didn't want to, did you? You were forced to... We both were... So..." She fell silent, frowning.

"It's no excuse," Vulcan replied quietly. "I actively tried to kill you to the best of my abilities."

"So did I." Hotaru answered seriously. "But it's in the past. Now you're not an enemy anymore, are you?" The Saurian didn't reply, merely sighed again and tried to shrug. His eyes closed once more. He was tired, confused and frightened.

Hotaru reached out her hand to touch the Saurian, but hesitated, her hand freezing in midair. What if he doesn't like it? Hotaru did her best to shake the feeling off and resolutely, but gently put her hand on the Saurian's head.

"Why do you do it?" he asked for the third time, his voice distant and sad.

"I... I want to say..." Hotaru said hesitatingly and a bit sadly. "That you're not my enemy. Despite what happened, we're both alive, well... Um, almost well, I mean." She quickly and awkwardly corrected herself. "... And we're on the same side. So... Nothing stops us from being friends with you and your family, got it?"

Another sigh, followed by more silence, as Vulcan refused to reply again. He opened his eyes again, but looked in the opposite direction of his visitors. Inwardly, what he wanted was for them to leave. He didn't want to be rude, but he felt uncomfortable under her kindness.

Hotaru sighed as well and removed her hand, then went over to her mama and papa. "Let's go back to Rei-chan." She said sadly.

Michiru nodded and led her daughter away, her hand gently put on Hotaru's back. Haruka, however, took her time to say: "What Hotaru said goes for all Senshi, Vulcan. Those who stopped being enemies are friends. Remember it." With those words she left, too. And still the Saurian said nothing. He merely closed his eyes and tried to sleep, wishing to escape this undeserved kind attention that way.

The three Outers returned to Rei, and everybody noticed them being not in good spirits.

"So, how was it?" Rei asked.

"Well, we didn't really get a conversation..." Michiru said. "Hotaru tried to say she isn't angry at him for anything and wouldn't mind being friends, but he kept silent."

"Maybe he doesn't want to be my friend..." Hotaru said, feeling hurt.

Rei shook her head. "No, it's not that." She paused. "He just doesn't understand why we want it. I did my best to explain, but... He doesn't get how can we be kind and befriend someone who tried to kill us."

All Senshi smiled sadly. Makoto chuckled softly. "For us it became the norm so long ago..."

"And all thanks to Usagi." Haruka said, smiling.

Sailor Moon blushed shyly. "Oh, come on, you guys..."

"Nah, it's true." Minako winked at her friend.

The good mood was suddenly interrupted when the group could feel the all too familiar feelings of dread and fear overtake them, caused by Crast's appearance. The human-shaped door of the medical had opened, and the monster came skittering through. A couple of five metres behind followed four Saurians, obviously very frightened by Angonce's servant and their surroundings. Crast led them to Vulcan's bed, ignoring the Senshi totally.

"You have an hour, then you little reptiles go back to where you belong," the Repulsive sneered, with his horrifying voice. Then he vanished without a trace, and the hole in the wall disappeared with him. Free of the dark influence of his presence, the Saurians quickly ran to their brother's bedside to visit.

Rei smiled. Now things will get interesting. Winking at Hotaru, she said: "You know, if you stand over there by those machines, you should be able to hear what they say. We will keep talking so they don't suspect anything."

Hotaru looked at her weirdly, but nevertheless took her place near the machines that made the 'wall' between the two beds and listened carefully.

"That creature scares me," she heard the woman of the group, Vanisher, stammer. The Saurian of Teleportation shivered as she glanced in the direction Crast had been mere seconds ago. "If it weren't for the fact that he takes us to you, brother, I would never follow him."

"I think he scares everyone, Vanisher," Vulcan muttered, his voice quiet but happy upon having the people with him that he desired to have around. "But he is the master's servant, so we must try to show respect. Regardless, I am happy you have come… I missed you all."

"We miss you too, brother," the Saurian of Sonics, Noisyth, replied, patting his older brother on the fabric-covered shoulder. "The place the master allows us to live in, in the 'pocket dimension' is nice, but without you, it can't make us totally happy."

"I know, you said so before," the Saurian of Magma said, smiling. "The master gave me a new medicine today, and I already feel it working. Sometime tomorrow I'll probably be, finally, disconnected from these machines. I was told to remain here to rest until the end of the week, and after that I think I'll be allowed to go… I won't be sad to leave this behind, no offence to master meant."

Hotaru listened to the conversation quietly. Hearing Vulcan talk to his family was nice. However, the reason Hotaru started eavesdropping in the first place was because she needed to know: does Vulcan not want to be her friend, or he simply doesn't understand the concept of such friendship? And what would his family say? So she listened carefully, trying her best to ignore the Senshi conversation going on behind her.

"It seems your roommate has visitors as well," Caretaker, Vulcan's healing brother, mused, glancing briefly at the Senshi out of the corners of his eyes. His magma brother stiffened slightly upon Caretaker touching this subject.

"Yeah… you'll never believe who my roommate turned out to be…" Vulcan explained with a sigh. When his family gave him curious looks, the user of the Magma power reluctantly elaborated, telling them of all that had happened before they came, including Hotaru's visit.

Hotaru's heart beat faster. Here it is... "What will they say? What will they think?" She wondered, catching every sound coming from behind the machine.

"They want us to be their friends?" Squall, Vulcan's final brother muttered, disbelief and amusement in his voice. He chuckled. "These Sailor Senshi are such funny creatures. Who would want to be friends with creatures like us, who tried to kill them? Have they lost their minds?"

Hotaru pouted. "Everyone thinks that... at first, at least." She thought, listening on.

"Can't say I disagree," Vulcan rasped, blowing out a few ash particles. "It's not that I doubt that they are kind hearted beings… But I refuse to believe their kindness stretches so far it covers even us. It's unnatural. It's too perfect, and aside from the master, nobody can be like that."

Vanisher sighed, but also agreed. "Correct. Even if they tried to be our friends, there's no way they'd forget our attempts to kill them. There will always be doubt in their eyes when they look at us, even if they deny it out loud. They can't go against nature. We've hurt them, it's impossible they just forget about that."

Noisyth and Caretaker nodded, fully agreeing with the rest of their family. So much kindness simply couldn't exist, let alone be offered to them.

Hotaru shook her head. "If only they had seen Serenity..." Then she looked at Usagi, who, just like everybody else, was in her true form, the one of Neo Queen Serenity. Frowing, she realized it might not help. Usagi is always kind, but... Sometimes, the kindness is ultimate, at its highest peak. Every Senshi had witnessed it, and if the Saurians could have too, they wouldn't be surprised at being able to forgive enemies...

"Even if we were to accept the offer, we'd never be fully trusted, or put on the same level as their other friends," Caretaker continued quietly. "If something were to go wrong, we'd be the first they'd look at and suspect. It's only natural."

Hotaru clenched her fists. "It's not like that at all..." She whispered quietly.

"We had best lay low and avoid them," Noisyth concluded. "That way, we can avoid any trouble, and don't have to come face to face with the shame we bear. And they don't have to befriend such pitiful creatures as us then. Once this is all over… _If_ this all goes over… Then we can just retreat and go back to Voya in silence, never to bother them again."

"God damn it! You don't understand at all!" Hotaru cried out loud, tears spilling from her eyes. Unable to hold herself against such misunderstanding any longer, she ran around the machine wall and looked at the shocked Saurian family, crying.

"Why?" Hotaru cried at them. "Why can't you... Why can't you understand there's too much evil and distrust in this world already to make even more? Why hold grudges and distrust when you can forgive and befriend? What is the point, I ask you?" Hotaru looked at each and every one of them with pained eyes and streaming tears.

"Instinct, survival and personal security," Caretaker answered after overcoming his initial shock. Vulcan, meanwhile, had once again turned away to avoid looking at the Senshi of Death and Rebirth. "It's against our nature, and the way we were raised and have acted for centuries. There is no reason to change this now." The Saurian of Healing said it calm and composed, looking at the young Senshi coolly and calculating.

Such a calm reply caught her off guard somewhat, but continued her tries to get through to them. "But if it is your nature, life and instinct, it doesn't mean it's our nature, life and instinct! You say there'll always be distrust, I say there'll never be distrust! The first person to be distrusted here is me and my family, but I've never felt it even once!" Hotaru looked at all of them again. "Why can't you accept forgiveness when it's right in front of you?"

"Because we're not that foolish," Vanisher replied icily, standing protectively between Hotaru and her sick brother. "What do we know of you? Nothing, aside from the fact that you were our target we were sent out to kill. You nearly killed Vulcan. Aside from that, we know nothing of you, and you nothing of us. Excuse us for having a brain and being cautious by not jumping at the offer of a total stranger to be friends. We're smarter than that."

Hotaru choked on her breath and looked at her wide-eyed, helpless tears streaming from her eyes. Seeing her stern cold gaze, she lowered her eyes. "Foolishness...?" She said quietly. "You call kindness and being able to forgive... foolishness?" Slowly, she shook her head. "Stupid..." She said in a low tone, her tears drying away. "We have saved so many lives with that kindness... We have turned so many enemies into friends with forgiveness... We have saved the world so many times... And you..." She looked at Vanisher again, looking straight into her eyes. "Your family... Are all alive and well only thanks to kindness. Kindness of Master Angonce."

"Stop putting words in her mouth, creature," Squall interrupted. "She didn't say kindness on its own is foolish. She said trusting in it when it comes from _you_ is foolish. And she's right. You can say you forgive us, you can say you're giving us kindness, but in the end, those are only words of someone we barely know, someone who last time tried to kill us as much as we tried to kill you. We _can't_ trust you, and you're foolish to think we would so easily."

"Don't think we don't appreciate kindness, or that we aren't aware of the debts we have…" Noisyth muttered quietly. "We know we're alive thanks to the master's kindness. But there's the difference. The master is a god, and you are not. You are nowhere near him, you were barely a match for Vulcan. You're not pure light, pure divine kindness. You are mortal. The master is not. He is wise and omniscient. Him we can trust. You we can not."

"So to offer kindness and be accepted, you need to be a god?" Hotaru asked. Then shook her head. "We offer kindness without looking back, no matter if we know the person or not. Yes, we are not omnipotent, and are often mistaken... But when we are right, it's a lot better than just passing by as if we don't care. If we ignored Ignika's trouble, if we didn't offer him kindness and shelter, this planet would have already died in an explosion of Life." Hotaru shook her head again. "Can't you understand? If you're not an enemy, then you're a friend. That's the law of us Senshi. I tried to kill you only because you tried to kill me. You tried to kill us because it was the only chance to come home. Now you have a different chance, and there's no need to kill each other. So what makes us enemies?" She looked at the Saurian family.

Before anybody could say anything about it, she called out: "Vulcan! Before the battle, you said: 'Forgive me, but I have to fight'. I forgive you, why is accepting it so hard?"

"Because it goes against our nature!" the Saurian of Magma snarled, finally snapping. "Great Beings, why can't you understand? We live by the law of the jungle, our home! 'Love the smile of your family, fear the smile of the stranger'! We don't want to be here, we don't want to stay here, we don't want to live by your laws. They mean nothing to us! Absolutely _nothing_! We are true, full-blood Saurians, not Great Being protégés like the Child of Life is! We live how we were truly meant to live! Just because you let kindness cloud your sense of danger and healthy mistrust, doesn't mean we will make the same mistake!"

The Magma-user breathed hard after his outburst, ash particles twirling down on the bed. He glared harshly at Sailor Saturn, before breaking down into a fit of harsh coughs and wheezes, causing his family to crowd around him in worry.

Hotaru gasped and clasped her hand over her mouth. "God, what have I done..." she said quietly, looking at him with wide eyes. She then briefly looked at the screens, hoping to understand what the problem was.

"Don't wind yourself up like that, Vulcan!" Caretaker chided harshly, as he used his powers of healing on his volcanic brother to the best of his abilities, and made the harsh coughing cease, and Vulcan's breath returned to normal and his painful expression vanished.

"Sorry for worrying you, brother," the Saurian of Magma said apologetically to his younger brother, who merely sighed and shook his head in disapproval.

Hotaru bowed her head, ashamed. Vulcan's fit gave her time to realize what her behaviour seemed like through their eyes. "I'm sorry... If you don't want to... I can't force you to accept..." She said in a low tone, sounding hurt. She then made a low bow. "Please forgive me for wasting your time."

"Leave me, and my family, alone," Vulcan sneered again, this time avoiding looking at the young Senshi again. His tone was cold, harsh and distant. He was tired, and wanted nothing to do with her anymore. She had confused and pained him enough as it was. He hoped he would never see her, or any other Senshi, again. His family, with the quiet, distant looks they gave Hotaru, seemed to agree with that sentiment in silence.

Hotaru looked at them all one last time and left, whispering: "I'm sorry..." Without saying anything, she returned to her fellow Senshi, who had heard everything thanks to the conversation being so loud.

Hotaru took her place next to Rei, her eyes downcast. "I think I've utterly ruined everything..." She said quietly.

"It's not your fault." Haruka said, putting her hand on her daughter's shoulder comfortingly.

"Yeah..." Rei nodded. "They just can't understand it."

"Well, at least you've cleared all the doubts." Makoto said, crossing her arms. "Now we won't regret leaving them in misunderstanding."

"They fully know our position now, that's something good." Ami added. "Whether to accept it is their choice."

"We've just been lucky with our enemies all this time, it seems..." Usagi said sadly. "They either remained enemies or became friends..."

"These want neither, and it's understandable." Setsuna concluded.

"But still... I hoped..." Hotaru said.

Chibiusa hugged her friend: "It's okay, Hotaru-chan. Maybe they'll understand later." She smiled encouragingly at her. "I mean, Rei-chan stays here, so she'll try to convince him!"

"If he ever wants to talk to me, that is..." Rei said quietly.

Haruka and Michiru said nothing. They could understand the Saurians' position fully, after all, they didn't wish to become the Inners' friends because it was very possible they would have to betray them for the sake of finding the Talismans. The two lovers were just sad that their daughter's beliefs were harshly rejected by reality...

Before more could be said, everyone felt their moods and spirits lifted by the arrival of Angonce, who entered the sickbay with a worried look on his face and Crast in tow. He glanced quickly at the holograms surrounding Vulcan. The master had of course been aware of the temporary dip in the Saurian's condition, and he had come to check up on it now. The Saurians hurriedly bowed, while the Great Being observed the readings on the holograms. He sighed and shook his head.

"I am deeply sorry, but I am afraid I will have to ask you all to leave. Both patients are in dire need of rest, and it seems all these visitors had a rather negative effect on Vulcan's condition." The divinity worked on a few of the machines attached to the Saurian of Magma before continuing. "You can all come back for visits tomorrow, but at separate times. I will let the Senshi visit in the morning, and Vulcan, your family can in the afternoon."

"As you wish, master," the Saurians all muttered quietly.

"Please forgive me, Master Angonce." Hotaru bowed, feeling deeply ashamed.

The Great Being shook his head. "There is nothing to forgive. But I will have you all leave now. Crast, escort our guests out, please."

The Repulsive smirked. "With pleasure, master."

Ami smiled at Rei: "Get better soon!" The other Senshi also bid their farewells to the Miko and followed Crast. Hotaru was the last to leave, casting a last remorseful look at Vulcan. As she was about to step through the 'door' of the chamber, however, somebody stopped her by placing a hand on her shoulder. The Senshi of Death and Rebirth looked up to stare in the divine golden eyes of Angonce the Kind.

"A moment of your time, please, Sailor Saturn," he said. "There is something I would like to talk to you about."

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**Next chapter: Saturn's doubts!**

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	88. Saturn's doubts

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**88.**** Saturn's doubts**

Angonce took Hotaru with him, back through the spiralling staircase with the wall of history. The Great Being kindly held his hand on her shoulder as he guided the Senshi of Death and Destruction up the stairs, where they emerged from under the secret entrance into the main hall of Angonce's mansion. During it all, he had said not a word to the young girl, and neither had she, unsure and a bit imposed by the divinity's presence. The pair went into the living room, and Angonce bade his guest to sit in one of the couches.

"Be seated, Sailor Saturn. Your friends have already left, but your parents have been informed that you are here. I wished to talk to you in private," Angonce explained calmly, as he took place in his usual, personal seat.

Hotaru hesitatingly obeyed and sat down on a couch, feeling worried about what Angonce would say to her. She didn't doubt it was something concerning today's argue with Vulcan, and it had worsened his condition… Seeing as the argue was entirely her fault, Hotaru sort of expected to be scolded, even if in a kind way.

"Would you care for something to drink, Sailor Saturn?" Ignika's mentor asked unexpectedly. "I realize that I have not been a good host during previous visits, having not offered any refreshments. It is strange, but such simple, standard things tend to slip from my, dare I say it, rather ancient and expansive memory."

That made Hotaru smile, if a bit shyly. "Well… Actually, I wouldn't mind having something to drink…" She said. Then, as an afterthought, she quickly added: "Oh, and, it's nothing wrong if it escaped your notice. It's such a small and trivial thing, while you are concerned with matters beyond my understanding…" She lowered her eyes, looking at her hands, which were carefully and properly placed on her knees.

"Nevertheless, I should have been a proper host," Angonce corrected her kindly. He summoned Crast and the monster appeared in the living room out of nowhere, looking smug. He was still savoring the looks of disgust and fright he had gotten from the Saurian family and the Senshi. His master ignored that, however, and said: "Crast, bring Sailor Saturn some of our Madu Juice… And the bottle of liquid red crystal for me, if you please."

Crast snorted in sheer annoyance. "With all due respect, we're almost through the Madu fruits, and giving it to this primate seems like an utter waste of such precious fruit."

"I have some seeds left, as well as the genetic code of the fruit. I can create more," Angonce replied calmly, unfazed by his dark side's tone and choice of words. "Please, Crast? We need to do our best for our guests, as proper hosts."

The Repulsive snarled again. "Now I'm serving as waiter for these underdeveloped primates!" he muttered darkly as he skittered out of the room. "Where will it end? Will I be bringing them toilet paper next?" Cursing and swearing, the monster vanished down the hall. Angonce looked apologetically at his young guest.

"You'll have to forgive him, Sailor Saturn," Angonce said, smiling uncertainly. "Crast… means well, at heart, but he brings it out in a… peculiar way. I have tried to teach him, but I'm afraid I cannot make my dark side a proper host… So I will be so for us both."

"Well… He kind of does have a reason…" Hotaru shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "I mean, he's indeed a lot more powerful than us all combined, yet forced to take care of us… Sometimes. It can be annoying, and he is annoyed." Hotaru shrugged.

"He is always annoyed by having to perform acts of kindness," Angonce said with a chuckle. "It is his nature, as the dark side of my soul. However, he is not like Zyglak. As proven by him carrying out those acts of kindness despite finding them either annoying or revolting, he _is_ capable of kindness. Zyglak, in his anger, hate and evil, is not. Both are dark parts of souls, but Crast is a hundred times more a true person than Zyglak could ever hope to be." The Great Being sighed deeply as he was reminded of the evil creature he had helped, if indirectly, to create: the monster Zyglak.

"Perhaps…" Hotaru said thoughtfully. "Perhaps it's because he was born due to your kindness. You kindly kept your Darkness with you, and ever since then, your kindness had been right there in front of him all the time, no matter before he became sentient or after. That's why he's capable of it." She nodded. Then turned away and added: "I think…"

"You are correct, partly," Angonce said kindly. "My kindness certainly influenced the way he developed his sentience… But that only taught him _what_ kindness was. That he is capable of it, is an achievement he gained all by himself. And it is all a result of his desire to express his gratitude. For Crast, life itself, being allowed to exist, is the greatest treasure, the most important thing. And I gave him that willingly. He sees this now as a debt he can never repay, and that is why he serves. I did not force or ask him, he offered it himself."

"I see…" Hotaru said, understanding. "However, it's one thing serving you, but having to serve such lowly creatures as primates is an entirely different thing… It's kind of belittling…" She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

To her surprise, Angonce laughed softly. "Oh, make no mistakes, he is aware that you Senshi are quite a bit more advanced than primates, and that your powers and importance are not to be underestimated. But it's his nature to insult, it almost goes by itself, I tend to think. He may seem annoyed, but make no mistake, in his heart he is happy he can serve me even with such simple tasks."

Hotaru chuckled. "Would never guess that…" She said softly.

At that moment, Crast reappeared, carrying the ordered refreshments with his mind. With utmost grace and respect he set down a glass and bottle made of crystal, the latter filled with clear, ruby-red liquid, down on the table before his master. With far less grace and respect, he mentally slammed down a cup of fine polished wood filled with cool, blue liquid. He glared at Hotaru, and then turned to his master.

"If you no longer need me, I will retire to my quarters and take a bit of rest, master," he said with his horrid voice.

Angonce nodded understandingly. "Very well, Crast. Go and rest, you are well-deserving of it. I will take care of the patients below, so I shall not disturb you for a while." Crast gave a curt nod, and then vanished, leaving Hotaru alone with his light counterpart. The Kind poured himself a glass of the red liquid – the young Senshi having no idea what it was – and then gestured kindly at Hotaru to take her cup and drink.

"It's the juice of the Madu fruit," he explained. "It was one of the sweetest fruits native to my homeland, Spherus Magna, millennia ago. One of the few things I still have left from that bygone age. Please, drink. The inhabitants, and myself as well, were quite fond of it, and I'm curious as to your opinion, Sailor Saturn." He smiled his heavenly smile at her again.

Smiling back, Hotaru took her cup and hesitatingly took a sip of the juice.

Hotaru's eyes widened. "Whoa…" She said as she touched her lips with her fingers. "That's… Weird. But I like it." She smiled. The drink had been at the same time cool, sweet and spicy, and made her feel as if a spark of electricity danced in her mouth for a moment.

"You approve?" Angonce asked while he took a delicate sip of his own drink. For some reason, seeing the divinity do something so normal as drink was strange and alien.

Hotaru smiled. "I do." She sipped some more of the juice, enjoying that weird spark, but then put her cup back on the table. "So… What is it you wanted to talk to me about?" Hotaru asked hesitatingly.

Angonce tilted his head sideways and observed her keenly. "Child of Saturn, is it me, or are you uncomfortable or nervous in my presence?"

"Umm… It's just because I'm nervous about the talk…" Hotaru admitted, fidgeting her fingers. "It's about Vulcan, isn't it?"

The Great Being nodded silently, sipping again from his drink. After savoring the taste for a while, he swallowed deftly and sighed. "It is, but not in the way you seem to think… I'm not worried about Vulcan. His outburst made him overexert himself, but that wasn't dangerous and he'll recover from that before tomorrow has passed." Angonce's golden eyes bore into Hotaru's purple ones. "No, who I really am… concerned about, is you, Sailor Saturn."

Hotaru's eyes widened. "Me…? But why, Master Angonce?"

Angonce looked thoughtful for a moment. "Perhaps 'concerned' is too strong a word. I merely want to give you an opportunity to… pour your heart out, so to speak. I know what transpired in the medical wing. Don't think for even a moment that I am not aware of what is being said in my own house," he said the last part while giving her a little, knowing smile, which was almost mischievous. "And of course, I picked up a lot of emotions. And I have to admit, sadness and unhappiness was not one I was expecting when you came to visit Sailor Mars. But you seemed to take Vulcan and his family's refusal of your kindness rather hard and personally, or am I wrong?"

Hotaru tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, looking at her knees. "Well, that's true…"

"Can you explain me why this is so? I am asking because I want to make sure there are no misunderstandings between you, Vulcan and his family. I also want to be certain you understand his reasoning correctly."

Hotaru shook her head. "No, I understand… They grew up in a harsh world, by laws of the jungle… Strangers are potential enemies… I understand, they're afraid to trust us." She frowned. "It's just… I…" She said, stammering. "I wanted to be like Usagi… She offers kindness to everybody, including enemies, why should other Senshi be different? Why should I not try to befriend my former enemy? Isn't it a right thing to do?"

"It's a kind thing to do, and it certainly isn't wrong," Angonce explained patiently. "But surely you understand their reasons for refusal? Their way of living, the laws they live by and their way of interacting with others… It differs immensely from yours. Accepting kindness is one such thing they look at differently than you." The Great Being paused for a moment, then added: "I fear Ignika and his family have given you a wrong image of the Saurian race."

"Perhaps…" Hotaru frowned. "Vulcan did explain it all in his outburst, but… Maybe I've misunderstood something he or others said…"

"Why do you think he refused?" Angonce asked, kind but insistent.

"I… I think it's because he doesn't know me, and we did try to kill each other… He's wary of me…" Hotaru said quietly.

"Correct," her conversation partner confirmed. "But can you tell me why it is he acts and thinks so?"

Hotaru frowned. "I don't know…" She whispered.

"Because he is a Saurian, in the way his race was and is supposed to be," came the answer. "Do you know what I mean by this? Do you understand, Sailor Saturn?"

The Senshi of Death and Rebirth sighed and shook her head. "No."

"Allow me to explain then." The divinity took one more sip from his class before he started. "When me and my brethren happened upon Voya in the times of its crisis – which was when a global winter struck suddenly due to a collision with a meteorite – we found a race of sentient reptiles with what you would call human characteristics. If we had to compare, they lived like your ancestors lived before the days of civilizations, scripture and agriculture. Humans once were hunters and scavengers, nomads who sometimes, if the climate allowed it, made small settlements capable of supporting a very small community. Before the crisis, the Saurians lived the exact same way, well, almost. Exactly the same is impossible, due to the difference in species, but that is of no consequence here. Do you follow me so far?"

"Yes." Hotaru nodded. "That's basically what Ignika had told me so far."

"I'm sure he has," Angonce said with a small grin. "Then you also know what followed: my brethren and I healed the planet's wounds with our knowledge and science, and because we wished to support and aid the Saurian race, we bestowed upon it all kinds of powers that would allow them to, if they worked together, overcome and survive any kind of climate and obstacle. However, an important thing that you have to keep in mind, Sailor Saturn, is that gaining powers did _not_ affect their lifestyle. Oh, have no doubt they gladly made use of their new abilities, but the way their society was build, the way they lived their daily lives, that did not change. They were hunters and scavengers before we came, and were still so when they gained powers and when we left. Do you see where I am going with this?"

"Mmm… You mean, Saurians are still a wild race?" Hotaru tried to guess.

"Well, yes, that's true," Angonce admitted. His face betrayed not a sign of impatience or annoyance, and he felt neither. He was explaining some of his knowledge to someone in need of it, and he always did so with kindness and patience. "Though of course this doesn't mean they are in any way dumb or stupid. I think you'd be the first to agree that the Saurian race is highly intelligent, capable of the same intelligence as humanity, and they are fast and eager learners, and very versatile and resilient."

Hotaru slowly nodded. "True… But… It seems not all of them are willing to learn… I remember Vulcan clearly saying he doesn't want to change and adapt, doesn't want to understand our laws…"

"And why do you think that is? It's not so much unwillingness as it is a logical decision," the divinity answered calmly, looking intently at the Senshi before him.

"They hope to go home, it's all they want, and you gave them a jungle, so there's no need for them to concern themselves with some weird customs of humans…" Hotaru sighed. "Ignika and family had no such choice."

"Yes, but there's more to it than that. Don't think just about now, think outside the box, about the future, and of their past," Angonce pressed on, gently but firmly.

Hotaru shook her head. "It's hard… I… I don't quite understand what I'm supposed to be thinking about… Maybe…" Hotaru took a sip from her cup. "Maybe they're afraid that if they get used to all of this, life on Voya won't be the same anymore?" She shook her head again. She knew Master Angonce was trying to push her in the right direction, but just couldn't understand it.

"The answer is very simple, though, Sailor Saturn," the Great Being said kindly, with a smile. "The reason they do not wish to adapt to your laws, rules and life… Is because they're happy with the life they have. Hasn't that ever occurred to you?"

Hotaru's eyes widened slightly. "Well, that is kind of obvious… So, they just don't want to change?" She asked.

"You make it sound negative and wrong," Angonce noted observantly.

Hotaru shook her head. "No, it's understandable… They're happy the way they are… But does that mean they think changing will make them unhappy?" She inquired.

"Not exactly. They think more this way: if we are happy now, then why should we change?" Angonce explained. "Vulcan and his family, before this ordeal began, lived exactly how we Great Beings wanted the Saurian race to: as hunters and scavengers, nomads, precisely like they had been before we came. We changed their powers so they could overcome global obstacles like a global winter, we did not want to change their culture or lifestyle. Vulcan and his brethren lived exactly like that, and they are happy that way. The daily life of travelling, hunting and scavenging brings them comfort and happiness, and they do not desire greater power or knowledge of the workings of the universe. Their desires are simple, but of course, that doesn't make them less than ours." The divinity looked at the young girl intently. "They have seen this world, and part of mine by being here, and its complexity scares them. They see no need for machines, books or quests for knowledge. A good life, for them, is a fire with prey roasting in it, shelter during the night and the comfort of familial bonds."

Hotaru slowly nodded. "And that goes for social things, too, I guess…" She sighed. "I tried to change them into being friends, of course they're negative towards it…"

"In their way of living, things such as friendship and trust aren't given or accepted as easy as you Sailor Senshi hand it out," Angonce agreed. "From their point of view, it is seen as suspicious. You cannot blame them for this, it is their way of life, and has been for centuries. You cannot tell them to adapt, either, for why should they listen to you? That is how they think."

"I see…" Hotaru said. "Well, such trust and kindness isn't a normal thing among humans, either… A pity, really."

"You thought that, remembering how Ignika and his family reacted, the same would go for Vulcan and his family, right?" the handsome being wondered.

Hotaru sighed. "I guess… Though, now that I think about it, Ignika had no other choice, and neither did the rest of his family when they came…"

"Correct," came the confirmation. "And also, Ignika lived an entirely different life than Vulcan. When he was with us, he was surrounded by knowledge, and he is forever a child, meaning his childish curiosity and wanting to learn things will never vanish. When we left, he spend most of his life running away from people who wanted to do him harm. He was raised differently and lived in a different social climate, so he never developed a love for the normal Saurian life like Vulcan did. When he got a chance to learn new things while living relatively peaceful here, he took it with both hands. As fate would have it, most of his family share the same problems, in that they never were capable of learning to love the simple life of a normal Saurian, but due to being chased and locked out constantly, desired something else, totally different and new."

Hotaru nodded. "I see… Thank you, Master Angonce." She smiled. "I understand now."

"You're very welcome, Sailor Saturn," Angonce replied, as kind as ever. "I wanted to make sure you fully understood their reasoning, so you can now see that it's not because of you as a person that they said no, but because of their way of life. And I will explain to my Saurian guests why you did what you did as well, so that they, too, fully understand."

Hotaru smiled. "Thank you…" She took her cup and drank the spicy juice again, enjoying its sweetly weird taste.

"If there is anything else you would like to ask or wish to know, feel free to ask," the Great Being invited, as he poured himself another glass of the strange red liquid.

Hotaru frowned. There was one thing many of the Senshi wanted to know… Slowly, she put her cup back on the table. "Master Angonce…" She asked hesitatingly. "Do you really think we can defeat Zyglak?"

Angonce hesitated for a very long time, then let out a very deep sigh and put his glass back on the table as well, just as slow as Hotaru had done. The divinity buried his face in his hands, and for a moment the Senshi of Death and Rebirth could only see him as one man, who carried the weight of millennia and the fate of many on his back, a burden too heavy for him. It felt wrong to see one so divine like that, Hotaru thought.

"I do not know," he finally said, his voice a mere divine whisper. "When the battle comes, the outcome will depend on so many different things… Anything could happen. But his powers are so great, that none of you, not even with symbiosis, could ever hope to come close to it. Even I, when I put all my might and powers into the fight, would not be able to bring him down. It took all the Great Beings combined to merely seal him away. To destroy him, which is absolutely necessary… We would need a force greater than any force in the universe, a force greater than existence itself, I'd almost fear…"

Angonce sighed again. "And I, in all my wisdom, do not know if that is possible. Logic dictates that no, you cannot defeat him. You have zero chance. That would be the cold, factual side of me speaking."

Hotaru felt her heart being frozen. If Master Angonce thinks so… If they need a force greater than existence… Why did he tell them before that there was a chance? Yet the last thing the Great Being said didn't escape her notice. "… There is another side…?"

"My heart keeps telling me there is a way, but I can't see it. I don't know how, when or what, but something tells me that there is a chance." Another sigh followed those words. "My feelings… I have learned to trust their judgment, as sometimes cold facts aren't everything. And in a case as desperate I this, I would rather have you all cling to the hope this feeling gives me, rather to the absolute destruction logic predicts…" The Great Being shook his head. "Or should I have been honest before, and said that, logically, you would certainly be destroyed if you faced him?"

The Senshi lowered her gaze. "No…" She sighed. "I am glad you are honest with me… I won't tell anybody else. It's just… We tend to rely on hope, and we did work miracles before, but…" Hotaru shook her head. "Well, we have no other choice but to try. And try we will, even if we die."

"Of all mistakes we made, this is the gravest, and the one I regret the most," Angonce said, and he placed his face in his hands again, burdened by worry. "It was never my intention to shove the fight with Zyglak on the shoulders of anyone but myself… But I am held back by my own lack of inner darkness. I can take lives, if logic says it is the best option… But with Zyglak, I cannot bring myself to destroy the merged souls of my fellow brethren, even if I were capable of it, power-wise."

Hotaru didn't look at him. "What does Crast think of that?" She asked in a low tone.

"Crast despises Zyglak for making me sick with worry. But interesting to note is, that Zyglak cannot hurt Crast in any way. None of his powers are capable of affecting my friend," Angonce replied.

Hotaru's eyes widened. "They can't? Why?" She asked, surprised and curious.

"For the same reason nothing Crast can do can hurt Zyglak, either," Angonce explained. "They are both beings devoid of any inner light. The only difference between them is that Crast knows feelings such as kindness, and is capable of acting on them in his own way. Zyglak can't. But it doesn't change the fact that they are both creatures of shadow. Any attack they make, is fueled by their essence, which is pure darkness. Darkness cannot hurt darkness, not even when one serves the light and the other does not."

"I see…" Hotaru sighed. Things had just become a lot more complex and dark. Well, at least Vulcan and his family will understand what she meant with her offer.

"Apologies, I did not mean to burden you so, Sailor Saturn," Angonce apologized, sighing once more. It seemed the divinity truly suffered under the existence of Zyglak, even when said being was nowhere nearby.

Hotaru shook her head. "No, Master Angonce, it's nothing wrong. Even the Great Beings need to voice their pain." She leaned back on the couch, looking tired of such an emotion-filled day.

Angonce smiled kindly. "You are tired, I see. Would you like to go home, Sailor Saturn?"

Hotaru nodded. "Yes. I have a lot to think about…" She took her cup and finished the juice.

"Then I would like to ask one more question, if you would but allow me," came the request.

"What is it?" Hotaru asked, looking curiously at the Great Being.

To her surprise the divinity smiled, almost as if he were embarrassed. "What do you think of Ignika? He is my son, so to speak, and I love him dearly… Of course I am aware what is going on with him all the time, but still, I would love to hear it from you, Sailor Saturn, since you are the first friend he had in millennia."

Hotaru was taken a bit aback by the sudden change of topic, but tried her best to reply nevertheless: "Well… He's a good boy, curious and kind… Very kind. He cares for all living things, like he's supposed to, but also likes getting new knowledge about our world. And he's really nice to us all. Though…" Hotaru sighed. "At times, one can tell he's carrying a very heavy burden… He's kind of lonely because of it, for there isn't anybody in this world who could understand what weight he carries… He tries his best not to let it bother him, though."

Angonce nodded in understanding. "You two are a lot alike, are you not?"

"Yes, we are." Hotaru said. "That's why we're close friends, I think. I can understand him somewhat, but never fully. The world won't die with my death, after all…" She bowed her head.

"Neither would this with his," Angonce answered. "His ability to drain all Life from the world is tied to Voya only. On this world, there is no danger for that countdown of his."

Hotaru shook her head. "No. I meant the Armageddon of Life that would occur in case of his death… All the Life energy he possesses released. Every single thing of this planet coming to life…" Hotaru sighed. "It's worse than death."

"Indeed, all the more reason to keep him alive and happy," Ignika's mentor said, with a sad smile on his face. "I would ask that you look over him as you have done so far, Sailor Saturn, for perhaps… I may not be able to do so forever…" The last part was said in a mere whisper, and was said more to himself than to Hotaru.

"Wh..?" Hotaru's eyes bulged out of their sockets, did her ears deceive her? Did she really hear what she just heard?

"Good night to you, Sailor Saturn. I enjoyed talking to you," Angonce said with a wide smile, before he sent her away with the wave of his hand, before she could protest, before she could react, before she could say anything. She was taken back home by the power of the Great Being, but her last unfinished question remained behind, in the mansion of the divinity, alone and unanswered.

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**Next chapter: Rain and lilies!**

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Rizwan Fariz: They will, eventually. Thanks for the review!


	89. Rain and lilies

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**89. Rain and lilies**

Makoto opened the door and entered her apartment. "Whew... Chameleon, I'm home!" She called out, taking her shoes off. It was pouring like wild outside, and the wind was strong, but nevertheless, Makoto managed to make the purchase she wanted to make ever since visiting Rei.

The Saurian of Camouflage, having been waiting impatiently for his host to get home so she could cook one of her wonderful meals for him, ran over to greet her at the door, but stopped in his tracks when he saw what Makoto carried in her arms. His face got a strange expression on it, one the Senshi of Lightning had never expected to see on him. He looked positively shocked, as if he had seen a ghost, something painful or rather delicate from his past. His eyes kept staring, and his jaw was clenched, his breathing hard.

Makoto looked uncertainly at him, then at the bouquet she had in her hands. "Something wrong?" She asked.

"Those are… lilies…" Chameleon muttered harshly.

"Yes..." Makoto said slowly. It was strange Chameleon knew an Earth flower, but still, she wondered what made him react so. "I bought them for Rei. White lilies are her favourite flowers." She bowed her head. "You don't like them?"

He slowly shook his head. Chameleon hesitatingly turned around, his back to his host, and he stared off into space, as memories started welling up in his mind. A deep sigh escaped his lips. "_She_ liked lilies… Wore them in her hair…"

Makoto nearly dropped the bouquet. "Who...?" She asked, feeling a pang of pain in her heart. Though why, she didn't know.

Chameleon didn't answer the question and went to the living room, closing the door behind him. Lilies were rare flowers on Voya, usually found where there was a lot of water. These Earth ones looked a bit different, but they were unmistakably lilies. He sighed again and trudged to the couch, in which he sank down, burying his face in his hands. He remembered it all too well, the sight of orange lilies in _her_ hair. And if he hadn't gone with Ignika, he would have fulfilled his promise and… Chameleon swallowed hard.

"_Rain_…" he whispered with great difficulty, the name tasting strange and feeling alien on his now 'human' lips. A shiver of displeasure ran down his spine.

Unaware of his thoughts, Makoto cut the flowers' stems a bit shorter and put the bouquet in a vase. Her thoughts and feelings were sad, and painful for some reason. Seeing Chameleon like this... His shock when seeing the flowers... A 'she'... "Who is that _she_...?" the Senshi whispered.

Putting the flowers on the kitchen table and throwing the stem pieces away, Makoto went to the living room. Chameleon didn't react, sitting on the couch with his face buried in his hands. Makoto felt her heart skip a beat, it was painful to see him like this. She took a chair and sat next to the big dining table, facing him. Makoto crossed her legs and sighed. "What's wrong?" She whispered, sounding hurt.

"Nothing…" he replied quietly. "Seeing those lilies… Reminded me of a promise I made, one I never fulfilled. It reminded me of _her_…" Chameleon sighed again and shook his head.

"Of who, Chameleon?" Makoto asked quietly, looking at him intently. He had never told her of any 'she' before. Then again, he had barely told anything of his life on Voya...

"Rain," the Saurian disguised as a human answered reluctantly, looking up from his hands, briefly meeting Makoto's eyes.

"Rain..." Makoto repeated. Saurians did mostly have names having to do with nature, and Makoto knew Chameleon wasn't talking about weather. However... "Who is she, Chameleon...?"

Ignika's only brother smiled melancholically. "She was a Saurian of water who saved my life once… And I…" He hesitated for a moment. "I think we loved each other." He sighed, deep and sad. "She always had an orange lily in her hair. She was so beautiful, that flower suited her…"

Makoto's heart skipped several beats, then started pounding. "... Loved? But... I thought... Saurians rarely love..." She muttered, looking lost, remembering all the fuss about love being useless for mating in their talks with Saurians.. "And... Saved your life?"

"True, Saurians rarely love, but I guess I was lucky," Chameleon answered, smiling wistfully as the image of his first love appeared in his head. "And why not? She was beautiful, if a bit older than me. She was wise, had knowledge of herbs and could fight… A dream mate, really." The reptile sighed again. "As for saving my life… Rain lived in a settlement, you see. And I was in the neighbourhood when I broke my leg during a hunt. She found me, sheltered me and with her knowledge of herbs, healed me. There were no Saurians of Healing in that small settlement."

Makoto nodded slowly. This new information was a bit hard to process... One would think Chameleon would have told her of something as important as his first love, but no... Then again, why would he? He's not a family member or a boyfriend to be obliged to tell such things...

"I was still a young Saurian back then, and given my rather… rash nature, that had to end badly someday," he elaborated sheepishly, unaware of Makoto's musings. Chameleon had begun reliving his memories, and saw no harm in telling them to his host, who was a person he trusted very much. "You'd think I would be smart enough not to step on what was obviously a loose log, but nooo… Thinking back on it, that really was stupid." His grin widened a bit. "And so, naturally, the log slipped from under my clawed feet and made me fall. I landed badly and there you had it, I was lying on the forest floor, crippled with a broken leg."

Makoto smiled, if a bit sadly. Well, that definitely was like Chameleon. Though she didn't notice him acting _that_ rashly lately. He had grown up, after all. "And what then?"

"Then," Chameleon continued, smiling dreamily. "I got really lucky… An angel came by and whisked me away from misery, cradling me into her arms like a hatchling and carrying me back to her home to heal me… Aaah…" A dreamy sighed escaped Ignika's brother's lips as he remembered his first encounter with the Saurian of Water. "She smelled like fresh leaves after a rainfall. It was a very nice scent, let me tell you. Her scales were dark blue, like the ocean, her skin a heavenly light blue, like shallow water… Her hair black and long, her eyes pure gold..." Chameleon's smile widened by an impossibly large amount. "She was such a beautiful female… And I was the luckiest Saurian in the world."

Makoto looked at him, smiling, and nodded slightly. That was indeed a beautiful memory... And a beautiful Saurian. She felt a pang of some feeling in her heart, but didn't bother to decipher or define it.

"She took me to her hut and took care of my leg. I told you she knew a lot about herbs, but I'm really not kidding about that. You name a shrub and she can tell you what it is good for, or bad for," Chameleon rambled on. "Of course, since this was natural healing, I was stuck there for a few months. She asked who I was and what happened, and I, with my scales having turned pink from embarrassment, had to say I had tripped over a log while hunting. Oh, and that my name was Chameleon."

That made Makoto chuckle. She didn't know Saurians could blush... Chameleon was confused when she blushed, after all. "And she?" Makoto looked at him, tilting her head curiously.

"Hmm? Oh, she introduced herself as Rain, a pretty name for a pretty Saurian," came the answer. Chameleon scratched his chin absentmindedly. "We got to know each other well during the following months, of course. She was at my side whenever she could, taking care of me, talking to me so I wouldn't be bored, telling about her herbs, her life or such things. Or sometimes she asked me to tell those things, which I did. Despite my leg hurting a lot, I was very happy during those days. I liked her, and she liked me. I guess somewhere along the line I must have fallen in love with her, though I didn't realize that until much later…"

"Oh?" Makoto asked, wanting him to go on. That Rain girl seemed a perfect one indeed, yet something was off. Though what, Makoto couldn't tell. Maybe it was the fact he left her after all... Didn't he?

Unaware of Makoto's musings, Chameleon continued his tale. "Rain took care of an old Saurian of Plant Life as well. He was too old to hunt, I believe he was thousand two hundred and forty nine, and let me tell you, that's old for a Saurian. So Rain did that for him, and in return he taught her all he knew about herbs, which is where her knowledge came from. She always called him 'gramps' or 'grandpa'." He chuckled softly. "That's not very common, be sure of that. Few Saurians actually have parents, let alone grandparents. Of course, Vine wasn't her grandpa by blood, but hey, it's the thought that counts, right?"

"Heh... True..." Makoto said. This Saurian girl was unbelievable. Taking care of an old Saurian... Just how kind was she? As she learned today, kindness wasn't the norm for Saurians... No wonder Chameleon fell in love with her. For some reason, that made Makoto's heart feel heavy.

"So Rain kept me company and so did gramps. I called him gramps quite quickly, too, you see. You know I can't sit still, so having to because of a broken leg was torture for me. Luckily gramps entertained me with stories. See, he had been alive, a healthy adult even, when the Great Beings were on the planet, and he had seen Ignika from afar once," the Saurian boy said. "That's how I learned of my little brother's existence in the first place. Of course I had heard the rumours of a Saurian of Life and if he was good or bad and all, but gramps confirmed his existence for me, and also told me to not believe those who said he was a curse. When I helped Ignika when I did, it was because of what gramps had said to me."

Makoto nodded. "So that's why you joined him. I've been wondering about that for a while..."

"Yeah, well, gramps told me to protect the Child should I ever come across him," Chameleon explained. "So when I did, I did." He grinned at his choice of words. "He taught me some other things, too. Listening to stories is great and all, but I need to do something active or I go crazy. So gramps taught me how to carve things from wood. I mean, I had daggers, why not learn to use them for something else than slicing flesh?"

Makoto raised her eyebrow. "Aren't your daggers a bit too big for that? Carving tools I know are definitely smaller and more delicate..."

"I can be precise even then," he answered with a shrug. "Besides, it gave my carvings 'my own style', like gramps said. Pity I gave 'em all to Rain as gifts, cause now I can't show you one of them. I was pretty proud of them."

Makoto's smile dropped. He gave them to Rain... as presents... No, it's only logical. What else could he do with them, anyway? Yet still... Makoto suppressed the urge to sigh. No, she won't think much of it. It was logical.

"My time with Rain and gramps were some of the best moments in my life!" the reptile disguised as a human said with a happy, wistful smile. He kinda missed those days, too, sometimes. "Rain was such a great woman, and she even could cook! Nowhere near as good as you, of course, Makoto. But she knew spices because of her knowledge of plants and herbs, so she added those to the meat if she found them. It gave our meals that little extra flavour that Saurians don't usually get. Good stuff."

Makoto felt her hands clench into fists, nails digging painfully into them. So she can cook as well? What the heck, really? For a moment she wished Chameleon had thought her up. A figure of his dreams, a non-existent person. Yes, that's what. But she was real, however hard that was to believe. And Chameleon loved her...

Loved or loves...?

"But time flies by, especially when you're happy," Chameleon rambled on, unaware of what Makoto was thinking or doing. "Soon enough, my leg had healed. I stayed a few weeks even after that, because I liked being with her so much, but I was young, and my blood got restless. I wasn't made for village life. I had to go out and into the wild again. So, with great reluctance, I said my goodbyes to Rain and gramps, and promised to return soon and often." The Saurian boy sighed deeply, and his happiness seemed to diminish somewhat. "It was then that Rain said something that made me walk on clouds for weeks after she told me it."

"What was it?" Makoto said tonelessly and quickly.

"She said…" He sighed dreamily again, before finally telling her what it was: "Come back to me during mating season ten years from now." Chameleon smiled slightly. "I could barely believe my ears… A beautiful woman like Rain… Had picked me as her mate. It was then that I realized that I was head over heels in love with her. But I also understood why she did not mate me there and then. My body might have been able to but… Well, I wasn't mentally mature enough. So I, heart bumping out of my chest, promised her that I would, and then left, fully intending to keep that promise I made that day."

Makoto didn't look at Chameleon. Her head was bowed, her heart was pounding, she barely dared to breath. This was too much... This was unbearable... Listening about her, being told this... Makoto was sure that if she clenched her fists even a little bit harder, she'd draw her own blood. "And...?" She asked quietly, her voice suddenly hoarse.

"I never got to fulfil that promise," Chameleon said, his tone dreadful and ice-cold, and his eyes had turned dark and sombre.

Makoto's head jerked up and she stared at Chameleon in shock. "What?" She asked wide-eyed.

"Ten years later, I was on my way to Rain to fulfil my promise," Chameleon explained, his tone still cold and full of pain and regret. "But I encountered an old friend, who told me some old friends from my childhood lived in the neighbourhood in a village. Mating season was still a few weeks away, so I could afford the delay, I thought, and went to visit my friends. It was in that village that I encountered Ignika and joined his family. From that moment, my fate was bound to his."

The Saurian of Camouflage sighed deeply and placed his face in his hands. "But I still wanted to fulfil my promise, and asked Ignika if I could. My little brother of course had no objection to something so natural as mating, so we set off for Rain's settlement. But we had wasted away some time in the village, helping rebuild it and taking care of the wounded and burying the dead. By the time we arrived at Rain's home, mating season was two weeks passed. I didn't care, I loved her, and I was sure she would not have any objections either. I went to look for her, went to her hut, wanted to see her and gramps. But they weren't there."

"A Saurian from the settlement told me that mating season had happened, and Rain being the beautiful Saurian woman she was, had a lot of males who wanted to be her chosen one. But she kept true to her promise and said she had no interest in them." Chameleon was speaking very slowly now, his voice strained and he was obviously in pain. "That didn't stop them. The males still fought amongst themselves to see who would get the right to mate with Rain. A Saurian of Electricity, Voltage, came out on top. And still Rain refused. She was waiting for me, she said. That year, I, and I alone, would become her mate, and it didn't matter if I became so during or outside mating season, she wanted me and only me. Voltage didn't listen."

Chameleon's hands clenched into fists and he clenched his jaws together, snarling and becoming angry as he remembered the memory of being told what happened then. "He said he had fought for her, said he had the right to mate her now, that she had no right to refuse. Rain said she never had any interest in them to begin with, so he had no right to complain. That he wasted his energy was his and only his fault. She told him to go away and leave her alone. Voltage flew into rage and attacked her, trying to force himself upon her, which is about the worst, most disgusting, terrible sin a Saurian can commit."

Chameleon shivered and shook with anger and snarled again. "She resisted and fought him, and that made him loose it completely. When I arrived in the village to claim Rain as my mate, she wasn't there." Ignika's only brother looked up at Makoto with dark eyes full of pain and sorrow. "She was dead."

Makoto felt as if she had been struck with lightning, and gave a start when it thundered outside. "No..." She said in disbelief. She had lost all her anger from before. Her fists slowly unclenched, and she held her hands to her lips.

"Voltage had killed her," Chameleon said her, cold and emotionlessly. "A few days after that, gramps died from grief. The woman I loved, my chance at mating, the chance for leaving children behind when I left to take care for Ignika… Gone. Forever. Because one damn barbarian couldn't keep his paws off MY mate, because he didn't understand what 'no!' meant…" Chameleon growled again and looked about ready to tear everything to shreds.

"My god..." Makoto whispered. Only two weeks late... Two weeks, and your life breaks to pieces... Makoto knew how that felt. Her world shattered when her parents didn't come back from a two-week trip... Chameleon had it even harder... He could have been there...

"If I had gone straight to her instead of sidetracking to meet Ignika, I would have mated her, would have saved her, would have marked her as mine ensuring her safety…" he whispered quietly. "If I, if I…If I had done so many things differently I could have done so many things better… But there isn't one thing I regret as much as this…" Chameleon sighed very deeply, and silent tears ran down his cheeks. "Gramps and Rain were buried side by side… So she could take care of him even amongst the stars… And I was left behind, and all I could do was place a lily on her burial site… Lilies, like she used to wear in her hair."

"Chameleon..." Makoto whispered, tears welling in her eyes as well. Now she understood. She understood why. Why he had never told her before. Why he was shocked when she bought lilies. "Chameleon... I'm so sorry..." She whispered painfully.

Surprising herself, Makoto was suddenly next to Chameleon on the couch, and embraced him tightly. "I'm sorry... So sorry, Chameleon..." She whispered over and over again.

"What are you sorry for?" he wondered aloud, looking at her, confused. He didn't mind her hugging him. He could do with some comfort now. "None of what happened is your fault."

"For lilies... For making you remember it..." She whispered, tears streaming from her eyes. 'And for all the harsh feelings for Rain' was the part of apology left unsaid.

"Not your fault," he said again. "You couldn't have known."

"Still..." Makoto said, hugging Chameleon tighter. The Saurian said nothing, and merely leaned into the embrace, his head resting on her chest. Remembering Rain was always painful, even if he only remembered the happy times.

And so they sat together for a while, embracing each other, sharing the pain that could never be understood fully. Makoto went over the entire talk in her head... Why was it so painful to hear Rain being so perfect? Why did she react the way she did when told about the promise to mate? Almost as if she was... Jealous?

Makoto shook her head. No. That couldn't be... Chameleon... He's still young, four years younger than her physically, still a boy... There was nothing to be jealous of.

"Why were you clenching your firsts and digging your nails in your palms when I spoke of Rain?" Chameleon suddenly asked. He hadn't spoken of it when it happened, too caught up in his telling. But now his tale was over, and he remembered what he had seen.

"... I don't know." Makoto said in a low tone. That was partly true, since she refused to believe the obvious explanation.

Chameleon was silent for a while. "I don't believe you."

"... You're right." Makoto admitted, her voice still low. "But... I don't want to admit it, or to say it now..."

"I was honest with you," he reminded her. "I want to know. I don't want to think you hate her."

"... I don't..." Makoto said, uncertain if she should go on. Yet Chameleon was right, she had to be honest with him. "I... I... I was jealous." She finally managed to say.

He chuckled. "Of Rain? Why?" It seemed amusing to him. What could his host possible be jealous of? He had already told her she was a better cook than Rain, and she didn't want him as her lifetime mate, did she?

"I don't know..." Makoto whispered. "I just was... And I'm honest here, I really don't know..."

"I see. Strange, silly woman," he said, smiling a bit. He poked her in the side.

"Hey, don't do that..." Makoto said, smiling as well. "Or I'll tickle you."

Chameleon grinned, but didn't poke her again. He merely wrapped his arms around her and embraced her, continuing their hug from earlier. He sighed contently. "You know, Makoto…" he whispered softly. "I'm glad I told you about her… Cause you're kinda alike. You're both amazing women who know how to make this guy here like them."

For some reason, that made Makoto feel warm in her chest. "Really?" She asked, smiling.

"Yup, you both gave me delicious food!" he replied with a large grin.

Hearing that, Makoto pushed him away playfully. "Well, if that's all we're good for, I'm not jealous!" She grinned back at him.

"Hey, that's not what I meant!" he protested just as playful, tackling her down on the couch.

Makoto laughed and didn't push him away for a while, for once not minding having a boy on top of her. Then she started playfully struggling against him, as if trying to get out. Chameleon grinned and pinned her down by the wrists, but she gave him a nudge in the back with her knee, causing him to stumble and fall flat on top of her, their faces now mere inches away.

Makoto gasped, and then forgot to breath. She just looked in Chameleon's eyes, uncertain, feeling his warmth covering her, her heart beating fast in her chest. Chameleon noticed it and frowned, looking confused, but he didn't move. "Something wrong?"

Makoto shook her head quickly, but didn't change her uncertain wide-eyed expression. That made Chameleon's frown increase. "It doesn't look like nothing is wrong. What's going on, Makoto? Your heart's beating pretty fast."

"N... Nothing. J-just get off me, okay?" Makoto said, stammering and blushing.

"Aww, but I like it here, it's soft and warm," he said with a grin, not aware of the awkwardness of the situation. "Apparently too warm for you, even. Your cheeks are red."

Makoto shut her eyes tight, tears of embarrassment forming in them. "G-get off me!" She squeaked.

Chameleon frowned again, becoming more and more confused as time passed by. He's understand it if she were embarrassed if he laid on top of her when she had her back to him, since that was the mating position, but what was wrong this? "Tell me why, please? I don't get it."

"Stupid..." She said, her eyes still shut tight with embarrassment. "You're not my boyfriend, not my mate... Don't lie on me like that."

Chameleon sat up and scratched the back of his head. "Ehm, why can only mates lie on you like that? I mean, I'd get it if you had your back to me, but…"

"Silly..." Makoto whispered, embarrassed, sitting up as well. "Humans mate in any position. Any form of lying together with a male can be mating... That's why..."

"Oh, now I get it. You could have told me," he said carelessly with a shrug. Then he sighed and closed his eyes, slowly shaking his head. "Mating… The word alone makes me think of Rain. When she died, I… I said to myself that I would never mate again, because there couldn't be another woman as great as her…"

"I..." Makoto said hesitatingly. "Tomorrow, I'll give the flowers to Rei, and will never buy them again..."

"Aww, that's a shame," Chameleon said as he climbed off the couch and back to his feet. He smiled at her. "Because I was wrong, you see. I did find another woman as great as her, and that woman's you, Makoto. And I think a lily would look lovely in your hair." And with those words said, Chameleon walked away into the kitchen to fetch himself a drink.

Makoto just stared at the door through which he had left. What was that supposed to mean? Was it a... A confession? A hint? Or he simply said she was a great woman without subtext? What did he mean?

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**Next chapter: Buried deep within!**

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	90. Burried deep within

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**90****. Buried deep within**

Ami entered the living room and put the tray she was carrying on the small glass table standing between the couch and TV. A steaming teapot of fine green tea with mint, as well as two cups and some sweets. During such a grey day, drinking tea in comfort and warmth was really the best thing one could do. At least, Ami thought so.

Ami looked back over her shoulder. Gravitas was sitting on the windowsill, staring at the pouring rain outside. The Saurian of Gravity's face was expressionless, but her eyes held something sad. She was silent, did not move or speak, just kept staring outside at the grey clouds and the falling raindrops. It took her back. Eons back, to the day she had hatched, the day she had crawled out of her egg and out of the muddy ground while rain fell down on her. A barely noticeable shiver ran down her spine.

Ami wanted to ask Gravitas to have tea with her, but there was something about her symbiosis partner... Something that made the words she wanted to say seem stupid. Ami felt something, something strange...

She didn't offer her tea. Simply came over to the windowsill and took her guest's hand, to try and understand what was wrong through their bond.

Gravitas shook her head and pulled her hand away. She didn't say anything, just broke the physical contact and kept staring out of the window. Ignika's silver-haired sister didn't want her friend to know or feel anything about what she was thinking of now. It was none of her business. This was private, for her alone, not even her family was allowed to look this deep inside her.

"Gravitas..." Ami said uncertainly. This wasn't like Gravitas. Of course, to others she was emotionless as always, but Ami, who experienced symbiosis with her and had the bond, knew that something was off... "What's wrong, Gravitas?"

"Nothing you should concern yourself with," came the quiet, sharp reply.

"Is that so...?" Ami replied quietly, noticing the sharpness... "I feel it's something serious..."

The Saurian of Gravity kept fixing her gaze outside, determined to not look at her blue-haired friend. "Yes, it is so," she retorted, the sharpness in her voice clearer than ever. "None of your business. It's private for me and me alone. Not even my family is allowed to know."

Ami lowered her gaze. "I see... But... Gravitas..." She sighed sadly, yet warmly. "Nightmare kept her frustration bottled up for eons... And was healed when she allowed Minako in. Isn't it the same with you?"

Gravitas said nothing, merely kept staring at the rain. The conversation was over, as far as she was concerned.

"Gravitas..." Ami reached to take her hand again. Gravitas may have said nothing, but Ami felt it was just as serious as Nightmare's situation. She didn't need physical contact to understand that. But she did need it to try to understand what was troubling her friend...

"Leave me be," the disguised reptile snapped. "Your tea is getting cold."

"Umm..." Ami was at loss as to what to say. "Want some?"

The Saurian turned human merely nodded.

Ami smiled at getting at least a somewhat positive reaction. "Well... Let's sit on the couch then." She said cheerfully. Then added warmly: "They said it'll be pouring like that all day. It won't vanish if you stop staring at it for a while."

"I'm fine here."

"Okay." Ami replied, deciding not to insist. She went over to the glass table and poured Gravitas a cup of tea. She then added some sugar, just enough to make the tea as sweet as possible without ruining the taste. Putting the cup on a saucer, she unwrapped two chocolate candies and put them on the saucer as well. Then returned to Gravitas.

"Here." She said, carefully handing her the tea.

"Thank you," Gravitas replied curtly, and she gratefully accepted the cup and took a sip. The Saurian girl liked tea with sugar. It had a taste of spicy herbs, but was sweet like honey without being sticky. And chocolate candies… They tasted very good, but she'd keep it at that. She did not want to repeat what she had first thought it was when Ami presented some to her.

Ami rolled her eyes, as if guessing her thoughts. "Yes-yes, but that's the colour of the beans they're made from..." Ami then fixed herself some tea as well, but instead of sitting on the couch, she went around it and sat on its back, facing Gravitas.

Gravitas ignored her and kept staring outside, absentmindedly moving her spoon in her tea. The sky looked so cold and grey. She remembered well that the first thing she had ever felt was the cold, wet discomfort of rain. The Saurian girl closed her eyes and sipped from her tea again.

Ami also sipped her tea in silence. The whole idea began to seem futile... If not even her family, who lived together with the aloof Saurian for hundreds of years, couldn't get her to talk... Weren't allowed to get her to talk, then what could Ami do? She had known her for barely a few months... Of course, they had had symbiosis... Of course Gravitas cared for her... And she was the closest person in the world for Ami, not even with her mother she had been that close... But... What could she do?

"I was born on a day like this."

Ami nearly dropped her tea. Did Gravitas just...?

Ami forced herself to calm down at least somewhat. "Oh?" She asked, trying to hide her excitement and wonder. She hoped Gravitas would go on, and didn't want to ruin that moment of trust by saying a wrong word.

"Saurians lay their eggs during the dry season," the emotionless Saurian continued. She sipped from her tea again, and through it all she was merely staring outside the window, watching the rain fall. "The ground is warm, dry and sandy then… Perfect for nurturing the eggs, and easy for the young hatchlings to crawl out."

Ami nodded, despite the fact that her guest couldn't see it, and sipped some more from her tea, too. She was all ears, listening attentively, not wanting to miss a single word.

"I was born on a day like this," Gravitas repeated, her voice sounding slightly bitter. "My first memories are of a difficult hatching, crawling through thick, heavy mud, and cold, wet rain making me shiver and ill."

Ami tried to imagine that, and couldn't. She only remembered a time when she was little... That autumn, she and mother went to the country to visit Ami's grandparents... And Ami fell into the nearby pond while playing. It wasn't heavy or muddy, but very cold and wet definitely...

"I was cold and…" the young girl hesitated for a second. "Alone."

Ami slowly nodded again. Of course, if she was born in the wrong season... "Being alone since birth..." She repeated in her mind. A human can't understand that. A human always has a mother, even if they aren't aware of that... Even the abandoned kids in the orphanages get some bits of care... Alone, humans die.

"Cold and alone," Gravitas continued, though she didn't know why. She didn't even know why she was telling Ami all this. It was none of her business. So why was she speaking? "I remember my feelings. Fear, confusion at all that was happening, hurt and discomfort thanks to rain and cold… It did not stop there. The days, weeks and months after my hatching… All alone, in the cold, wet rain. Nobody to teach me how to make a warm fire. Nobody to teach me what to do with what I felt."

The Saurian turned human blinked, her eyes still focussed on the rain. "I did not understand. I was… afraid. I did not like that. I did not like the confusion my feelings brought me. So very quickly I decided that I…" Gravitas closed her eyes and sipped her tea calmly, her voice aloof, distant and disinterested. "I was better off without them. From then on, I wanted to feel nothing. And I did. No more confusion, no more pain. Just blissful nothing."

Ami stared at the tea in her cup. She felt hurt at what Gravitas told her... It was sad and painful. She was all alone... At the most tender age... Like the first few years of life to humans, the first few months mattered to Saurians...

"But..." Ami whispered. "When the rain stopped... When the sun began to shine... Didn't you...?" She couldn't finish her phrase. Feel? Want to feel?

"It was not just the rain that made me 'feel' pain," was the silent reply.

"True..." Came Ami's tiny whisper. She didn't know what to do or what to say, or even if she needed to do or say something. She just kept clutching her teacup, her fingers white from holding it too tightly.

Gravitas sipped from her tea again, then shivered slightly. "I did not want to be confused anymore. Feelings were… are bad. They did nothing good for me. I was better off without them." Another sip from her tea. "Or so I thought."

Ami gave a start and stared at Gravitas again. What was it that changed her mind? Ami longed to hear the answer.

"Then you get a sister, who expects you to 'feel' for her," Gravitas whispered, her voice hurt. "Who gets angry at you for not feeling. Who hates you for not understanding something so basic. Apparently, so I learned, feelings were not bad. My world turned upside down."

Ami noticed the hurt in her voice, she wanted to come over and comfort her... But didn't dare. Every time she looked at her, wanted to get closer to her, it seemed that any touch, any movement could break this moment of sincere trust, the moment of memories... So Ami sat still like a statue, catching Gravitas' every word.

"The confusion was back, stronger than ever, and I didn't know if I could throw it away this time or not," the Saurian of Gravity said monotonously, letting out a sigh.

Ami frowned. Everybody felt sorry for Nightmare for having such a sister... But did anyone consider what Gravitas could feel...?

"I tried to feel, but I failed harder than anyone could ever fail. I could not feel. Not after hundred years of suppressing those feelings… Even now, three hundred years later, I am still barely coping." The silver-haired immortal girl bowed her head and, to the surprise of the quiet room, sobbed very briefly. "I'm sorry, Nightmare…"

Ami dropped her teacup. It fell on the rug and didn't break. "Gravitas..." Was all she could mouth, so shocked she was by the sound her ears heard.

"I'm such a bad sister," Gravitas whispered, barely audible, her voice strained. But she did not cry or sob. She just sounded hurt, and was holding her face in her hands. "Never could I be there for her like an older sibling should… I'm a failure… She wanted me to feel for her and I couldn't, because I was too afraid, too confused… But those are just excuses. She had every right to hate me at first. And still does. Minako-san is to her what I always should have been, but what I utterly failed to do." She shook her head wildly. "Great Beings… I'm so, so sorry, my sister…"

"Gravitas..." Ami finally dared to move and did a step towards her guest. Then, before she knew it, she leaped to the hurt Saurian and pulled her in a tight embrace, not caring that her cup fell and broke into pieces.

That was when Gravitas did something she had never, ever done before in her entire life, save for the first day since she had hatched. When Ami – her friend, partner and teacher – pulled her in that embrace, the aloof, cold, emotionless Saurian of Gravity cried.

Ami's heart skipped a beat and then started beating rapidly. "Gravitas..." She whispered, holding the Saurian close to her. Through their bond, she felt her pain. Through their bond, she tried to give her comfort. Through their bond she tried to get one feeling through – that Gravitas was not alone and will never be. And a thought – Ami wanted to understand here, even if it was beyond her ability.

But the silver-haired girl could only cry as the meagre carcass of her emotions swept over her rational, aloof mind and made the walls of her world crumble down around her, reminding her once again of the pain she had felt, the loneliness she had experienced and the scorn she had received.

Ami held the girl, caressing her back and stroking her hair. "Let it be... Let your tears spill freely. Let that hurt wash away..." She whispered quietly, caringly and passionately. "And then..." Ami smiled. "The sun will shine again."

And that was just what Gravitas did, leaning into the embrace and crying, clinging to the blue-haired girl for any kind of comfort and support as she sobbed and let her own eons of hurt flow free.

And Ami gave the crying Saurian all the comfort she could. "Let it be... Let her sorrows wash out..." she repeated to herself in her mind.

Ignika's middle sister cried and sobbed, and kept doing so while time rapidly passed by. Both of the girls lost track of time, the two of them could only focus on the sorrow that Gravitas was suffering from. It seemed almost impossible for a girl to shed so many tears, and yet she did, crying thousands upon thousands of the pearly drops for each and every year she had kept her feeling and emotions suppressed. During it all, she said nothing, merely sobbed and wailed, clinging to Ami as she did so, her mind turned entirely on expressing the inner pain of the immortal Saurian. But everything ends, and so did her crying, wails quieting, tears drying away. Quietly hiccupping every now and then, Gravitas continued to hold onto her friend.

"I'm glad, Gravitas..." Ami whispered almost inaudibly. "Glad you told me... And were able to cry... Now..."Ami whispered and smiled. "It'll be easier."

"How can it be easier…" Gravitas whispered back, her voice filled with pain and sadness. "When all I feel is pain?"

"For now." Ami said. "And pain is not all you can... are able to feel... Gravitas..."

The Saurian girl said nothing, and merely remained quietly in the embrace. At least that way, she had a semblance of comfort to ease her pain slightly.

"The pain may pass, or may not..." Ami said, stroking the girl's hair. "But pain isn't the only thing in life. There's love, comfort, happiness... I know you know them, Gravitas, I've felt them in you... I've given you them through symbiosis... Gravitas, believe me, pain won't always be so bad. It will pass... You'll be happy..."

Again, she got no reply.

Ami took a deep breath and reached out through their bond. She could tell, she could remind her of the happy moments they experienced in their brief time together... "Remember the time I taught you to read and you read one third of my library in a few hours? Remember when I first taught you Maths? Remember when you solved your first maths problem, when you got through your first division without mistakes? Remember my feelings from our symbiosis? Gravitas, feeling isn't only pain..."

"I know, but I can't feel it."

"You can... You will, Gravitas! I promise you!" Ami clutched the girl tightly again. She didn't know how, she didn't know why, but she needed to help this girl, or at least try.

Not knowing what to say, Gravitas remained silent once more. Silence had always worked so far. Being silent meant neither agreeing nor disagreeing, being neither angry nor sad, neither caring nor not caring… Silence was safe.

Ami knew it, and wondered if she should try to shatter the silence. Make Gravitas do it... Or were there enough shocks for one day? After a few minutes of thoughts, Ami decided to try and take the risk.

"Gravitas..." She asked, hesitatingly. "Was it silent in your egg?"

"Yes…" the Saurian disguised as a human answered, and a smile came to her as she vaguely remembered that blissful warmth and silence.

"And then?" Ami asked, slowly leading her to the main thought.

"And then what?" came the confused reply.

"After you hatched." Ami clarified.

"Then it was not silent anymore, of course."

Ami closed her eyes for a moment, gathering her courage. The next question was dangerous to ask. Or so she thought...

"Gravitas... Do you regret hatching?"

"Sometimes," Gravitas said emotionlessly. Her eyes just stared listlessly at her blue-haired host, as if the question and the answer had neither angered, shocked or hurt her. It hadn't even touched her. It was a question to which she gave the answer as easily as to a mathematical problem.

Ami frowned. "And if you had stayed in your egg? If you didn't hatch then, or didn't hatch at all?"

"I would have either died or outgrown it, of course," the Saurian girl explained, saying it as casual as when one talks about the weather.

Ami sighed, tears welling up in her own eyes. "Gravitas... Please, understand... You being emotionless... Your safe silence... It's just as much an egg as the one you hatched from... Only it isn't warm, it's cold and painful. And when you hatch, when your feelings hatch, there will be not rain to greet them, but the sun... Gravitas..." Ami held her tightly to her chest again.

"Even the sun can be cold," Gravitas muttered quietly.

"I know. I'll make sure it is warm... For you." Ami whispered back.

A soft sigh escaped the girl's lips, and she shook her silver-haired head. "How can you do that? How can you promise that even? "

"I don't know, Gravitas..." Ami confessed. "I don't know. But I do know one thing... I don't want you to be alone, ever!" She said it with all her passion, all her faith...

Gravitas merely shrugged, the iciness and silence of her aloofness having returned completely. She had allowed herself to be vulnerable for one moment, but that had passed now. She had to maintain her defences, and not get used to feelings like crying. That was too dangerous.

"Gravitas..." Ami said painfully, feeling her defences come back. She let go of the girl and slowly slid down until she fell on her knees before her. She tenderly and desperately held both girl's hands in her own. "Please... hatch... one day... hatch..." She whispered painfully as tears fell from her eyes.

"Maybe I will," came the emotionless reply. "For I think my egg is in good soil this time."

Ami smiled and looked up at her with shining eyes. Whether it was truth or just words of comfort... Didn't matter. At all. Ami was happy. Gravitas saw it, and a light smiled grazed her lips.

* * *

**Next chapter: Nightmare tries!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: I'm glad you liked Nightmare's antics concerning Death Note, it was very amusing to write. As for why Minako didn't hear anything while the Saurians did, it's because Ignika was talking of a past experience, it didn't happen that night. And even if it had, Saurian hearing is sharper than a human's. Though I tend to think Haruka and Michiru make enough noise despite that difference. =p As for Gravitas, well, I hope this chapter gave you more insight in her character? Thanks for reading and reviewing! Reviews are always welcome! =)

Rizwan Fariz: You'll just have to wait and see for the future pairings, I'm afraid! ;) Thanks for the review. =)


	91. Nightmare tries

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**91. Nightmare tries**

"What are we doing here, love dove? I thought we'd go to training again today! You said it yourself that that Miyuki girl expects us!" Nightmare all but screamed as she trudged after her adopted sister in the sports store. All around her were equipments and tools she had never seen before and could only guess the use of. All kinds of balls for different sports, and of course, many different uniforms, too. Yet Nightmare 'Kira' Genkai didn't know this, and wondered just why the hell they were here instead of at the new sports hall that had opened in town after repairs only yesterday.

"'Cause for training inside you need a uniform." Minako said. "When outside, you can just wear any sporty clothes, since there's nowhere to change. But now that we have such an opportunity, we're getting you a proper volleyball uniform."

The Saurian of Fear shivered as she remembered the 'uniform' her sister and the other girls from the volleyball team had worn the first time Minako had taken her out to train. "Proper uniform? You mean that clingy, way too short tunic that sticks so tightly to your chest not a thing's left to the imagination, plus that castrated loincloth that shows your entire legs? No way, onee-chan!" she protested. "No way! I might as well wear a sign that says 'Mate me!'"

"It's for the volleyball hall only, silly." Minako said, smiling. "It's not like we can just walk in the street wearing that. We'll change when we get there."

"That's no excuse!" Nightmare objected. "I'm not going out there on the field half naked, you hear me?"

"Stop shouting." Minako chided. "Besides, Miyuki herself told me to buy you a proper uniform."

That got Nightmare silent for a moment, and she raised an eyebrow. "She did? Why?" It was true that she had seen Minako and Miyuki spent some time talking together during the last training, which was during the second day that Rei had been entrusted in master Angonce's care.

"Well, since you behaved nicely and played well, Miyuki said she doesn't mind if you continue to train with us." Minako explained. "She also asked if you had a uniform, since you weren't wearing one on the first training. I said no, and she told me to get you one soon, since a public sports hall next to Chiara's place is gonna open soon. So here we are, shopping for a uniform." Minako concluded, and the girls arrived in the volleyball section.

"She doesn't mind?" Minako's little sister repeated, doubtful and surprised. That just wasn't right. People either didn't care for or hated her presence. They never 'didn't mind' it. What was going on here?

"No, she doesn't." Minako confirmed. "Partly it's because of the backstory I told her, but it's not only that. You didn't give her or anybody else any more reason to feel negative towards you, you behaved well and were polite, more or less, so they don't mind. Everybody has bad days, after all." She finished, referring to the explosion of hurt that happened on the second training.

Nightmare looked doubtful still. Instincts told her to not believe those words so easily, even if they did come from her sister. People didn't "didn't mind" her presence, they scorned her, instincts said. The young Saurian girl felt torn between herself and her sister's words.

Minako felt it and smiled at her gently and a bit sadly. "Hey... Remember, you're not a Saurian of Fear who has her powers clearly written in her looks anymore. Nobody has a reason to shun you without even trying to get to know you now."

"I know…" the other girl muttered in reply, not looking at Minako. "But now I'm facing the problem of having to learn how to cope with people not despising me, instead of me having to cope with them hating me. It's not easy, it's the world upside down!"

"Well, you're doing quite well so far, I think." Minako grinned. "Even though it's difficult for you, you don't insult or snap, don't act rude and keep yourself in check. That's a good way of behaviour."

"Only because otherwise you'll prevent me from watching Death Note," the Saurian of Fear replied, crossing her arms and glaring at her sister.

Minako raised her eyebrow. "You mean, that's the only reason you don't do that?"

"Well, and it makes you happy," Nightmare added.

"Heh..." Minako shook her head. "Well, anyway, one way to success you need to learn is to always play by the rules, so we're buying you a uniform."

Nightmare dropped her head and sighed. "You're not going to let me off the hook here, are you?"

"Nope." Minako smiled at her sister innocently.

"Fine, fine… let's get this over with so we can go train," Nightmare grumbled, annoyed that Minako got her way again. She really was becoming soft, wasn't she? The Saurian of Fear snorted. Who would have guessed? If somebody had told her two months ago that she'd be a nice girl someday, she would have ripped his throat to shreds. With her teeth. Now, she would tell him to piss off.

She shook her head and sighed. Yeah, she really was becoming nice.

"Alright!" Minako said happily. "Now, where's your size..." She went along the stands with various volleyball uniforms of many different colours. "Too big... Too big... Too small... Ah, here!" Minako found the right stand and took a completely random clothes hanger, not even looking at the uniform hanging on it. "What do you think of this one?"

Nightmare glared at Minako. "Do you even know what you just picked?" She sighed and snarled. "Onee-chan, please, try not to make this more dreadful for me than it already is, okay? Just try to find something that resembles that of you and the other girls, so I don't stand out between all the rest of you wearing "Mate me!" signs."

Minako looked at the uniform in her hands. "Uhhh..." She said, sweatdropping, and not only because the uniform was dark-blue with white. It was also way too tight-fitting and with back almost open. "What's a basketball uniform doing here? With a number, too... Must have been misplaced." She muttered, embarrassed.

Nightmare fought a desperate battle against the urge to ram her head repeatedly against the wall.

"Umm... You know what..." Minako said, to prevent more stupid situations from happening. "Why don't you look for one yourself? I'll look for good shoes instead..."

"Oh no, you're not leaving me alone in this place!" Nightmare objected, grabbing hold of her sister's arm with both hands.

"Relax, they're here, too, behind those stands." Minako motioned to where the shoes were. "But if you want to..."

"I do," the Saurian girl said firmly. She began searching the stand. "Now help me pick one out, onee-chan."

Minako shrugged. "See what you like. My friends all have exactly same uniforms because they're the college team, but that rule doesn't go for you. You can pick what you want." Minako smiled.

"Yeah, but that would make me stand out, and while I usually don't mind that, in cases of going around half-naked, it's best not to stand out," came the reply, as Nightmare kept skipping through the hangers with clothes like one flips pages in a book.

"Oh, come on, you got yourself a dress _I_ wouldn't dare to wear, and now you're shy to wear a perfectly normal uniform." Minako teased her.

"That dress was fully clothed and showed only one leg. This uniform shows so much I might as well not wear anything," Nightmare retorted effortlessly. She looked up from where she was skipping through the clothes. "And what do you mean you wouldn't dare to wear my dress? Sure, it looks better on me since I'm pretty, but still!" It was obviously a tease.

Minako shook her head, smiling. "Sweety, you don't know yet that a fully closed dress with one slit could be waaaaay more sexually attractive than short shorts and a tank top. Speaking of being almost naked, two sections from here is a swimsuit section. Wanna see?"

Nightmare gave Minako a deadpan look. "You humans go swimming with clothes on?"

"Well, there are some nudist beaches, but mostly, yes. Not normal clothes, of course, swimsuits. And let me tell you, some of them are more than revealing." Minako said.

That still didn't explain much to the Saurian disguised as a human. "Onee-chan, you go swimming to wash yourself, at least we always did. Why put on special clothes for that? When you wash, you need to wash everywhere. We didn't put on 'swimsuits' in the shower either, did we now?"

Minako chuckled. "Exactly, washing is done at home, in the shower. Swimming is just that – swimming, splashing around for fun, just like all the people around you." Minako explained. "Besides, sea water isn't that good to wash in, you know. Salty."

"Who goes swimming in the ocean with all those giant sea reptiles in it?" Nightmare asked, exasperated. "You do it in shallow rivers or lakes, and even then you have to watch out for giant fish or gorgondilia!"

"Giant reptiles?" Minako blinked. "They all died out millions of years ago, like all the other dinosaurs! Besides, how can there be any in shallow water?"

"Gravitas said she saw something on 'tee vee' about giant seamonsters plucking things off the coral beaches with their giant maws," Nightmare retorted, not looking convinced.

"That must have been a science fiction movie." Minako nodded firmly. "There are no such reptiles on Earth anymore."

"She said it was a 'do qu men tary', that Ami girl said so," Nightmare said, before digging once more into the line of clothes. After a few seconds, she emerged with a hanger in her hands. "Hey, onee-chan, how about this one? It looks like yours!"

Minako tilted her head and looked at the uniform. It was indeed matching hers, with the exception that the white top had a red stripe, not light-green, and the shorts were red, not orange. "Looks lovely." Minako smiled. "Now let's look for the shoes."

The Saurian of Fear nodded, glad it was almost over with, and went with her sister to the shoe stand. It was lined with all kinds of sport shoes, but Minako helped her little sister pick out the ones suited for indoor volleyball. Armed with this knowledge, Nightmare picked out a pair she thought matched her older sister's, and held them out for inspection. The Senshi of Love gave a nod of approval, and urged her to try them on.

"There's only one problem though, onee-chan," Nightmare muttered in discomfort, gesturing at the shoes. "I can't tie these… laces."

"Ah, that's simple." Minako smiled, picking a pair of shoes herself so nobody would suspect she's teaching a thirteen-year-old girl to do that. Trying one on, she told her sister: "First put the left lace over and under the right one like this..." She showed her. "Pull... Then make them into two loops and tie those, right over and under left, and pull again. Simple, no?" She put on the other shoe. "Left over right, right over left, and done." Minako smiled at her sister.

"Gee, I feel stupid and embarrassed," Nightmare muttered as she tied her new shoes, testing them out.

Minako waved her hand carelessly. "It's okay." Then stood up and walked over to the mirror. "Hmm... These are actually pretty good shoes. I'll buy them."

"Well, I like these shoes too," the Saurian of Fear grumbled, wanting to be done with it all. "Can we go now? We'll be late."

"Sure thing." Minako smiled, taking her new shoes off and putting them in the box. "You sure you don't wanna look at the swimsuit section before we go?" Nightmare, deciding to humour her sister, decided that a quick peek wouldn't hurt.

* * *

"I can't believe I'm putting this on willingly and am about to go out on the field allowing everybody to see _both_ my legs and my curves," Nightmare whispered, her cheeks red, as she stood dressed in her new uniform and shoes next to Minako, ready to join the other girls in training. "I mean, after what I saw with those swimsuits, this isn't as bad, but…" Nightmare's blush deepened as she remembered what she had seen. The Saurian girl did not see herself as a shy person, on the contrary, but even her cheeks got red if she pictured herself wearing some of the things she had seen there.

"Nah, beauty shouldn't be hidden, especially in completely innocent circumstances." Minako chimed cheerfully. "Come on, everybody wears that."

"I know, but still, it's hard to fight your instincts," Nightmare answered.

"I guess, but we need to play by the rules. But, anyway, let's go, everybody should be there already." Minako said. The Saurian of Fear nodded, and followed, with her cheeks still red and feeling very self-aware, her sister out of the dressing room and onto the playfield.

Miyuki, Chiara, Takako and Rumiko were already there, warmed up and ready to play. "Ah, Kira-chan! Minako-chan!" Rumiko waved at them. Nightmare looked up briefly to see it, but then looked back down at the ground to hide her embarrassment. She felt too exposed to be polite and wave back, much as she knew she had to. But she couldn't. She had to get used to walking around with her legs showing first. Sure, her dress had had a thigh-length slid, but that didn't count, the dress itself covered her legs. Not so here.

"Hi, everyone!" Minako waved back and came over to the girls, dragging a very embarrassed Nightmare behind her. "Where are Miku, Rin and Reiko?"

"They said they couldn't come." Miyuki answered, the smiled at Nightmare. "Nice uniform, it suits you."

Nightmare looked up, but averted her gaze from Miyuki, cheeks still red. "It does?" she snapped, but then quickly corrected herself, saying on a much softer tone: "I mean… thank you," she finished awkwardly.

Chiara raised her eyebrow. "What? You never wore such uniform before?"

"Well, she never attended a specialized volleyball club, so... And school sports uniforms in Europe aren't that short." Minako explained.

"Ah, so you're shy?" Rumiko chimed, smiling at Kira. The girl, her cheeks even redder because she wasn't used to what she thought was pity, nodded with a clenched jaw. Stupid love dove, embarrassing her before all these people!

"Don't be shy. You look good." Takako said.

That was the second person who said she did, Nightmare realized. Maybe there was some truth to it after all. She looked at her 'sister', begging her for some help or confirmation with her eyes, unsure of what to say.

"Told you so!" Minako smiled. Then looked at the girls. "Took me a long time to convince her the uniform would suit her."

Rumiko chuckled. "I see you're not good at convincing, because she's not." She rolled her eyes. "A shame, really. The uniform suits you really well." She said sincerely.

"Well, I guess I'll believe it, since you're all saying it," 'Kira' muttered quietly. "Unless this is all one big conspiracy to embarrass me and get back at me for my earlier behaviour, which wouldn't surprise me, either."

Everybody stared at her. "What?"

"Uhm, nevermind, she's a bit paranoid." Minako said sheepishly, then whispered to Nightmare. "Nobody's against you, when will you get that?"

"So you say, onee-chan, but my past experiences tell me very, _very_ differently!" Nightmare hissed back, not really bothering to make it so the others didn't hear her. They could, for all she cared. Would tell them of her worries without her having to confess to them directly.

Rumiko smiled. "But you're not there anymore, ne? Nobody will bully you now." She said kindly. "Right, girls?" She looked at her team mates.

Chiara nodded. "Right. I wouldn't be in one team with bullies. I'd teach them a lesson myself." The black-haired girl slammed her fist against her palm as confirmation.

"Well, thanks, I guess," Nightmare said, unused and uncomfortable with getting support from people she didn't know, not very well at least.

"Alright, enough talk." Miyuki clapped her hands. "We've got training to do." Unbeknownst to the team leader, Nightmare sighed in relief as she heard that. Talking wasn't her forte, the Saurian girl knew that. But she didn't come here to talk, but to train, and thankfully there was somebody else here with the brain to realise that, too.

"What do we do?" she asked, surprising herself by actually addressing the other girl on her own accord, without the other having spoken to her first.

"Passes first, as usual." Miyuki answered. "Then we'll get to attack moves. Chiara, you're with Minako, I'm with Rumiko. Kira, you practice with Takako."

Nightmare looked at the other woman, and recognized her as the one she had injured during her 'match' against the entire team. The disguised reptile swallowed very, very hard and looked uncertainly at her sister, her pillar of support during these trainings, silently asking her with her eyes and through their bond what to do.

Minako nodded at her encouragingly. She told her silently: "Come on, you can do it."

Takako, already some paces away from the girls, was tossing the ball in her hand impatiently. "Well?"

Nightmare frowned, not understanding, as she slowly came over to her assigned partner. "Well what?" she asked, confused, as she got in a stance, constantly shouting at herself to keep her strength in check. There was no doubt that this girl would not forgive her again if she hurt her a second time.

"Nothing, was just telling you to come over." Takako said simply and passed her the ball.

The disguised Saurian passed back with great ease, but was inwardly still doubting this whole situation. What was that Miyuki girl thinking, teaming this girl up with the one who had hurt her?

"Don't you mind?" Nightmare asked after a few silent minutes of passing the ball back and forth.

"Hmph. Why should I?" Takako replied.

"I know I would," the disguised reptile answered, trying to keep her voice even, and not let her nerves or discomfort show in any way.

"I see..." Takako replied. "But I'm not angry. It happens... Though how could you serve the ball that strongly at your age still confuses me."

Upon hearing the last sentence, Nightmare had to smile, and she looked a bit smug. "Born with good muscles, I guess. Though, to be honest, it's a family trait, you could say. My sisters and brothers have stronger muscles than your average human, too." The Saurian girl's smile widened, and she passed the ball again, getting into the exercise now.

Takako raised her eyebrow. "Mad scientist experiment?" She joked.

Remembering how Ignika was modified by the Great Beings, Nightmare grinned a bit. "I suppose you could say that," she replied mysteriously.

Takako chuckled. "That's cool." She liked that kind of humour. "Say, what kind of music do you like?"

"Ehm, eh…" The Saurian of Fear was at loss for a moment. She hadn't heard any music in her whole life until the concert and that one 'see dee' that her sister had let her listen to. So she didn't know anything about any other human music styles. She looked around briefly for her sister, but she was practicing herself on the other side of the field. Nightmare gulped inaudibly, she was on her own here. "Well, I'm no expert on styles…" she finally said slowly. "But I don't like classic, that's for sure."

"Me neither." Takako nodded. "I hate the piano. My grandma thought I had talent and forced me to play it every day when I was little. I said I don't like it, but noooo, 'you'll thank me later', she says." Takako sighed. "Sorry for rambling." She apologized.

"No problem, I would ramble, too, about classical music," the Saurian of Fear shrugged, surprised by her own casualty she had while speaking with this girl. Truth to be told, this was happening more and more often lately. "But then, what music do you like? I don't know anything about styles, so, enlighten me." She passed the ball again, this time a little bit harder and faster, to see if the girl could keep up with it.

Takako passed her the ball back and grinned. "Metal all the way." She said, showing her the 'devil horns' sign.

Nightmare frowned. "Iron is music now, too?"

Takako raised her eyebrow. "Haha, very funny. Surely you know it's the name of the style." She said, pretending what Nightmare said was a joke.

"Ehm, and if I said I don't…?" Nightmare asked worriedly, swallowing hard. "Like I said, I don't know anything about music. We didn't… exactly have access to a lot of that where we used to live before we came here."

"Ah..." Takako said, lowering her eyes. "I'm sorry." She remembered now, the story Miyuki told the girls about Kira. Growing up in an orphanage, having to care for her autistic sister... And even if she was adopted later, it could be possible that nobody in her family listened to metal. Like in her own. "Well, it's okay, I have my cd-player back in the locker room." She said, smiling shyly. "I'll give you a couple of songs to listen."

"If it's anything like classical music, I'll pass," Nightmare muttered.

Takako grinned. "It's completely different. Wouldn't listen to it if I hate classical music, now would I?"

"Alright, girls!" Miyuki's commanding voice came. "Now to practice the attack moves. Rumiko, you'll do the passes."

Nightmare smiled at Takako. "Well, nice training with you."

Takako smiled back. "Same." She was beginning to like that girl. Prickly, but with a nice sense of humour. And if it turns out she likes metal... Kira and Takako would definitely get along.

As the girls moved over the field to start the new exercise, Nightmare thought a bit about the practice she just had with the girl she'd previously injured. It surprised the Saurian girl that Takako didn't bear any ill will to her. That was an attitude she was completely unfamiliar with, and it made her a bit uncomfortable because she didn't know how to deal with it. Nevertheless, she had somewhat enjoyed the girl's company, her sense of humour wasn't that bad, and who knew, maybe that music she wanted to let her hear was good? Then they'd have something else in common aside from liking volleyball.

* * *

"Alright, girls, training is over!" Miyuki declared. Then smiled and said on a quieter, and un-commanding tone. "Let's shower and go home."

Nightmare gasped inaudibly and turned wide-eyed to her sister. "What's this about showering, onee-chan?" she hissed quietly and urgently, making sure nobody else heard, glancing around worriedly.

"Well, dunno about you, but I don't wanna wear my clean clothes over my sweaty worked-out body." Minako whispered back. "So we'll take a shower, it's next to the locker room."

"Wait, wait, wait! IT? Don't you mean 'they'? Don't tell me there's only one shower!" the other girl replied, in shock.

"Well, it's a common shower room, with multiple showers lining the walls..." Minako began to explain. Nightmare's eyes widened ever more upon hearing that and her jaw dropped fearfully. Bathing together with her sister, that was one thing, but with the entire volleyball team? Getting naked with girls she hardly knew? Never! She was about to say so, too, when she got interrupted by somebody else.

"Kira-chan, Minako-chan, is there a problem?" Rumiko asked, wondering why the two 'sisters' were lagging behind. The other girls stopped to turn and see as well.

"No-no, it's okay, we'll be there in a minute." Minako cheerfully assured them.

"We will?" Nightmare asked lamely, bowing her head and feeling her cheeks turn red again. Great Beings damn it all, she thought, why was she blushing so much every time she went to these volleyball trainings?

"Aww, isn't that cute?" Chiara said teasingly, seeing Nightmare blush.

Takako smiled. "It is." She said sincerely and nodded.

Chiara sweatdropped. "Takako, that's not what I..."

"Why are you so shy, Kira-chan?" Miyuki asked.

Nightmare sighed, but realized she had no choice but to explain. "Would you believe it if I said nobody but my family saw me naked?" she said awkwardly, scratching the back of her head and turning around to hide her blush. "And onee-chan, but aside from that… So sorry for not feeling comfortable with it." More silently, she added, barely audible: "Especially since women can mate women here…"

The girls looked at each other. That was a weird choice of words...

"Nobody but your family?" Chiara raised her eyebrow. "You mean, including male members?"

"No, of course not including them!" Minako said loudly, glaring at Chiara. "How could you even think that?"

Chiara shrugged. "Sounded that way."

"Anyway, don't orphanages have common showers, too?" Rumiko asked, confused.

"Depends..." Takako said thoughtfully.

"She's just very shy..." Minako said.

Nightmare looked at Chiara with a frown. "Why can't I bathe with my little brother? He needs some supervision when the others can't," she explained with a shrug. Then the young Saurian sighed and looked at her sister. "But onee-chan's right… I'm shy, I'm sorry… I know it's pathetic but…" She folded her arms protectively around herself. "I can't help it."

"It's okay." Rumiko came over and put a hand on her shoulder, smiling. "We won't force you."

"But it's silly!" Nightmare retorted, snapping somewhat. "You all do it, and have no problems with it, so why can't I? Just because I feel this stupid shyness over my stupid body." She sighed and shook her head again. "I'm pathetic…"

"You're not." Takako said. "It's understandable, really. And it's okay if you don't want to..."

"No!" the disguised reptile said determinedly. "I'll overcome this fear. I'm not weak like that! Heck, if useless would ever find out, I'd never hear the end of it! No way, anything but that!" Suddenly having convinced herself, the young immortal turned around and marched to the door of the dressing room, brushing past the others with firm paces. Only when her hand was already on the doorknob, did she stop, and she bowed her head, her confidence seemingly having evaporated. "Ehm," she whispered meekly. "You won't do anything funny, will you?"

Takako raised her eyebrow. "Of course we won't. Why would we?"

"Ehm..." Minako said. "It's just that I have a lesbian couple among my friends. The possibility kinda freaks her out."

"Oh." Takako said. "Don't worry, we're not like that."

"Yep. Absolutely not." Rumiko smiled.

"Not even Miyuki." Chiara teased.

"Hey!" The team captain put her hands on her hips. "Just because my mom suddenly found interest in Kairi-san doesn't mean I'm like that!"

"That better be true for all of you," Nightmare growled. "I may be a nice girl now, but even I have limits." She opened the door and looked at the others. "Well then, bathing time, I guess?" Nobody missed the tinge of red that appeared very clearly on her cheeks.

"Yep." Minako said, coming over to her sister and putting her hand around her shoulder and guiding her inside. The girls followed suit.

* * *

A little more than half an hour later, the girls had emerged from the dressing room, neatly washed and dressed again, ready to go home after a good training. The showering itself hadn't been as bad as expected, Nightmare had to admit. Sure, it was very awkward at first, but the calm and relaxedness the other girls did it with eased her somewhat, and she stopped being jumpy quite quickly. After that, Takako had let her listen to that 'metal' music as promised, and the results where perhaps a bit better than the older girl had expected. The Saurian girl was wandering around the sports hall now, humming 'Are You Metal?' while waiting for her onee-chan to finish with her goodbyes to the others.

"See you all at the next training!" Minako waved to them, running up to Nightmare. The girls waved back before going in the opposite direction.

"So how do you like today's training?" Minako smiled at her sister.

"Are you me- Eh? Oh, it was nice," the Saurian of Fear replied, interrupting her singing. "A lot of awkwardness, I guess, but nothing this girl can't overcome. And thanks to that Takako I've finally found music I like! Onee-chan, you have to get me some of that metal music!"

Minako chuckled. "Sure thing! There's a music shop on the way home. Why do you like it that much, anyway?" Minako was more a j-pop fan herself, not particularly fond of screaming.

"It's loud, hard and fast!" Nightmare declared with an evil grin on her face, punching her palm with her fist. "And that's just what I need. No offense to Traveller, but that classical music bores my behind off. I need to introduce her to metal."

"Ehhh... That might not be a good idea." Minako raised her eyebrow. "I mean, she does have a talent to classical music."

"Well, you never know," her little sister countered. "Maybe she likes it too, and she'll play both styles. Nothing wrong with that, right?"

"Except that metal requires completely different instruments, a whole band of people in fact, and there's nobody to teach Traveller to play any of them. Plus vocals are very different." Minako said.

"Then I'll just enjoy it by myself with you, onee-chan!" Ignika's youngest sister concluded with a shrug. She hooked her arm around Minako's so she could feel their special bond, and smiled. The two sisters continued on their way home then, taking a small detour to the nearest music shop, with the youngest of the two babbling excitedly about heavy metal all the time.

* * *

The four girls from the volleyball team were sitting in a cafe Chiara's mom owned, drinking juice and milkshakes, and discussing the latest training.

"This Kira girl doesn't seem so bad after all." Takako said. "At least, she has a good taste in music."

Chiara shrugged. "If you say so, Takako. I still don't quite trust her."

"Why so?" Rumiko asked. "I mean, she's a nice, cute, shy girl..."

Chiara shook her head. "Rumi-chan, you haven't seen her the day she hurt Takako."

Miyuki nodded. "True... She was a real nightmare." The team captain sighed. "But anyway, it's not that surprising, given her background."

"Indeed... Poor Kira-chan..." Rumiko frowned, putting her elbows on the table and placing her chin in her hands.

"Minako said she brought her to us so she gets something active to do and see not all people are her enemies. And I think we should help her realize this, right, Chiara?" She gave her teammate a hard look.

The black-haired girl sighed. "Fine, fine, we will, yeah." The volleyball player shook her head. "I can't believe you guys, really. How can you all put up with her so easily after what she did?"

"So if she gave me a couple of bruises, you suggest I hate her my entire life?" Takako asked, crossing her arms.

"May I remind you she didn't only hurt you, but nearly broke Minako's jaw, too?" Chiara snapped back, crossing her arms as well. "That girl's dangerous, and her strength abnormal."

"It is?" Rumiko blinked. "I haven't noticed anything abnormal... Not today, not last two times."

"It is." Miyuki nodded. "For her age, her strength and speed is... Unusual."

"Today she joked it off as a mad scientist experiment." Takako said. "And told me it's a family trait."

"But Minako doesn't have any abnormalities, does she?" Rumiko said worriedly.

"Don't forget Kira is adopted." Chiara frowned.

"Whooptie-doo, a science fiction detective story." Miyuki said, sighing.

"Maybe she's an alien in disguise or something?" Rumiko suggested.

"Who knows?" Chiara said with a shrug. She looked at the others harshly. "What do we _really_ know of this 'Kira' Genkai? Nothing aside from what Minako told us, and Kira herself barely tells anything except vague answers. And you know what else?" The girl glanced around the group again, then leaned forward and whispered: "I swear I heard her say this when she was talking about her reluctance to bathe with us: 'Especially since women can mate women here'! That's what she said!"

"Well... Minako does have a lesbian couple among her friends..." Takako said slowly. "Though... 'mate'..." She shook her head.

"There's definitely some kind of mystery in it!" Rumiko said enthusiastically. She liked mysteries and mysterious stories, and even tried to practice magic based on some books.

"I don't know..." Miyuki said. "Of course we know little. But we know just as little about any other student from our college outside our class. Besides, do you really think Minako would have brought her to us if there was a dangerous mystery?"

"Well, there's another such thing," Chiara replied. "First those two are fire and ice, and look at them now, as close as can be! Am I really the only one who finds that weird? Think about it, the news is full of stories of aliens because of all those strange attacks happening. And right at the moment those start to happen, Minako shows up with a girl with monstrous strength, a past nobody knows about for sure and who just doesn't fit! She didn't know anything about music, you said, Takako. And now this 'mating' she used. It's just too much strangeness combined into one girl to be coincidence."

"And what do you suggest we do?" Takako asked, crossing her arms.

Chiara punched the palm of her hand with her other one. "I say we try to find out more about this girl!" she declared, a challenging grin on her face.

"How?" Miyuki asked.

"By spying, of course!" the other girl explained, as if it were obvious. When she noticed the deadpan looks the others gave her, she scoffed. "What? We did it when we tried to find out who Reiko's new boyfriend was."

"Well, you can count me in, Chiara-chan!" Rumiko grinned.

Chiara smiled. "Miyuki?"

The team captain shook her head and grinned, too. "Well, someone has to make sure you won't blow your cover."

Takako sighed. "Something tells me that nothing good will come out of this situation. Sorry, but I'll pass."

The others merely shrugged, and quickly huddled together, whispering in hushed tones to each other as they began to discuss and plan out their newfound mission. None of them knew just what they were getting themselves into.

* * *

**Next chapter: Channeling powers!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: I'm glad you liked the chapter. Thanks for the review!


	92. Channeling powers

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**92. Channeling powers**

While Nightmare and Minako were busy practicing their volleyball skills in the sports hall, Traveller was busy honing her skills with the piano in the Outer Senshi's home. Haruka and Michiru kept a watchful eye on her, correcting what little mistakes the Saurian made, and teaching her more and more about the art of music as the Saurian of Teleportation got better and better. Ever since the concert, Ignika's oldest sister's resolve had doubled, and she practiced harder and more attentively than ever. Setsuna, who was sitting at the table bowed over her fashion sketches, heard and felt this, and smiled.

As for the two youngest of the family, they were upstairs, residing in Hotaru's room. The Senshi of Death and Destruction had to keep up with her studies, even if the school was closed and being repaired. Ignika, out of curiosity, had followed her, wanting to know what 'homework' was. He soon found himself lost, as he understood little of Hotaru's 'maths'. That was Gravitas' department. So the boy occupied himself in silence by reading some of the other books his friend had, ones he could understand.

And yet, he couldn't keep his attention to his reading. It wasn't because the books were boring, no, far from it, but because something else was on his mind. Something that didn't have anything to do with school or homework, and his golden eyes studied Hotaru's working form attentively and thoughtfully.

"... and x=5... Done." Hotaru smiled. She checked the answer at the end of the textbook, and was pleased to find out she had solved the problem right. Spinning around on her chair, she noticed Ignika watching her attentively. "Something wrong?" She asked, noticing the thoughtfulness in his glance.

"Hmm? Oh, no, no, Hotaru-chan, nothing wrong," the Child of life hurriedly said, putting her at ease. "I've just been thinking…"

"About what?" Hotaru tilted her head.

"You," he answered honestly.

Hotaru blinked. "Umm... What about me?" That sentence could have multiple meanings...

"Well, I've been thinking about you and the way you fight," Ignika explained. "Now don't worry, I'm not going to criticize you! But I noticed that you don't like it that you can only put up barriers once you're in too confined a space. I'm right, am I not?"

"Well, yeah..." Hotaru said, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "It's really kind of annoying. Makes me feel kind of useless... No, I know that barriers are very useful in battle, but still..."

"Well, that's what baffles me, if you don't want to only make barriers, then why don't you use your powers for something else than barriers?" Ignika wondered aloud.

Hotaru bowed her head and lowered her eyes. "I don't know how, or even if I can do it..." She said in a low voice.

"Well, why don't you add your powers to your Silence Glaive, Hotaru?" the white-haired boy suggested. "That would allow you to attack in closed space, and even if you're not that good with close combat, your power is destructive enough to make up for that if you'd focus it in your glaive."

Hotaru tucked a strand of hair behind her ear again. "Yeah, but, there's a problem... Such a way of using my power requires much precision, and... My power is very hard to control." Hotaru sighed. "I simply have too much of it, and I don't know how to let out just a little bit of it."

"I could teach you!" the boy said eagerly. "My power is as great as yours, and I know how to do what I just said, I've done it before!"

Hotaru smiled. "Really? That'd be great!" She said cheerfully. "Nobody ever taught us Senshi how to use our powers, you know. That's why our knowledge is limited to attacks that just come natural."

"Well, I was taught control by the Great Beings, but of course, the one who had to do the actual work was me," Ignika told her. Then he climbed to his feet and eagerly walked over to her, grabbing her hand and trying to drag her along. "Come on! Let's go the garden and practice!"

The purple-haired Senshi nodded and followed her guest into the garden. She had finished her homework, and this time was just as good for training as any other. The two children went downstairs, but when they passed the living room, were noticed by Setsuna, who wanted to know where they were going.

"We're going to the garden to train." Hotaru said honestly. "Ignika is gonna teach me something new."

The Saurian of Life nodded. "Something so she won't be limited to barriers anymore, Setsuna-san," he further explained.

Setsuna frowned. "Alright. However, be careful. Death and destruction are not powers to be careless about."

"Neither is Life," Ignika retorted. "Honestly, Setsuna-san, I know what I'm doing. Hotaru's not entirely unique anymore, I know how to deal with this."

Setsuna nodded. "I know, Ignika, and I trust you on that. It's just hard to get used to and stop worrying." She smiled apologetically. Ignika returned the smile, then took Hotaru by her hand again and guided her to the kitchen, were they went through the backdoor to emerge in the garden.

"Well, shall we start?" Hotaru asked, and took her henshin wand. "Saturn Crystal Power, Make Up!" In a flash of light, Hotaru was replaced by Sailor Saturn, her Silence Glaive ready in her hand.

As she did this, Ignika summoned his Death Scythe, and when Sailor Saturn emerged, the immortal child had to smile. "It always amazes me when you do that," he said. With a frown, Ignika then asked: "How does it actually feel to transform, Sailor Saturn?"

Hotaru smiled. "Well, for one thing, it takes a longer time than it seems from outside. People say they only see a flash of light, but in reality, it's about half a minute of being one with your power." Hotaru smiled dreamily. "You see magic power all around you, feel it entering you, changing you, making you stronger... You open your eyes – and here you are, ready to fight."

"Though to me it only looks like you change clothes and get a tool or weapon," Ignika noted, scratching his head a bit in confusion. "I never really get transformations, especially when you barely transform at all."

"Well, exactly, it only looks that way." Hotaru said. "For only in transformed state one can use powers, and physical strength and speed also improve. Senshi are stronger and faster than average humans, you know."

"I guessed as much from what I've seen before," the Child of Life agreed. "Well then, shall we begin?" Not waiting for her answer, he turned to some nearby trees, focussed, triggered his powers and threw it at the plants. The trees merged and grew, becoming a towering gigantic creature made of plantlife, its green glowing eyes glaring down at the two children at its feet, which looked like the roots of trees. Its hair was made of leaves, and it had many fingers on each giant hand, long and wooden, again looking like the roots of trees. The monster roared and began to approach them.

"That will do as a test subject," Ignika noted happily, satisfied his little toying with his Life powers had worked like he wanted.

Hotaru gave a start. "Yeah, looks like a youma alright..." She readied her glaive. "So how do I do it?" She asked quickly.

"Watch carefully first," Ignika told her calmly, seemingly not worried that the monster he had just made was raising its foot to crush them into the dirt. "I'll show you what the effect can be when you imbue your power in to your weapon to power your strikes. First, a normal attack."

Ignika jumped up then and sped to the foot about to crush them, then lashed out with his scythe, delivering a normal, powerless strike with his weapon. The sharp Death Scythe easily cut through the root-like toes, severing plenty of them, and the monster howled in pain and stumbled backwards.

"As you can see," Ignika explained as he landed next to Hotaru again. "I did some damage, but it's anything but lethal. That was a normal, powerless attack, that can easily be blocked, too." The golden eyes of the boy got a feral gleam in them and he grinned: "Now watch what happens when I imbue my powers of Life in my scythe as I strike."

The Saurian of Life reared back his Death Scythe, and the pitch-black blade began to glow golden. Satisfied, Ignika used all muscles he possessed in his legs to jump at his foe again, as high as he could. The monster had by now regained its footing and was approaching again. Ignika came at chest-height, and struck. He swung his glowing Scythe, the powers imbued in it cutting the very sky itself, and a cut that glowed golden was formed in the wake of the Death Scythe as it cleaved through the air. Ignika didn't even come in direct contact with his foe, which Hotaru could clearly see, but it didn't matter one bit, as the sheer power coming from the swing cleaved the monster in half just like a direct hit would have done. It fell to the ground with a roar, and Ignika landed neatly on his feet again, turning back to grin at Hotaru.

"See? I didn't even make direct contact, and I still cut it. Imagine what you could do if you could use the same technique, Saturn-san! The effects would be far greater, since your power is ruin, while mine is Life. It takes a lot of power to make Life so overpowering that it cuts, so to speak," the Child of Life once again explained.

Hotaru, staring at him wide-eyed, nodded slowly. "Problem with me is not using too much, though..." She said. "So how do I actually imbue power to my glaive?"

"Well, that shouldn't be too hard… Well, for me it isn't, but maybe that's because we Saurians use our powers differently…" Ignika muttered thoughtfully. He smiled at her. "Let me tell you how I do it. The Saurian powers can be divided in different categories, but the most obvious difference is powers that are elemental, and powers that are not. I wield the element of Life, Gravitas the element of Gravity. But Fear, Chameleon and Teleportation, for example, are not elemental powers, so they work differently. But for me and Gravitas, we are filled with our element, it is what powers us, our lives, our very selves. That also explains how elemental Saurians can turn into an Elemental state. So when we fight, we concentrate on that power, and let it flow, guiding it into the shapes and forms we want it to have and take on. So when I imbue my weapon with my powers, I guide my elemental power, let it flow from me into my scythe, and command it to gather in the blade." He scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "But I don't know how Senshi powers work, so I don't know if the same way applies to you, Sailor Saturn."

"We don't know it ourselves..." Hotaru said. "Only know that the source is somewhere deep within, like a star or a crystal... I'll try it, though." She closed her eyes, held her glaive horizontally in front of her and concentrated.

Soon enough, as she reached to the source of her powers, Hotaru felt a soft astral wind. The shining star of her power grew, its light expanding, and pretty soon it was flowing through Hotaru's veins, causing an aura of purple to appear around her. So far, it was familiar, she had done so before, now came the tricky part. Slowly, as concentrated as possible, she tried to make the gathered power flow into the glaive...

Ignika observed carefully, and nodded encouragingly when he saw the purple glow appear. "Yes, that's good…" he said softly. "Try to guide it to your glaive, not your body. Your body is not in need of it." The Saurian boy moved to stand behind Hotaru. "When you feel like trying, try to swing your glaive, and just let it all go."

Hotaru gasped, her control over her power disrupted, the gathered purple aura vanishing in thin air. "Just... let it all... go?" She said quietly, sounding somehow afraid.

"The power in your Glaive, I meant," Ignika replied. He nodded encouragingly at her. "Hotaru, I mean, Sailor Saturn, I know you are afraid to loose control over your powers, or cause too much destruction. But that's why I'm teaching you this. If you attack like this, you won't use any more power than you pour into your Glaive. We can test and see what is a safe amount in all ease here, I have enough power to nullify yours should it get out of hand." He pointed at her Glaive. "Try it again, but this time, try to let it flow directly from the source into your glaive, and not let it fill your body first before it fills your weapon. There's no need for that, unless you're going to punch somebody."

Slowly, Hotaru nodded again. "I'll try..." Only the power in the glaive... She needed to make it work. Concentrating, she tried again.

This time, she managed to make the aura appear around her forearms only, and the rest flowed into the glaive. Opening her eyes, she looked at Ignika, uncertain. The Child of Life gave her a thumbs-up.

"We're almost there, Saturn-san! But we'll try to fix that last part later," he said. Ignika waved his hand and turned the remains of his tree-monster into a wall of logs. "Try and strike it, and let it go! Don't try to keep the power contained once you've begun to release it, that's dangerous! Just trust in yourself, in your powers."

Biting her lip, Hotaru nodded, and looked determinedly at the log wall. Taking a deep breath, she swung her glaive, letting the power flow out, though her hands were gripping the weapon very tightly, as the desire to conserve it and prevent it from going out of control was very strong.

The Silence Glaive, enforced by the powers of Ruin, cut through the logs like a knife through butter. Just like before with Ignika when he had slashed, a glow of power, this time purple, was formed in the wake of the strike. The slash in the air and logs sizzled with unstable sparks of Ruin power, and as Hotaru finished her swing, the power was unleashed in a mighty explosion of Silence. The logs were disintegrated into mere dust. But Saturn had held back a bit too much, and some of her powers backfired on her, and the Senshi was blown backwards to the ground. Ignika gasped and ran towards her in a hurry.

"Sailor Saturn!" he said, slightly panicking. "Are you alright?"

Hotaru, breathing heavily, sat up and winced. "I'm... Fine..." She looked at the charred circle that took the place of the disintegrated logs. "See? Even that little is too much..." Hotaru frowned.

Ignika frowned. "How so? You were supposed to destroy them. And these were only logs. An enemy with powers will take a good deal more than that."

Hotaru frowned. "I guess..." She got up to her feet, ready for whatever they'd do next.

Ignika waved his hand and transformed the dust particles back into logs, thanks to the particles being organic he was capable of doing so. He then turned to Hotaru and gave her another encouraging smile. "Try again. This time, try to make it all gather in your glaive, and more specifically, in the blade of your glaive. I think part of the reason it backfired is because you held back the power that was still in your body. If you only have it in your glaive, it should work better."

Hotaru nodded and concentrated again. This time, she had to do everything correctly.

The power flowed through her hands, but she quickly pushed it out, leaving her body without the elemental power, making it all gather in the glaive. Taking a deep breath, she slashed the air with her glaive again.

The effects were similar to her previous try, but there were several key difference. This time, she had only slashed the air, and had not made direct contact with the logs. It didn't matter, as she created a neat rift in the air in the wake of her slash just like Ignika had when he used his Scythe with powers infused. Only this time, the rift she created was far more stable, and the glow of power much more intense. The power of ruin surged forth from the slash, following the path Hotaru's glaive had cut for it. Once again the wall of logs was disintegrated when the power of Saturn struck, but Hotaru herself remained standing, receiving no backlash from her attack at all.

Sailor Saturn, who had been holding her breath all this time, slowly exhaled and smiled, then looked at Ignika. "How was it?" She asked.

"Perfect!" the boy replied with a grin. "That's precisely how it should be done! You didn't feel any backlash or hesitation this time, did you?"

"Nope." Hotaru shook her head. She looked at the disintegrated logs again. "Though it was kind of scary... I mean, letting power go uncontrolled like that..." She said quietly.

Ignika held up his hand to stop her. "It's not uncontrolled," he explained. "This kind of attack, if done correctly, is quite controlled. The amount of power used is entirely up to you, and if you do it like you did now, the power will burst forth only along the path of your cut. Though of course, charging your weapon with your power has more uses than that. You need to experiment and see what works best for you."

"I see..." Hotaru said quietly. This type of using power was still entirely new to her, and that old deep fear of not being in control still remained. "What else can I do, though?"

"Well, here you're just striking the air. A direct hit would have a different effect, or directing all the power with a strike to the ground would also yield different results," the eternal child elaborated. "It really differs from user to user, and power to power. Here, your result was similar to mine because you copied me and didn't know much. But now that I've taught you the technique, it's up to you to learn what to do with it. I'm not the wielder of Silence, you are, and only you know how Silence can best be used in combination with this technique I taught you."

Hotaru looked at him and nodded. "I see. I'd rather still do it under your supervision, though..." She looked at the disintegrated logs again. "Experimenting is always dangerous..." Hotaru whispered, remembering her father.

"You've got a point there, and I don't think Michiru-san and Haruka-san would appreciate it if we wrecked their garden with our practicing…" Ignika replied. He rubbed his chin in thought, and then smiled brightly. "I have an idea! I was going to visit Rei-san today because I haven't seen her yet since she woke up. Why don't you come with me, Hotaru? I'm sure Master Angonce has some place in his realm where we could practice as much as we want without having to worry about our surroundings."

Hotaru smiled. "That'd be nice." Although her heart felt cold all of a sudden when she remembered Master Angonce's whispered words before he teleported her home. What could he possibly mean with those words...?

Unaware of her sad thoughts, Ignika was happily babbling on because of the thought of seeing his mentor and 'father' again. He grabbed Saturn's gloved hand and dragged her back to the door. "Let's go ask Traveller to take us there right now!" he said excitedly. Just as he was about to open the door, though, he stopped and looked at her inquiringly. "Just one more question…" he began. "Ehm, is it okay that I taught you this? I mean, will you use it in the future, if you can, or is it un-Senshi-like?"

Hotaru shrugged. "I probably will, once I learn to use it properly..." She said. "I mean, I can't always fight with barriers only..."

"I'm glad to hear that… I was afraid you wouldn't like this technique, find it dangerous or silly or something," the Child of Life muttered awkwardly, looking away.

"It's not silly at all, though it is dangerous..." Hotaru sighed. "But I don't want to be killed because I can't fight in closed space."

Ignika gave her an encouraging hug. "Your powers aren't dangerous, Saturn-san. You only think like that because people have been telling you that for millennia, kinda like with me. But don't let that get to you. You and me, we both know the truth of our powers. They're only as dangerous as we, the guardians, allow them to become."

Hotaru smiled, enjoying the hug. "I guess you're right." Then she let go of the child. "Well, let's go, you wanted to see Rei now, no?"

Ignika nodded. "Yep, I did." He took Saturn's gloved hand in his again, and gently tugged her along inside. "Let's go get Traveller!" And the two children with the power to destroy the world vanished inside the house to find their teleporting friend.

* * *

**Next chapter: Visits and simulations!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: It doesn't seem smart of them, does it? =p Thanks for the review, updates are done every sunday. =)

Rizwan Fariz: I'm glad you liked it. Thanks for the review!

Lucia Sennen: You'll find out soon enough if they find out or not. ;) Thanks for the review!


	93. Visits and simulations

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**93. Visits and simulations**

"Of course you are allowed to visit Sailor Mars, Ignika," master Angonce said to his three visitors – Ignika, Hotaru and Traveller – when they had asked him for permission to see the recovering Senshi. The Saurian of Teleportation had taken her brother and his human friend to the house of the divinity once she had finished her piano exercises, and they'd arrived before the front door, where they politely rang the bell. Apparently that was something the Great Being had copied from the humans he observed and amusedly he told them that he was surprised he'd never had that idea himself before. Crast – as expected – had opened the door and took them to the master, where they had greeted him and made their request.

"I thank you, master Angonce," Ignika replied, bowing. "How is she today?" Reluctantly he added: "I also had another request. I have been teaching Sailor Saturn a new way to practice her powers, but because of their destructive nature it is hard to practice in Haruka and Michiru-san's garden. Can you help us?"

Behind Angonce, Crast snorted upon hearing the 'little reptile' make so much demands, but he kept his monstrous jaws shut and merely observed. Angonce, sitting in his usual couch, merely smiled. "I shall answer in order. Sailor Mars is making excellent progress in her recovery, and I am hopeful that she can return home when the week is over. As for your second request, I shall have Crast prepare the simulation chamber, where you can practice against whatever you wish."

"Will Crast be controlling the simulator?" Hotaru asked worriedly, tilting her head. She was of course glad Rei was getting better, yet if it was Crast to make training enemies for them, they'd be in for one hell of a ride.

"It works by voice control, I'll have Crast set it to enable all users, so you can decide for yourself what you want to practice against," Angonce assured the Senshi of Silence, chuckling as he guessed her thoughts and worries.

Hotaru smiled and inwardly sighed in relief. "Thank you, Master Angonce." She bowed.

"Think nothing of it," the divinity replied, smiling kindly at her. Then he clapped his hands together. "Well then, I believe there is a Senshi you wish to visit. Crast, please take our visitors to the medical bay, and afterwards, please be so kind as to prepare the simulation room for our two young fighters."

"Waiter, saviour and now a tour-guide and mechanic," the monster spat. "What other silly things will I have to be for these primates and reptiles disguised as primates?" Yet despite his complaints, he mentioned the two disguised Saurians and the one Senshi to follow him, which they reluctantly did.

* * *

The medical bay was exactly the same as Hotaru remembered it, but Ignika and Traveller, who were here for the first time, looked around in wonder and awe. The Child of Life, being familiar with medical wings build by the Great Being, recognized a lot of the machinery he saw here, even if he didn't know how they worked or what they were for. His sister, not familiar with medical equipment produced by the Great Beings, felt small, like she usually did when visiting the divinity and his halls. She wondered how machines could help heal a person in the first place, but remained silent, telling herself that she was not smart enough to understand such things.

Ignika glanced at Hotaru. "Where is Rei-san, Hotaru? You've been here before, so you probably know it better than us…" he asked quietly. The boy was just glad that Crast had left already, that made this place feel much more warm and comforting.

"Over there." Hotaru pointed to the other end of the hall. "And next to her is Vulcan..." She sighed as she remembered the argue that happened between them last time.

"He's the Saurian of Magma from that other family of Saurians, isn't he?" Traveller inquired, looking curiously at the young Senshi. Apparently something had happened between those two, aside from the fact that they had tried to kill each other.

Hotaru nodded. "Yes, he is. He's also here, recovering from the battle..."

"Maybe we'll visit him after we visited Rei," Traveller muttered. "What do you say, Ignika?"

"Well, I suppose now is as good a time as any, since we're here anyway," the Child of Life agreed. Because of their talking, the group was unaware that they passed a crystal tank filled with unknown liquid in which two mutilated, naked bodies drifted, comatose, each connected to more machinery than Rei and Vulcan combined.

Hotaru accidentally cast a glance that way, which caused her to gasp and freeze in her tracks. Ignika and Traveller stopped upon hearing this, and looked as well. They both frowned in distaste as they saw the condition of the two bodies. Silence reigned, until Traveller spoke:

"These… are the two other women we found on the night Rei-san was attacked, correct?"

Hotaru nodded. "Yes... It's them..." She said slowly.

Ignika was reading the information displayed on the many holograms surrounding the crystal tank. "Condition: horrible, life status: critically endangered, survival chances: extremely low… And then a report of the status of all their individual body workings," he told them. "Things don't look too good for these two…"

"I wonder what happened to them..." Hotaru took a few steps towards the crow Senshi. "They must have been trying to protect Rei..."

"I'm certain master Angonce is doing all he can to save them," Traveller told the young Senshi, awkwardly placing a hand on her shoulder to try and comfort her. "There is nothing you can do for them now, Hotaru-chan. Let's go visit Rei."

Hotaru slowly nodded and turned away. "Yeah... Let's go."

The Senshi of Ruin led her Saurian friends to Rei's bed. The Senshi of Mars was still in the same predicament as when Hotaru had last seen her: wrapped in the protective white fabric, bathing in warm blue light and connected to many machines. However, it was obvious to the young girl that Rei was feeling better. She didn't look that pale anymore, and her face was relaxed. Sailor Mars had her eyes closed, apparently sleeping.

"Oh dear," Ignika whispered to his companions. "Seems like we came at the wrong time."

"Well..." Hotaru whispered back. "Maybe you should check on Vulcan, then? I'll call you when Rei wakes up."

The two Saurians were about to do that, when Rei's eyes fluttered open. "I wasn't really sleeping," she whispered, yawning slightly. "Just trying to get some rest, since it's all I can do…" The black-haired woman then smiled at her visitors. "Hi."

Hotaru smiled. "Hello, Rei-chan." She said, coming over to Rei's bed. "How are you feeling?"

"Well, better than... Yesterday?" She said, kind of confused. "It's kind of hard to tell time here with this blue light and all... Anyway, and how are you guys?" She looked at her friends, more specifically Ignika and Traveller.

"We're fine, Rei-san," the Saurian of Teleportation said with a smile, coming over to stand besides the healing Senshi. "I've been practicing my piano play very hard, but I've been worried about you. Everybody has been."

Ignika nodded in agreement, and he came a bit closer as well. "I've been teaching Hotaru a new way to use her powers in battle!" he told her excitedly. "After we're done visiting you, we'll go practice in Master Angonce's simulation chamber." On an apologetic tone, he added: "I'm sorry I wasn't able to heal you properly, Rei-san."

Rei shook her head. "No, it's alright, Ignika. Master Angonce told me you managed to keep me alive... And that's good, else we'd be seeing each other only about ten or fifteen years from now..." Rei smiled gratefully at him.

"You've become an important person to me, Rei-san, just like every one of you Sailor Senshi," the Child of Life stammered. "I don't want to loose any of you." As he said that, Traveller looked at him in silence, remembering well the problem she had had concerning her own immortality and the Senshi's mortality and her reluctance to lose Setsuna, or any of them for that matter. Her little brother was having the same problem, she knew. Traveller decided to tell him of Master Angonce's suggested solution later, when they were home again.

Rei smiled. "Thank you..." Then she frowned and bowed her head. "... On your way here..." She said hesitatingly. "Did you see Phobos and Deimos?"

Traveller nodded shortly. "We did."

"How are they?" She looked at her friends worriedly.

Hotaru shook her head. "Very bad..."

"But I'm sure they'll make it," Ignika said, trying to sound hopeful and cheer Rei up. "They're under the care of Master Angonce, after all! And he'll do everything he can!"

"True..." Rei sighed. "They deserve a chance not to go into rebirth just yet... Phobos and Deimos may have not dealt any damage to Felnas, but they had won me the few seconds that weren't enough for Felnas to kill me."

"But who are they, actually?" Traveller wanted to know. "I get that they're Senshi, somehow, and that they're dear to you, but why didn't we see them before yet?"

Rei smiled weakly. "Remember Usagi's and Minako's cats?" The Saurians nodded in confirmation. They did, one can't forget a talking mammal that quickly. "Well, if you don't know already, they're humans disguised as cats. Um, not quite humans, they come from another solar system, but that doesn't matter."

The two siblings shared confused glances, then looked at Rei incomprehensively. What did this have to do with the two unknown Senshi?

"Those two women are kind of the same..." Rei sighed. "The cats serve the Royal Family and draw their power from the Moon, but since Moon already has a guardian and protector, there isn't enough power for them to be Senshi. Phobos and Deimos..." Rei paused. "They are my crows, and draw their powers from the two moons of the planet Mars. However small they are, they're enough to give Phobos and Deimos Senshi powers, of Fear and Terror, and if I'm not mistaken..." Rei sighed again. "But they interfere only when there's no other way... That frenzy I fell into during the latest invasion was their doing."

Traveller's face got an expression of distaste as she remembered that carnage. "Some guardians," she muttered darkly.

If Rei could, she would have shrugged. "It's their way." She sighed. "They don't come from our solar system, either. And unlike the cats, they never really were around humans or interested in human culture and morals... But their way did save my life. Twice, for they sent me into that berserk state in the fight with Felnas, too."

"And you all paid the price dearly for that stunt," Ignika noted dryly, with some regret in his voice and he sighed.

Rei looked away. "... If they didn't do it, I'd have given up and chosen painless death." Rei said in a low tone. "Because I had no chance at all..."

Traveller crossed her arms, bowed her head and sighed. "As much as I hate to admit it, you're right, Rei-san. If you hadn't resisted like you did, you would have been dead. But I don't doubt you wished you were so during the fight, am I not right?"

"They didn't give me a chance to think of it... Until he disrupted my powers." Rei sighed. "Then they attacked him themselves, and fought him as well as they could... Until my explosion stopped."

"I suppose they expected to die," Ignika said, strangely calm. "It can't be otherwise. Nobody attacks an Immoral One alone and expects to survive. No normal warrior, at least. Even I doubt if I could take down one myself. I suppose it depends on the power."

Rei shook her head slowly. "They knew they couldn't take him down. Yet they had no other way... They couldn't sit around and wait for my death. Fight until the end, keep struggling by all means, deal as much damage to the foe as you can even if death has you gripped by your throat – that's their way. And they stayed true to it. Victory or death, by all means possible."

"A hard way," Traveller noted quietly.

Rei nodded. "Indeed..." She sighed. "I hope they'll survive. I'd rather not wait fifteen years for a chance to thank them..."

Ignika decided then not to tell the grieving Senshi that the machinery had indicated their survival chances had been low. Rei had suffered enough already. Instead, he changed the subject, hoping to get her mind of worrying. "So how is life here, Rei-san?"

"Oh, pretty good, if somewhat boring." Rei looked at her left, where Vulcan was hidden behind the machinery. "Vulcan hasn't talked to me today... Guess he's still uncomfortable because of the argue and all..."

"The machines don't scare you?" Traveller asked, deciding she didn't want to know what argue Rei meant.

"Nope." Rei said and smiled at her. "Heh, all Saurians seem to ask that..."

"Truly?" the Saurian of Teleportation replied. She scratched the back of her head awkwardly, seemingly embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Rei-san."

"No, nothing to be sorry for, I understand." Rei smiled. "These things scare you because they're so complex and there's no chance of understanding, no?" She looked at the ceiling. "But the truth is, it's the same with all the other machines. I don't know how most machines at my house work, yet I use them, and you, Traveller, got used to them. These are no different, just way more advanced and surreal." Ignika's oldest sister nodded slowly in understanding.

"Is it easy to sleep with that light shining on you?" Ignika wanted to know, brimming with eager curiosity.

Rei chuckled. "Not really, and it's also uncomfortable being unable to move. I like to sleep on my side, you know. But I do drift to sleep once in a while, when my body feels like it."

"I'm sure the master has a good reason to limit your mobility," the Child of Life replied, giving the Senshi a confident smile. "And I recognize this light. Whenever I got injured during my time in the Fortress of the Great Beings, I was placed on a bed just like yours, under the same kind of light. Master Angonce said it had a calming, healing effect on the body, which I always found kind of weird. It's just blue light."

Hotaru answered for Rei: "It doesn't have to be just light. Light is also energy, you know. After all, our hands glow when we heal others, no?"

"Yes, but it's not the glow that heals, Hotaru-chan," Ignika objected. "It's our energy, our powers. This is just light. I think."

Hotaru smiled. "You can't know for sure." She placed her hand under the light. "Maybe it has a frequency that influences recovering process positively. Maybe it radiates waves in a special spectre. There are a lot of possibilities, really."

"My brain hurts," Traveller complained, feeling dumb.

Rei smiled. "Don't worry, we don't need to know how it works as long as it does." The Senshi of Mars then yawned, and after she did muttered an apology for doing so. Ignika shook his head and gave her an assuring look.

"I understand," he said. "You're becoming tired. We shall take our leave then."

Rei nodded, smiling. "Okay. Thank you for visiting me, I'm glad I had someone to talk to."

"We're just glad you're doing fine and are recovering, Rei-san," Traveller replied. She patted the Senshi gently on the shoulder. "Please take all the rest you can get, and do not trouble yourself with worries. Leave Phobos and Deimos to master Angonce, and leave the invasions to us for the time being."

"I will." Rei nodded and closed her eyes.

"Good bye, Rei-chan. Sleep well." Hotaru wished her friend.

The three visitors then left their friend to her rest and walked away. They went over to Vulcan's bed, wishing to visit him as well before they went to the simulation chamber, but the Saurian of Magma was deeply asleep. Hotaru was pleased to find out, however, that the Saurian was no longer encased in white fabric, and had far less cables attached to him than the last time she had seen him. The tubes in his nose were gone, all that remained were two cables ending in small, round silver patches attached to his chest, sending the most elementary of data to the machinery and screens around him. The Saurian looked visibly more at ease.

Hotaru chuckled. "We have bad timing when it comes to visits, it seems."

Ignika giggled as well. "Well, no harm done, we'll come back at a later date. At least we know what he looks like now, don't we, sister?"

Traveller was smiling as well, and upon hearing her brother's question, nodded in agreement. "I suppose we do," she said, then turned to look at the two children. "But weren't you two going to practice the channelling of your powers into your weapons, too?"

Hotaru nodded. "Indeed, we were." Then she frowned. "But I don't know the way, so, we'll have to ask Crast..."

The air grew chilly and all positive emotions were whisked away in an instant, as Crast the Repulsive appeared besides the group out of the blue. "You called?" he sneered, obviously annoyed at having to help them find their way. Again.

Hotaru frowned and sighed. "Yes, we did..." She just wished she had suggested that when they had already left the room, because the two patients could definitely do without Crast's presence.

"Serves those two right for getting on my nerves," the Repulsive spat, guessing Hotaru's thoughts. Before anybody could say anything, the monster continued: "And I know what you want. You're too stupid to find the simulation chamber yourself, and need my help. Well, fine, amuse yourself, idiots."

Crast blinked, and the two disguised Saurians and the Senshi of Ruin were warped away from the medical wing, only to wind up in an entirely different room. Thankfully for them, Crast had decided not to come with them to it. The room was entirely empty and pure white. There were no glyphs or machines, nothing. It was hard to see if there were even walls or not, since everything was so white.

Hotaru looked around, her eyes wide. "Whoa. Empty endless white space... This reminds me of several movies..." She muttered.

"It gives me chills," Traveller muttered, looking around uneasily. "Are we even in the right room? Perhaps Crast tricked us."

"Only one way to find out…" Ignika said. "If I remember the simulation chamber on Voya well, it looked like this when non-active, too… And Master Angonce said it works by voice-control, so, let's give it a try…" The Child of Life took a deep breath and said then, very clearly: "I want a simulation of a Saurian for Sailor Saturn to practice against, in wide open plains."

A low humming sound filled the room, and the scenery began to blur. The white seemed to literally melt away, replaced by grand plains of grass, seemingly stretched out endlessly. There were even moving clouds, wind and warm sunrays. A long with the plains, a normal Saurian appeared, with the plain green coloured scale and skin, powerless, for Ignika had failed to specify what kind of Saurian he wanted.

"Ah, so we see how it works." Hotaru smiled. She tilted her head and observed the Saurian curiously. He was just standing there, being only a simulation and not commanded to attack yet. "What kind of a Saurian is this?" She asked, confused, since she, unlike, Ignika couldn't remember all the powers by heart.

"Powerless," Ignika explained. "I didn't specify it enough, I think. This is how our race looked before the Great Beings came."

"Oh. I see. Let me try to control this room now..." Hotaru said and pointed at the Saurian. "Remove this simulated Saurian." The Saurian vanished in thin air and Hotaru nodded, smiling. "Create new simulation of a Saurian, power choice at random."

Another Saurian appeared quickly, and Ignika studied the simulation carefully. It was a sword user, with ash grey and dark red scales and skin. "It's a Saurian of Magma," he said, somewhat amused by the random coincidence.

Hotaru bowed her head, instantly reminded of her battle and the argument with Vulcan. "Umm... You think it's a good target for practice?" The Senshi of Ruin asked Ignika, hoping he will say no.

"Yes, I'd say it's perfect," the white-haired boy replied, unaware of Hotaru's reluctance. "Saurians of Magma are extremely powerful, close to our level of power, Hotaru-chan. Having this new technique of yours clash with a Saurian of this power will immediately give you an idea of how it would work in a hard battle."

Hotaru sighed. "Traveller, what do you think?" She asked Ignika's older sister.

"I have to agree with Ignika here, Hotaru-chan," the Saurian of Teleportation replied. "A clash with a Saurian of Magma would show you what the results would be if you clashed with an opponent of great strength using your new technique. And that's what we want, is it not? Teach you how to use this new attack against powerful opponents."

Hotaru looked at the simulation, standing still like a dummy, its eyes absolutely empty. She couldn't help but sigh. She couldn't do it... Not after what happened with Vulcan... However... She couldn't let this personal reason become a problem, now could she? What if she has to fight a different Saurian of Magma sometime in the future? Will she be unable to fight then, too?

Hotaru shook her head. She couldn't let that happen. Readying her glaive, she said: "Command now, Ignika."

Ignika nodded and commanded the simulation to counter Hotaru's charged swing with her Silence Glaive with a charged swing of its own sword. "And one more thing," the Child of Life decided. "I want the scenery to change to a normal street of Hotaru's city." The simulation did as requested, and soon enough the group found themselves standing in a perfect replica of one of Tokyo's streets, thought it was empty aside from the Saurian simulation and themselves. Ignika looked at Hotaru. "This is so that we can see what such a clash would have for effect on your city, Hotaru."

Hotaru nodded. Remembering her training from earlier, she charged her powers and directed them into the glaive. Then, with one powerful swing, she released it. The simulation reacted swift and efficient, its blade glowing with simulated magma power, and the glaive and sword clashed. How it was even possible that an illusion could be tangible, Hotaru didn't know, and she didn't care, for she quickly found out that everything about this exercise felt like the real thing.

The two powered weapons struggled for supremacy, each trying to let the power it was imbued with to overwhelm the other. The force emanating from the locked weapons shattered the street the two combatants were standing on, broke the windows of the surrounding houses and cracked the walls, but they did not collapse. Finally the force of Ruin seemed to prevail and Hotaru could complete her swing, slicing the sword of her simulated opponent in half and smiting him down with the element of Silence. Before her eyes, he was disintegrated.

Hotaru looked at the now nonexistent illusion, breathing heavily. Could she really have defeated Vulcan with just one strike like this? She looked around her. "Well..." She said as she observed the damage. "It did work, but one more such strike, and the street would collapse..."

"I suppose," Ignika replied, scratching his chin thoughtfully. "But what would have happened if you had used your normal Silence Glaive Surprise?"

Hotaru slowly nodded. "Indeed..." She looked at the damaged houses again. "I need to figure out a way that isn't a one-time strike."

"Yes, but remember, this was just a result of a clash of powers," the Child of Life explained. "If such a thing does not happen, there won't be damage like this. You know that from our practice before. This way of fighting only goes where you want it to, but when clashes like these happen, the power wants to be unleashed, but its path is interfered with by your opponent."

"I see..." Hotaru said. "But doesn't that mean they'll always try to interfere like that?"

"Ah, but not all Saurians can use this technique, only those that have elemental powers and know this strategy," Ignika replied with a happy smile.

Hotaru smiled back. "Okay then... Well, that means I can be pretty sure to overpower any Saurian with my strike, right?"

Her two Saurian companions nodded in confirmation. "Though be careful, Hotaru-chan," Traveller added, with a tone of warning in her voice. "Even if they can't use this technique, they can still feel and sense the power in your weapon. They won't stand around still waiting for you to hit them, they'll try to keep their distance."

"Though, as you know, a direct hit is not necessary," Ignika added. "But it is more effective, however."

"Well, let's try it out, shall we? Against a weaker Saurian." Hotaru suggested.

Her Saurian friend smiled, nodded, and summoned another simulation.

* * *

**Next chapter: Spies, Senshi and Saurians!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: I'm glad you enjoyed Hotaru's new attack, as well as her bond with Ignika. It always makes me feel fuzzy and warm. ^^ As for Ignika's symbiosis partner, or even if he'll have one, wait and see! =p Thanks for the review!

Lucia Sennen: I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter. Updates are done every sunday. Thanks for the review!


	94. Spies, Senshi and Saurians

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**94. Spies, Senshi and Saurians**

It had been a reasonably calm day so far in Minako's sunny house, the peace and quiet only being disturbed by Nightmare's brand new heavy metal CD blasting out of the speakers of Minako's stereo installation. The Saurian girl was positively addicted, banging along with her head to the music and singing the lyrics of a language she couldn't even understand. Even Minako's English wasn't good enough to help the Saurian girl understand everything, but it mattered little to the Saurian of Fear.

The two sisters had just had their lunch, and the noon had been set in. The weather outside was nice, and one could only listen to the same CD so many times, no matter how great. So, Nightmare was bored. She longed to go outside, but she and her onee-chan had already sparred that day early in the morning, and there was no way she would be able to convince the blonde to spar again. Then, suddenly, out of the blue, she got another idea.

"Onee-chan," she began, gaining Minako, who was sitting in the couch reading a gossip magazine, her attention. "I want to go see Gravitas."

"Hmm? What did you say?" Minako said, looking up at her and taking one of the tiny headphones she had in her ears off. Constantly listening to the same metal CD going over and over and over again got to her nerves, so she solved the problem easily: put her favourite j-pop on the CD player.

"I want to go see Gravitas," Nightmare repeated, a bit annoyed her sister had shut out the heavenly metal music.

"Sure thing." Minako smiled. "Why, though?"

Nightmare put her hands on her hips. "I'm her sister, do I need a reason?" she asked, an eyebrow raised as she glowered playfully at her adopted sister. Then she grinned. "Though to be honest, I want to make her listen to his heavy metal music! I think she'll like it."

Minako smiled and shook her head. "I see. Well, dunno if Gravitas would like it, but she'll definitely be interested. She had quite a thoughtful expression during the concert..."

"This music is heavy, like her element, how can she not like it?" Nightmare asked, waving away the possibility of dislike with a discarding hand-motion. She looked at Minako expectantly. "So what do I need to do in order to go outside and walk to Gravitas, onee-chan? Put on those 'shoes' again?"

Minako chuckled. "Yep. Your normal ones, that is. Heels are for the dress, sport shoes are for volleyball hall."

The Saurian of Fear nodded. "Right. I'll get to it right away. Will you put my 'see dee' in that… 'purse' of yours so it's easier to carry?"

"Sure thing, imouto-chan!" Minako smiled and turned her CD player off. "I'll take the CD player, too, just in case." Nightmare nodded and then ran off to put on her shoes in the hall, excited and glad to go outside and at the prospect of seeing her sister again.

Minako quickly put her things in the purse, combed her hair, put on some lipgloss, smiled at her reflection in the mirror, spent a few minutes looking for her cell phone, then some more trying to locate the keys... All in all, it took her half an hour to join Nightmare in the hall. The Saurian of Fear glared at her.

"You wouldn't be able to hurry it up even if the world was coming to an end, onee-chan!" the black-haired girl accused her older sister.

"Well, you wouldn't want the house to be left open for all kinds of thieves to come and take our stuff while we're gone, right?" Minako countered. "'Cause I need to lock the house to prevent that."

"You just need those 'keys' for that! It doesn't take half an hour," Nightmare retorted. She grabbed Minako by the wrist and dragged her out of the hall to the waiting world outside. "Now let's go, I need you to show me which way it is, onee-chan!"

Minako couldn't help but let herself be dragged out of the house, and barely manage to shake Nightmare off to lock the door.

Neither of the two sisters were aware that they were being watched. Across the street there stood another house, with a large bushy hedge around it. The wind came towards it, so Nightmare could not pick up scents from that direction. If she had, she may have been able to faintly pick up the scent of perfume and sweat. But she didn't, and she was way too excited about seeing Gravitas to notice the pair of binoculars sticking out from between the leaves watching her every move.

"So, see anything, Rumi-chan?" Chiara whispered, hidden in the hedge, to the person with binoculars.

"Nuh-uh." Rumiko said, shaking her head. "These sunglasses make it impossible to look through binoculars."

Miyuki, who was also next to them hidden in the hedge, sweatdropped. "Why don't you take them off then?"

"Can't! My sight is -5!" Rumiko shot back.

Chiara felt a vein popping on her forehead. "If so then WHY DID YOU TAKE THE GODDAMN BINOCULARS?" She whispered loudly, glaring at her.

"'Cause I like binoculars." Rumiko said innocently, causing both her companions to facepalm.

"Gimme that." Miyuki snatched the binoculars from Rumi's hands and looked through them. "Damn, they're on the other end of the street already."

"Jeez..." Chiara hissed. "Let's get outta here." She tried to get out, but found herself tangled in the dense vegetation. Grumbling all the while, the volleyball girl began to struggle, earning her a lot of scratches and some tears in her clothes, and her hair was a mess. Finally she got loose enough, only to stumble into Rumiko, who stumbled into Miyuki. The three girls lost their balance and fell through the hedge on a big helpless heap.

That was just at the moment when the house owner's pug dog decided to come out of the house. Seeing three invaders at once, it began to bark loudly, and the house owner didn't take long to appear.

"WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING HERE?" The eccentric old man didn't even give the girls a chance to explain anything and commanded: "GET OUT OF MY PROPERTY!" His command was followed immediately, the girls untangling themselves, getting up and storming off with the tail between the legs, figuratively.

Down the street, Nightmare perked up and glanced around and looked around, but saw nothing. "Did you hear anything, onee-chan?"

"Nope." Minako smiled. "Anyway, to get to Ami's house, we'll need to cross that road and turn left, then walk down the street, cross another road, turn right, and we're there." She said cheerfully.

Glancing back once more and again seeing nothing, Nightmare shrugged it off, and then turned to her sister and nodded with a smile. "Alright, onee-chan, let's go."

* * *

"So, this is the house where Ami lives." Minako said as they approached the twenty storey high apartment block. Nightmare looked around, eyes wide.

"That's a big house," she said.

"Nah, there are some houses much bigger than that." Minako smiled and came to the door, followed by Nightmare. She studied the intercom on the door for a few seconds, then called Ami's apartment.

"Yes?" Ami's voice came through the intercom.

Nightmare reacted slightly started when she heard Ami's voice come out of the small box, but recovered quickly. It was just like the telephone, nothing special. "I want to see my sister!" she shouted at the box. Having only used the telephone once before, the Saurian of Fear did not know shouting was not necessary.

"Hush, Nightmare." Minako silenced the Saurian. "Anyways, Ami, open up."

"Mmm-hmm. Come in, Minako-chan, Nightmare." Ami said, then a beeping sound was heard and Minako opened the door, letting Nightmare come in. The Saurian girl looked around. It was her first time in an apartment block. That one time where she had fought inside a dark one with Minako during Avsa's invasion didn't count. It looked nothing like Minako's house.

"There's not even furniture in here," Nightmare muttered softly.

"That's 'cause it's the entrance hall." Minako explained. "Nothing but the mailboxes here. To get to Ami's apartment, we need to take the elevator to the 10th floor."

"The what?"

"The elevator." Minako repeated. "Basically, it's a metal box with buttons that takes us to any floor we want. I don't feel like walking all the way up." With those words, the Senshi pushed the elevator button and waited for it to arrive.

"Looks kind of small in there," Nightmare said once the elevator arrived. It was good she was used to human contraptions by now. Had this been the first day of her stay in this world, no way in the world would she go into that.

"Well, it's meant only for taking a few people to different floors." Minako said as they entered the elevator. She pushed the button, the door closed and soon they arrived to the 10th floor. Nightmare quickly ran out of the elevator, slightly shaken. It wasn't bad or terrifying, but she hated small spaces that made your stomach feel weird, like elevators. As she looked down the hall, all she could see was doors.

"Which one do we have to take?"

"This one!" Minako smiled and came to the door with the number "101" and a tablet that said "Mizuno". She rang the doorbell. That, Nightmare knew. She'd had previous experiences herself with doorbells. The Saurian girl impatiently tapped her foot. She wanted to see her sister!

Soon enough, Ami opened the door. "Good to see you two. Come in, girls." The blue-haired girl welcomed her guests. The Saurian girl quickly obeyed and followed the blue haired Senshi inside. Nightmare observed Ami quietly. She didn't really know the Senshi that well. Heck, aside from Minako, she barely knew any of the Senshi well. But this was the girl that Gravitas felt comfortable and at ease with, so she made herself swear to try and be nice.

"Where's my sister?" she asked, trying to sound kind and normal.

"She's in the living room, reading." Ami replied. "Take off your shoes, Nightmare, when you come into someone's home." She said and went back to the living room. The Saurian glanced at her adopted sister.

"Yep, she's right." Minako smiled. She took off her own shoes and waited for Nightmare to do so, so they could follow Ami as well. Shrugging, the Saurian of Fear did as requested. They went through the door Ami had taken, arriving in the living room. Gravitas was sitting in the couch, a dictionary Japanese – Latin on her lap, which she was reading attentively, page by page.

"Hello, Gravitas." Minako greeted the aloof Saurian. Then looked over her shoulder at the book. "Oooh, Latin. Though why do you read a dictionary?" She asked in her sunny tone.

"It's a book," the silver-haired girl replied, turning a page. "Are books not meant to be read?" She put a paper between the pages to be able to find where she left off, then closed the book and put it aside. She rose to her feet and made a polite bow before Nightmare and Minako. "Hello sister. And you too, 'sister'," she then greeted, her voice emotionless as always.

Nightmare went over to her sister by blood and hugged her tightly. "It's good to see you, my sister. Are you feeling well?" She looked up in Gravitas' emotionless eyes and smiled slightly. Her older sister nodded curtly.

"I am feeling well," she replied. "Ami said I am making progress in my 'square roots' and other harder mathematical functions."

Minako's eyes widened. "Cool! Ami, seriously, how come you want to be a doctor, and not a teacher?" She asked her blue-haired friend.

The said friend chuckled. "It's not really my merit. Gravitas did a lot of studies herself, and she has an amazing mind and thirst for knowledge..." She said, her eyes shining proudly.

"I don't really get it, but I'm glad you're doing well, my sister," Nightmare replied. She hugged Gravitas a bit tighter, stroking her back. Then she let go, her eyes shining. "I have something I want to share with you, sister! Some girl at the volleyball introduced me to some new music, much better than the music at the concert! I want you to hear it, too! I'm sure you'll like it! It's heavy, like your element!"

"Music?" Gravitas slowly repeated. She seemed a bit bewildered by Nightmare's rapid talking, as if she was still processing all that had been said to her.

"Heh... A girl from my volleyball club introduced Nightmare to Heavy Metal, and now she's addicted." Minako rolled her eyes.

"Heavy metal?" Gravitas repeated slowly. She looked confusedly at Ami. "What does iron and weight have to do with music?" The Saurian of Gravity didn't understand. It made little sense, it wasn't logical.

Ami smiled. "Gravitas, it is just a name of a music genre. Don't let it confuse you, names of music genres always seem to have a meaning, while in reality they just show a trait of a style." She explained. "What Traveller played was Classical, but there are also such genres Rock, Hard Rock, Pop, Reggie, Country... Metal, too."

Her symbiosis partner seemed to understand, and nodded. She looked at Nightmare expectantly, and the younger girl understood that Gravitas wanted her to let her listen to this music. Smiling, Nightmare said to Minako: "Onee-chan, give me the 'see dee'!"

"Sure." Her sister smiled and looked through her purse. "Now, where'd I put it..." After a minute of rummaging through the purse's contents, Minako found the CD. "Here you go." Nightmare gladly accepted it, then turned to Ami:

"Hey, ehm… whatever the heck I can call you, do you have a stereo installation for this to play on?"

"Just Ami for you." The blue-haired girl smiled. "And, unfortunately, I don't."

Nightmare sighed and scratched her head, then extended her hand without looking at Minako. "Onee-chan, the 'see dee' player, please."

Minako shrugged. "You're kinda commanding, you know." Nevertheless, she gave her sister the player.

"I am?" the Saurian of Fear wanted to know, not looking up from where she was putting the CD in the player. Gravitas, meanwhile, was staring strangely at the CD case of the '7 Sinners' album, the strange, raw drawing of the metal knives appearing weird and somewhat unsettling to the Saurian of Gravity. At least it would be, if she truly felt anything at all.

"Yes, you are. That sounded like an order." Minako explained.

"I said please!" Nightmare objected, as she clasped the CD player close and plugged the earphones into her natural sister's ears. She calmly explained how it worked, and assured Gravitas that it wouldn't hurt or do anything bad. It would just let her listen to music. Smiling, Nightmare pressed the play button, allowing her sister to begin listening.

"So you did. But hey, the way you phrased it and the tone still made it commanding. Like..." Minako cleared her throat, turned her side to Nightmare, and held out her hand just like she did: "Nightmare, the dictionary, please." She said, fully copying her sister's tone.

"Take it yourself, Onee-chan," her younger sister muttered absentmindedly, too busy observing Gravitas, who was sitting perfectly still, listening to the heavy metal booming in her ears. "I'm busy watching Gravitas."

Minako sighed, seeing that her effort to teach a lesson completely failed. "Ami-chan, teach me how to teach!" She pleaded.

Her blue-haired friend chuckled. "Well, you showed Nightmare's behaviour pretty well, but the timing was bad." Then she smiled at the blonde. "Well, how about some tea while they're busy?"

"Sure!" Minako said, following her friend to the kitchen.

* * *

Across the street, three girls were huddled together behind an advertisement board, looking at the entrance of the apartment block wishfully. They couldn't follow the object of their spying inside, because there were a few problems.

"Did you see which bell they rang, Miyuki?" Chiara whispered at her team coach, who was the current holder of the binoculars and had watched the entire spectacle at the door of the building with interest. Though she hadn't noticed anything suspicious either.

"Nope, too far away," Miyuki replied, shaking her head.

The black-haired girl sighed. "Jeez, this is just not fun."

"You don't say." Rumiko said, touching one of the many tears in her shirt from escaping the hedge. She was sad, 'cause she couldn't buy herself a new one till the end of the month, when her grandfather would send her money, and she didn't have that much clothes to begin with. "Whose idea was it to hide in the hedge, anyway?"

Miyuki and Rumiko both glared at Chiara. The said girl looked back at them. "What?"

"Oh nothing, just ages to untangle all the bits of branches from my hair." The long-haired team captain complained.

"You should've braided it." Chiara sighed. "Anyway, anybody noticed anything suspicious?"

Her two companions shook their heads. "Nope," Rumiko answered with a shrug. "I'm beginning to think that you're just seeing things, Chiara. Kira-chan acted perfectly normal, if a bit excited."

Chiara sighed again. "Perhaps I am, but that doesn't take away the strangeness of her behaviour and way of talking about things!"

"Well, so far, we haven't seen much proof that backs up your claims either, Chiara," Miyuki replied. "What do we do now? We can't follow them inside the apartment. We don't even know which one they went to."

"Wait, I guess." Chiara frowned. It seemed that all her suspicions were unfounded, but there still was something odd about Kira!

* * *

"I… think I like it," Gravitas said slowly after she had listened to a few of the songs on the CD. Grinning wide from ear to ear, Nightmare pushed the pause button and unplugged her sister's ears. The Saurian of Gravity, in return, merely turned her head and looked passively at her sister, unsure if she was supposed to say anything here.

"That's great! I knew you would!" the Saurian of Fear exclaimed, grinning somewhat evilly. "Great minds think alike, as is proven!" She turned her head over her shoulder and shouted at the kitchen door: "Onee-chan, Gravitas likes it! I told you she would!"

"That's great!" Minako shouted back, before coming to the living room as well. "What exactly do you like about it, Gravitas?" She asked her 'sister'.

"It's… heavy?" Gravitas tried, sounding uncaring. The truth was she wasn't sure what to say at all here. She just liked it, for no particular reason. Maybe she liked it because Nightmare did and wanted her to like it? Maybe she just liked the music, or the voice of the singer? Fact was that not even Gravitas herself knew, and she wished Ami was here to help her out of this situation.

"Heh, well, okay." Minako shrugged and plumped herself down next to her. However, she didn't feel like letting Gravitas off the hook yet. "What is your favourite song from this album?"

Gravitas thought for a moment, then said monotonously: "Far in the future."

"Why?" Minako pried further.

"Nice text, and it sounds dark," the Saurian girl shrugged. Why all these questions, she wondered? Wasn't it enough that she liked this kind of music? Nobody had asked her what part of Michiru and Haruka's concert she had liked the most, so why did it suddenly matter here? She didn't understand.

Minako, unaware of her wondering, raised both eyebrows. "Ah, so you know English? When did you learn that?" She asked curiously.

"I know a bit," Gravitas admitted. "Ami taught me, so I could read more books about maths."

Hearing this, Nightmare immediately jumped to her feet and rushed of towards the kitchen, were Ami was still residing. She found the blue-haired Senshi cleaning up her and Minako's teacups, and rushed towards her, grabbing her by the collar and shaking her pleadingly.

"Teach me English! Teach me English, please!" the Saurian girl in disguise begged.

"I- um- stop shaking me!" Ami said, startled by Nightmare's sudden entrance and request. The Saurian of Fear headed the request, and instead dropped on her knees before the Senshi, grabbing her by the bottom of her shirt. Nightmare looked up pleadingly at the Senshi of Mercury. In normal circumstances, there was no way the proud Saurian girl would drop to her knees, but knowing English so she could understand the lyrics of her heavy metal CD was very important to her, and she thought Ami wouldn't say yes if she asked normally.

"Teach me English, please!" she repeated her earlier request. "So I can understand the text of my CD! Please!"

"N-Nightmare..." Ami said, staring at the girl begging her with wide eyes. "N-no need to kneel... Of course I can teach you."

Nightmare's facial expression became a surprised frown. "You can?"

"Of course. English is not that hard of a language..." Ami replied. "Or I could simply translate the songs for you."

"So will you teach me then, if it's not difficult?" Nightmare asked, sounding hopeful. She did her best 'cute innocent look' she could muster, but failed to be very convincing, in fact, she looked scary like that, for it was so unlike her.

"Uhh..." Ami said, kind of unsettled by the faked cuteness. "Uhm, of course, but, it's only easy compared to other languages... And please stop looking at me like that."

Nightmare's smile dropped and she cursed. "It always works when onee-chan does it…"

Ami shook her head, smiling at Nightmare. "It sure does, however, you don't need that. It's too unlike you, and it looks kind of scary because of it."

The Saurian of Fear smiled triumphantly and got to her feet. "Aha! Finally somebody who realises I am not cute! Can you tell this to onee-chan, too? She may actually listen to you, because she insists I'm cute. And I'm not."

"Actually, you are." Ami tried to explain. "In some aspects. But not when you're faking it. Fake emotions never have the right effect, and most likely will cause the absolutely opposite one."

Nightmare bonked her head against the wall. "I. Am. Not. Cute!" she said, one word per bonk. Just then, Gravitas entered the room, frowned at her sister's antics, then ignored them and went over to Ami.

"I want more books to read," she announced in her usual voice. "That 'dictionary' is interesting, but I need more books on these 'square roots' and 'exponents'. Can we go to the library?"

Ami smiled at her. "Yes, we could." She then frowned at Nightmare. "Does your sister do that often?" She asked her symbiosis partner.

"Sometimes, and when she's called cute, apparently," Gravitas replied impassively. "I have stopped paying notice to it, she keeps doing it even when I tell her not to since it is dumb to hurt yourself. But she insists." The Saurian of Gravity walked over to her younger sister and pulled her in an awkward hug. "It's okay, sister, I know you are not cute."

Nightmare smiled, surprised and startled by Gravitas' sudden hug, but liking it nonetheless. She purred softly and returned the embrace. "Sister…" she whispered affectionately. Then she suddenly wacked Gravitas on the head playfully. "I am not dumb!"

"I'm sure you aren't." Ami said to the Saurian. "But what you're doing is. Really, why hurt yourself like this?"

The Saurian of Fear rolled her eyes. "It barely hurts. I have stronger bones than you do, brainia- I mean, Ami. I don't even feel it."

"Well... At least, don't do it in the public then." Ami reluctantly said. "Anyway, would you like to come to the library with us, Nightmare? I could pick an English textbook for you there." She offered, smiling.

"What's a library?" she asked, not knowing the word. She glanced at Minako, who had packed the CD and the player back in her purse and now came over to join them in the kitchen.

"A library is a place with a lot of books, where one can borrow them for some time." Minako explained, smiling. "Why, we're going to a library?"

Ami nodded at her friend. "Yep. Gravitas wants more books on Maths, and Nightmare needs an English textbook."

Minako put a hand on her hip and a finger of her other hand on her lips, thoughtfully. Then she got an idea and smiled brightly at Ami. "Let's take them to the park while we're at it! Then we can relax in the sun, maybe have some ice cream, too!"

"I think it's a lovely idea, Minako-chan!" Ami smiled happily. "How about it, Nightmare, Gravitas?" She turned to the two Saurians.

The two Saurians sisters shared a look, then nodded after a few moments of silence. "Why not? Beats sitting inside all the time. The sun's shining, so by all means, we actually should be outside," Nightmare said with a seemingly careless shrug. But inside she was delighted by the idea of spending some time outside, in the sun and wind surrounded by green.

"Reading in the open air or inside, it matters little to me, both are good," Gravitas added. "And my sister is right, it is much too good weather to stay locked inside. Can I take my dictionary with me to read?"

"Ehm... Reading a dictionary looks weird." Minako said. "Dictionaries are for looking up words you don't know or don't remember, not for reading. Why don't you take a different book instead?"

"I've read them all already…" Gravitas answered slowly, not understanding what was wrong with reading a dictionary. It was a book. Books were meant to be read, weren't they?

Ami smiled. "Well, why don't you read one of those books we'll borrow? Just, people will find it weird if you're reading a dictionary..."

Gravitas remained silent for a while, before finally letting out a sigh and giving in. "Fine."

"Okay, let's go then!" Minako smiled and happily went out of the kitchen, followed by Ami, who needed to take her purse and put the library pass in it. Nightmare smiled at her sisters, took her by the hand and pulled her along, following the two Senshi out of the kitchen, to the waiting outside world.

* * *

Across the street, Chiara gasped as she noticed somebody coming out of the apartment block, and the black-haired girl hurriedly snatched the binoculars from Miyuki to observe. "Aha! Kira and Minako had been joined by a blue-haired girl and a silver-haired girl!" She exclaimed, triumphing that something finally happened. "I wonder who they are..."

"Maybe they're just friends, Chiara," Miyuki muttered. "I think I remember seeing that blue haired girl once during a match, one of Minako's friends, I believe."

"And maybe that other girl is Kira-chan's sister?" Rumiko suggested.

Chiara sighed. "And why would that sister live at that girl's house?" She asked. "Come on, it's suspicious!"

"Who said she lives there?" Miyuki raised her eyebrow.

"But that's obvious!" Chiara exclaimed. "She isn't carrying a purse, and her pants have no pockets! What kind of a person leaves home and visits friends without having keys and the cell phone with them?"

"Aren't you grasping at straws here?" Miyuki demanded, crossing her arms and looking sternly at Chiara. "It's as if you _want_ Kira and these new girls to be suspicious. Maybe that girl just forgot them, or put her stuff in the blue haired girl's purse, or in Minako's, for that matter."

Chiara sweatdropped. "And before she came to visit that bluenette, she carried her stuff in her hands? Come on, she lives with that girl!"

"And?" the trainer of the Volleyball team insisted, still not seeing anything wrong with it.

"And why would she live with someone who's not her family? Why..." Chiara stopped herself. This was indeed beginning to sound absurd. Why did she even decide that girl isn't a part of Kira's family? She could be a distant relative...

"Well, only one way to find out more!" Rumiko said excitedly. "They're going in the direction of the park, so let's follow them!"

"Sure..." Chiara sighed. She was beginning to doubt the whole idea.

* * *

About an hour and a half later, the group of four girls settled down on a bench in the park, close to the pond. It had taken them about twenty minutes to get from Ami's apartment to the library, where they had spent an hour. Gravitas would have liked to stay much longer, but Ami had known that Gravitas could spend the rest of her life in there, so she had to limit it. Nightmare had been amazed at first by seeing so many books in one place, but the novelty of that quickly wore off. The Saurian of Fear couldn't read very well, Minako had taught her a bit, but not enough to be fluent at it. So, she quickly wound up being bored. But because she saw how happy her sister by blood was in the great building, Nightmare had done her best to not complain. Gravitas being happy and showing it was worth a bit of boredom.

After that long hour, they had gone to where they were now, the park. Nightmare liked it here much more than in the library, or in the city for that matter. Green, clean air – compared to the city air – water and animals, what more could one wish for? She watched the ducks swimming on the pond and wondered how they tasted. She thought they'd taste great roasted over a fire. Gravitas wasn't paying attention, already with her nose in a book. This time, it was an encyclopaedia of history, showing every single date of the past few centuries and what had happened on it. It was like a dictionary for the historian, and both Minako and Ami had looked a bit helplessly at each other when Gravitas had picked that book. Reading that was little better than reading a dictionary, but they couldn't deny the Saurian of Gravity reading yet another book.

To Minako, the stay in the library hadn't been as boring as to Nightmare, since she quickly found the romance novels section. Of course, 90% of them were sickly sweet and fluffy romantic sappy novels for teenagers and housewives, but Minako knew a couple of good authors, and looked specifically for their books. She was delighted to find one she hadn't read yet, complete with author's comments, and it was a shame she couldn't borrow it because of the lack of library pass. Still, she was glad when the hour ended and they went to the park. Sun and fresh air suited her much more than the air-conditioned library.

Ami, on her part, enjoyed the trip to the library quite a lot. With all the events happening lately, none of her friends had time to simply go out and do something fun together. Despite the long time they had waited for Gravitas to pick books, Ami was happy to be in the park now. She had also picked a perfect textbook to teach Nightmare English.

Gravitas looked up from her book for a moment and looked at Ami, her face bearing a very tiny smile. "Do you like my sister?" she asked quietly. Nightmare didn't hear her, since she couldn't sit still much longer and went to the edge of the pond to observe the ducks from up close. Maybe she could even catch one!

Ami looked at her, surprised. "Yes, I do. Why do you ask?"

"You have never been out with her before," Gravitas replied monotonously with a shrug. She glanced briefly at Nightmare at the water's edge, before turning back to Ami, her face uncertain. "Am I… being a good sister now?"

"Yes, Gravitas. I think you are." Ami smiled. "You've really made amazing progress lately. As long as you understand why you do all those things."

The Saurian of Gravity turned to Minako, happy with Ami's answer but still uncertain. "Do you agree, 'sister'?"

Minako nodded certainly. "I do. You're beginning to open up, Gravitas." She smiled at her 'sister'. "I mean, come on, you actually tell us how you feel, how you like or dislike things!"

"Only because you tell me to do so," the disguised reptile replied tonelessly, opening her book again. "It still is confusing and makes little sense to me."

"Well... At least you do feel..." Ami said quietly, then smiled. "It's confusing, true, but feelings seldom make much sense. You can't explain most of them logically." Gravitas looked thoughtfully at her blue-haired friend, then slowly nodded in understanding.

"I… think I can understand that."

"That's great!" Minako said cheerfully. "So don't bother with finding explanations, and just feel!"

Gravitas nodded again. She was about to go back reading her book, when a breeze hit them, and the Saurian girl picked up something in the wind. She hid her surprise perfectly beneath her expressionless mask, and closed her book. "Can I go for a little walk?" she asked Ami, as politely and pleadingly as she could without sounding suspicious.

"Of course." Ami smiled. She almost wanted to add 'don't go too far', but what could possibly happen to a Saurian in a park? She couldn't get lost, since she could simply sniff her way back, and any kind of bad guy would be really sorry for touching her. So Ami didn't say anything.

"Thank you. Please keep an eye on Nightmare," Gravitas replied, and then she walked away calmly.

* * *

Hidden in the bushes not far away were the three spies, still hell-bent on figuring out Kira's secret, or if she even had one at all. Miyuki was becoming rather tired of it, since so far the entire day had been a complete waste of time, and hiding in another set of bushes was anything but fun. Rumiko was pouting that she didn't get the binoculars again, which Chiara was using at the moment to observe the group on the bench.

"Minako and the bluenette are talking to that silver-haired girl." Chiara stated. "She's reading some kind of book... Jeez, her face expression freaks me out. Completely emotionless."

Rumiko peaked over the bushes. "Hey, she's going away now. And what's Kira-chan doing?"

"She's by the pond... Gaah, stupid willow, I can't see her." Chiara answered, trying to figure out what the object of their spying was doing.

"So, basically, they're being perfectly normal," Miyuki concluded, annoyed. "Face it, Chiara, you were wrong."

"I guess..." The black-haired girl said reluctantly. Maybe she was indeed seeing things... Was it really that odd that Kira didn't know music and used the term 'mating'? Maybe she never had a radio and her autistic sister was a Biology geek!

"Oh look, there's Kira-chan," Rumiko said, pointing at the disguised Saurian that had appeared in their line of view. Miyuki came over to look as well. The youngest sister of Ignika was just sitting kneeled at the edge of the pond, trying to lure a duck close. It was normal, and nothing suspicious.

Suddenly, Miyuki and Chiara were grabbed by the back of their shirts and hoisted off the ground by hands with an iron grip. "Why are you three humans spying on _my_ sisters and my friend?" a cold, emotionless voice demanded, its tone harsh-edged, scary because of the lack of any feelings in it.

"N-n-no reason..." Chiara stuttered, staring at the girl wide-eyed and with fear. How could a 14-year-old girl lift them off the ground? Why was her voice so cold? 'Sisters' and 'friend'? Shouldn't that be the other way around? All those questions took a mere second to fly through her mind. Miyuki and Rumiko on their part wondered about the same things. Rumiko, though not held in Gravitas' iron grip, was too stunned and shocked to move.

Gravitas remained unconvinced. "You've been following us for a while now. I've noticed," she informed them coldly. "You're coming with me to my sister, 'sister' and Ami to explain what you're doing here." She glared harshly at Rumiko, the only one she wasn't holding. "Move," she commanded, nodding with her head at the bench where Ami and Minako sat, unsuspecting.

"Uhh... Uh-huh." Rumiko nodded and quickly got up on her feet. This girl was very scary... And inhumanly strong! Maybe Chiara was right after all?

Gravitas nodded and carried the two volleyball girls out of the bushes, herding Rumiko out in front of her. Her grip on the two girls didn't lessen in the slightest, and she called out to her friend, her sister and her adopted one: "Ami, sisters, we have company! These girls were looking at us! They may be spies from Zyglak!"

Minako's jaw dropped. "What the...? Rumi-chan? Chiara, Miyuki?" She rushed over to the Saurian of Gravity, before anybody had seen them or heard what she said. "Put them down this instant, Hiroko!"

From where she sat at the water's edge, Nightmare looked up to see what all the commotion was about. When she saw her sister holding three humans, three very familiar humans, a frown formed on her face and she came over to see what was going on. Gravitas was still holding the two girls in a strong grip, looking confusedly at Minako.

"They spied on us… Why let them go? They could be dangerous."

Before the blonde Senshi could say anything, Nightmare did for her: "Sister, it's alright, I know these girls. They're from the volleyball trainings… Though why they are here I have no clue."

"Oh," her aloof sister said quietly, promptly dropping the two girls on the ground unceremoniously. She bowed emotionlessly before them. "Sorry then," she said without any bit of feeling in her voice.

The three unfortunate spies just stared at the silver-haired girl with their mouth agape, still not over their shock.

"Ummm…" Minako said, trying to make the situation more or less normal. "Chiara, Miyuki, Rumiko, meet Hiroko. Hiroko Genkai."

"My older sister," Nightmare added, putting an arm around Gravitas and keeping her close. As she did so, she eyed her three teammates suspiciously. What where they doing here, anyway? Gravitas had said something about spying on them, but why?

"Um, well…" Miyuki said, remembering her manners and getting on her feet. "My name is Miyuki Furuhara, and these are my teammates, Chiara and Rumiko. Pleased to meet you." She bowed to the silver-haired girl, as did her two friends.

Gravitas looked at them briefly, before turning to Ami. "They were spying on us. I know what I saw, they've been following us since we left your house."

"They were?" Ami asked, surprised. "Why?" She turned to the three volleyball girls.

"Ehm…" Miyuki and Rumiko stammered, looking pointedly at Chiara, who tried to pretend she didn't notice. After a few moments of such hesitation and unwillingness to answer, Gravitas lost her patience. She did not like strangers spying on her, her family and her friend, even if her sisters did know these girls.

"Well?" she hissed coldly.

"It's just…" Chiara finally said, her eyes downcast. "I found some things about Kira's behaviour… Strange, and not entirely normal, so… well… We thought it was suspicious, and…" Chiara fell silent, ashamed.

Miyuki sighed and finished for her: "Basically, Chiara thought that by spying, we'd find more suspicious things. She convinced us."

Rumiko nodded and readjusted her glasses. "We thought you could be an alien in disguise…" She said quietly.

A long, painful silence fell, and the two pairs of Saurian and Senshi swallowed hard inaudibly. Rumiko guessed very near the mark though she little knew it. Minako and Ami shared glances, unsure of what to do or say. Gravitas was slightly worried about their cover but remained emotionless about the rest. Nightmare, however, felt her blood boiling. Her face had an absolutely livid expression, not quite unlike that time she had erupted at Minako.

"You. What?" she snarled softly, glaring dangerously at her three 'teammates'.

"Uhm… uh…" Chiara did a couple of steps back, scared and not sure how to react to the question.

Nightmare was speechless. Anger surged through her veins, and she had her hands clenched into fists, her whole body shaking with the furious feeling that was welling up in her chest. But that was only a cover for the real thing she was feeling: hurt. Pure, emotional hurt. Against her wishes, tears began to well up in the corners of her eyes. To everyone's surprise, her eruption of anger was not directed at the three spies, but at the Senshi of Love. Nightmare's hand lashed out faster than Minako could react, and she was slapped harshly on the cheek by the disguised Saurian of Fear.

"You… BASTARD!" she shouted at Minako, her voice and body shaking with anger. "GIVE THEM A CHANCE, YOU SAID! NOBODY HOLDS PREJUDICE AGAINST YOU HERE, YOU SAID!" She slapped the completely astonished Minako again, this time on the other cheek. "I DID, AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS? I… I HATE YOU, LOVE TWIT!"

And before anybody could say anything, Nightmare had turned around and stormed off.

Minako said nothing, just looked into her friends' eyes, accusingly and painfully, then ran off to catch up with Nightmare. Gravitas looked helplessly at Ami, unsure of what to do. Her sister was hurt and angry, that was obvious, but how should she react? She didn't know, but she wanted to know very badly. She wanted to be a good sister. "I go after her, too?" she asked innocently, naively of her blue-haired friend.

"I'm not sure…" Ami said. "Kira needs comfort now, true, but it's indeed Minako who talked her into volleyball in the first place, so… I think it's best to leave them alone to figure it all out." She concluded.

"But… they're my sisters…" 'Hiroko' quietly objected, uncertain. "I want to be… a good sister for them."

"Yes, but… It's kind of a personal issue, and not taking part in it won't make you a bad sister, Hiroko." Ami explained patiently. "Besides, Kira and Minako might both try to get you to support their opinion, and if you do, it'll only lead to the escalation of the conflict. So it's best to leave them alone."

Gravitas bowed her head and thought for a moment. Then she took Ami's hand and gently pulled her along. "Let's go home and wait for news there then. I can continue reading my dictionary then, too." The Saurian girl turned around and glared at the spies. "You hurt my sister. I don't like you."

"Umm… Sorry?" Chiara said. This girl was strange, very weird, but Miyuki, Chiara and Rumiko remembered that Kira's sister Hiroko was heavily autistic. And perhaps this blue-haired girl was a caretaker or something…

"Hiroko, let's go home." Ami urged her sister, then turned to say goodbye to the spies. "Goodbye, Miyuki-san, Chiara-san and Rumiko-san." Ami bowed. "I'm Ami Mizuno, by the way. Ja ne." She waved at them and left, pulling Gravitas along. The Saurian of Gravity wanted to protest, but through their bond felt Ami's urge to remain quiet, and so she did.

The three spy girls watched the bluenette and the silverette go. After a few minutes of heavy silence, Rumiko spoke up:

"You know… Takako was right. Nothing good came out of this situation…"

Her friends couldn't do anything but agree in silence.

* * *

**Next chapter: Regrets and truths!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Well, as you have seen, the volleyball girls didn't get themselves killed, yet. =p Hotaru is indeed getting stronger, but so are the other Senshi. Having Saurian teachers can do wonders. ;) Thanks for the review!

Lucia Sennen: Well, here's your chapter with Minako and Nightmare in it. ^^ I hope you liked it, thanks for the review!

Rizwan Fariz: Vulcan's family can of course visit him whenever they want, now that he's recovering. But if they'll join the Senshi? Wait and see. ;) Thanks for the review!


	95. Regrets and truths

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**95. Regrets and truths**

Nightmare was sitting on a branch of a tree, hidden amongst the leaves, her knees pulled up to her chest and her arms wrapped around them, as she quietly cried. She hated being weak, she hated showing this weakness, and she hated getting emotional. But she couldn't help it. She was hurt. She had trusted her 'onee-chan' when she had told her that here, she could start anew and have friends. Yeah right, as if. Look what happened. As soon as she tried to be nice, what do they do? Start spying on her! She clenched her fists in anger and buried her face in her arms to hide her tears. The unhappy girl cursed the day she ever started listening to the blonde Senshi of Love.

Minako ran through the park, desperately glancing around, trying to find her little sister. She had almost run past the tree where Nightmare resided, but as she did, something told her to stop. A feeling, a whispering voice in her head. So Minako froze in her tracks, and looked up.

"Nightmare!" She called out, both relieved for finding her imouto-chan, and hurt that things turned out like this. The Saurian girl was startled for a moment, briefly glanced down at her so-called friend, before burying her face in her arms again, saying nothing.

"Nightmare… It's not… It's not my fault! And not your fault, either!" Minako cried out to her. "Imouto-chan, come down, it's not what you think it is!"

"Go away, love bitch!" Nightmare snarled angrily, looking down at Minako again, revealing her reddened, tear-stained face. "You and your fucking great ides! No prejudice against, yeah right! I can't believe I was stupid enough to follow you in this retarded shitty idea!"

"But they weren't prejudiced!" Minako tried to explain. "They were curious! They saw some strange things and wondered what they meant!"

"They still didn't trust me!" the disguised reptile shot back, not having any of it.

"Takako did!" Minako shouted. "These four are friends, they always hang out together! But you don't see her here. And the other girls didn't mean to hurt you! Rumiko is just into mysterious things, and Miyuki likes being in charge! Chiara is simply overprotective! It's not your fault!"

"They spied on me, love twit," Nightmare shot back. "Gravitas told us: they've been following us since we left Ami's house, probably from before that! I don't care what you say, if that's not distrust, nothing is! They took my trust and my attempts to be nice and shat on it, and now I'm through with it! Stick your volleyball where the sun never shines, airhead!"

"It's not distrust!" Minako tried to counter. "It's just plain curiosity! And stop swearing!" She shouted, getting into a strict older sister mode.

"YOU DON'T FOLLOW SOMEBODY YOU TRUST ALL AROUND WATCHING HIS OR HER EVERY MOVE, LOVE TWIT!" Nightmare spat, making an obscene gesture at Minako. "AND DON'T BERATE ME, YOU'RE NOT MY SISTER!"

Minako choked on her breath. It felt as if she had been hit by a ton of bricks on her head. "Not… your… sister…?" She asked, quiet, hard and hurt.

"Your great idea brought me nothing but pain!" Nightmare shouted, still angry. "Do you know how much it hurts? Do you have any idea how I feel right now? Because I was starting to believe it myself, love twit! I thought that maybe could have friends… And then this! And it's your fault, I shouldn't have listened to you in the first place!" Her bitter tears fell from her eyes down to the ground below.

A droplet fell on Minako's cheek. Biting back her own tears, she climbed up the tree where her sister sat. Settling on a nearby branch, she reached out to her and put her hand on her arm. Immediately, the symbiosis bond flared up. "Shhh… I know. I understand it hurts." She said quietly, to sooth her sister.

Nightmare, feeling the bond as well, wanted to shout, snarl or hiss at the blonde, but couldn't. Not with all the compassion she was feeling through the bond. She knew, she had always known, it wasn't Minako's fault. But she had felt the need to blame someone, and she couldn't hurt the three spies, so she picked Minako, because she had known, deep down in her heart, that the blonde would understand. And so, Nightmare did the only thing she could think of, though it embarrassed and ashamed her: she broke down crying.

Minako frowned, hurt, and tried to climb over to the branch where Nightmare was sitting so she could sooth her. She was almost there when… "!" Her foot slipped, and the blonde fell down on the ground, pulling the crying Saurian along with her. Nightmare gasped as she hit the ground, not because she was hurt, but because a sudden wave of worry for her friend hit her. She quickly crawled over to Minako.

"Onee-chan!" she said without thinking. "Are you alright?" She took the blonde's hand and pushed her forehead against it. "Sorry! I'm so sorry!"

Minako sat up, groaning from pain a bit. "It's okay…" She touched the back of her head. "Oww…" Nightmare hurriedly helped her sit up and threw her arms around her, hugging her tightly, gently rubbing the bruise on the back of her sister's head while she wept silent tears.

The Senshi of Love hugged her sister back and whispered soothing words to her: "Shh… It's okay… It's okay, really… It was just curiosity… It happens… We spied on Usagi because we were curious how her date with Mamoru will go… A boy I once knew spied on a girl he liked to find out what the perfect present for her would be… The whole volleyball team spied on Reiko to find out who's her new boyfriend… Spying doesn't always mean distrust, imouto-chan…"

"I don't care, they hurt me, and I'm not going back ever again!" Nightmare said as she crawled into Minako's lap and snuggled into the embrace, still shedding tears quietly.

"Come on…" Minako stroked Nightmare's hair. "I'm sure they realized they hurt you, and they didn't want that… They'll come and apologize soon, I'm sure of that."

"I don't want to see them again," came the stubborn, hurt reply, as Nightmare placed her head on Minako's chest. "Ever again." She paused for a moment, then looked up with teary eyes at the girl she had yelled at just moments ago. "I'm sorry, onee-chan, I didn't mean it… You are my sister, and always will be, I swear!"

"I know, imouto-chan…" Minako said quietly, frowning. "But it hurt, a lot." Nightmare started to cry harder upon hearing this, and she buried her face in Minako's chest, clinging to her desperately and crying loudly like the young, hurt girl she really was. How she regretted her words now. She tried to say she was sorry again, but all that came out of her mouth were sobs.

Minako smiled gently and hugged her imouto-chan again, caressing her back. "There, there… It's alright, sweetheart. I'm still here, no matter the hurt, and will always be, like I promised."

"I'm sorry, so, so sorry," Nightmare whispered, her voice strained by the pain she felt and her soft crying.

"Shhh… I forgive you, my dear little sister…" Minako assured her.

"Do you really?" the disguised reptile squeaked, not daring to look at her older sister anymore.

"Yes." Minako said firmly. "I do." And hugged her little sister tightly again.

Nightmare hugged Minako back tightly, quietly sobbing for a while. She had a lot to think about, as she sat there in the comfort of the embrace. She knew she had hurt her sister, but she had been hurt as well. And when hurt, she tended to be rash and say stupid things, like she had done now. But afterwards, she always regretted them. Before the symbiosis, she would keep that inside, but now she poured her regret out in the form of apologies and crying. And her sister let her do exactly that, offering comfort and warmth, as well as assurance that everything will be alright.

After a while, Nightmare quietly whispered: "Onee-chan… can we go home now? I don't want to be here anymore… I want to be alone with you."

"Of course, imouto-chan." Minako replied, smiling. "Let's go."

Nightmare smiled a bit as well, and wiped her tears away. She climbed to her feet and helped her sister up. In her mind, she made herself promise to do something nice for her sister once they got back home, to make up for the bad things she had done to her that day.

* * *

This whole event happened while Ignika, his oldest sister and Hotaru were training inside Master Angonce's simulation room. It was long, hard work for the Senshi of Silence, but it paid off, as she got better and better at channelling her powers, determining the amount she charged and how she unleashed it. Finally, at about the same time Gravitas discovered the spies, the Child of Life decided to call it a day, and the small group decided to go back to the sick bay to say their goodbyes to Rei, talk to Vulcan if he was awake, and then go home. Luckily for them, the Saurian of Magma was awake, giving Traveller and Ignika the opportunity to meet the other Saurian. They were about to go to him, but Hotaru seemed reluctant, and Ignika glanced curiously at her.

"Are you not coming, Hotaru-chan?" he asked innocently.

Hotaru shook her head. "No, I'd… Rather stay with Rei for a while."

The Child of Life nodded in understanding, and he squeezed her hand for a bit, before letting it go and turning to his sister. "Let's go, Traveller. Now's as good a time to visit Vulcan as any, right?"

"Yes," the Saurian of Teleportation agreed. She smiled kindly at Hotaru, thinking – just like her brother – that she understood why the young Senshi did not want to come with them to visit the Saurian of Magma. Traveller then took her brother by the hand, and the two of them moved over to the bed of the other inhabitant of Voya.

Vulcan was awake now, as mentioned before, and he was sitting on the edge of his bed, his feet dangling down, the claws of his toes just barely touching the ground, while his tail hung over the other side. He was dressed in a long white robe, since he needed to be kept warm, no longer restraint by the white fabric still encasing Rei. The few cables still attached to him disappeared under the robe, but they did not hinder him much. The young man was just happy he could move again. Not totally free, but at least not trapped anymore either. The machinery was still a bit unsettling, but now that he could move again, they somehow seemed less threatening. When he noticed Ignika and Traveller appearing, he bared his teeth and hissed softly.

"Who're you?" he asked bluntly. "More Senshi to come and try to be friends with me?"

Traveller and Ignika shared glances, the welcome not really to their liking, but managed to shrug it off. Ignika smiled innocently at the Saurian of Magma. "Not realy," he told Vulcan honestly. "I'm Saurian, just like you. So is my sister. We're just disguised as humans, since we live with them. I'm Ignika, and this is Traveller. You're name's Vulcan, right?"

Vulcan's eyes widened slightly, and his expression softened. "Ignika…" he repeated slowly. "I know that name. Every Saurian does now… Even if it isn't a Saurian name. You're the Child of Life. And you," he looked at Traveller, "are his sister, of the three, together with one older brother."

"You're well informed," Traveller noted curtly. "Did Zyglak tell you that?"

The recovering Saurian chuckled dryly. "Zyglak? He does not show himself to us lowly Saurians. No, it is the Immoral Ones who commanded us who shared these facts with us." Vulcan snorted sarcastically. "Though they kind of neglect to tell us what Sailor Senshi look like, the very thing we were sent to kill." He sighed and shook his head, looking at his visitors sideways. "Why are you here?"

"To visit and meet you," Ignika replied simply.

"Why?" Vulcan asked, wanting a real reason. "Do you want to be friends perhaps, too, like that little Senshi you entered with? Then save your breath. You're Saurian, you should understand."

Traveller nodded slowly, eying Vulcan critically. "I suppose I do, though there's little wrong with being friends with Hotaru, I can vouch for that. As for why we wanted to meet you: you're Saurians who listened to reason and who aren't out to kill my brother. A rarity. Can you blame us for wanting to meet you?"

The young man actually laughed upon hearing that, be it only weakly. "I suppose I can't. I'd probably do the same if I were in your shoes."

Ignika looked curiously at Vulcan. "How are you feeling, Vulcan? I heard you were badly injured. Though obviously Master Angonce has been taking good care of you, since you're sitting up."

"I'm fine," the older Saurian said curtly. He took in the Child of Life from tip to toe. "I expected the Saurian of Life to be somewhat more… fearsome. Not a child. Or perhaps it is just this… what did you call it? Human? Your human disguise…"

Ignika put his hands on his hips. "I'm a child even as a Saurian, and I forever will be. The Great Beings, in their wisdom, made me an immortal child, never to die and never to age, so my judgement and guarding of Life would always be innocent and free from bias." Then he added helpfully: "And yes, human. It's the race the Senshi belong to, and which dominates this world. So, to blend in, we had to look human. Child's play for me, no pun intended."

"I see you're not quite the demon some made you out to be, Child of Life," Vulcan noted quietly. He ran a hand through his hair. "Not that it matters. When Zyglak gets his hands on you, it won't matter what you are now."

"What do you mean by that?" Traveller demanded sharply, putting an arm protectively in front of her child brother.

"According to the Immoral Ones, the sole reason Zyglak came to our world was for you, Child of Life," Vulcan explained darkly, glaring at Ignika. "You, the highest creation of the Great Beings. The element of Life tied to flesh… His wish is to see you corrupted, so the Immoral Ones say. Corrupted, like he want to corrupt all the Great Beings made. He already made the Immoral Ones to corrupt our race, now only you remain. You are a prize for him, Ignika, nothing more. Had you not existed, he might have neglected our world all together. So, in a way, those who called you the doom of our world were right."

Ignika opened his mouth to protest and Traveller looked offended, but Vulcan held up his hand and continued: "I don't agree. That Zyglak came, is not your fault. He would have, eventually, with or without you. He wants to corrupt everything the Great Beings did, after all. That includes our world. The Great Beings saved us. Even if you had not existed, Zyglak would have come to us eventually, once he had corrupted everything that was more important than us. But we wouldn't have been ignored. Not forever. So, I have no reason to hate you. I just want my home back."

The Saurian of Life smiled a bit, and came closer to Vulcan to place his hand on the Magma user's larger one. "Thank you, Vulcan. It's nice for me to hear those words coming from a Saurian, trust me."

Vulcan merely shrugged. "Think nothing of it. I'm just being logical and practical. Hating somebody for something he can't help is just a waste of energy."

"I suppose," Ignika agreed reluctantly, his smile dropping for a moment. But it came back twice as big almost immediately. "But for me, that doesn't lessen my gratitude. I'm still happy to hear those words coming from you."

"Suit yourself," the Saurian male replied with a sigh. Truth to be told, he felt himself becoming tired. He didn't know if it was because he was talking, or because he was sitting up or if it was a combination of those, but nevertheless his body felt heavy and demanded him to lay down. He addressed his visitors quietly: "Can you two leave me alone now? I'd like to rest some more. Go visit your Senshi friend or something."

Traveller opened her mouth to reprimand the other Saurian for his rudeness, but Ignika was quicker and said, as cheerfully as he could: "Sure thing. Rest well, and get well soon, Vulcan! It was nice meeting you." He grabbed Traveller's hand before she could protest and began dragging her away.

"Yeah, thanks for visiting," Vulcan replied quietly, watching them go. Then he laid down on the bed again, on his side, like he preferred. The Saurian of Magma took a few deep, relaxed breaths and closed his eyes, then tried to go to sleep. Not easy, since in his mind he was thinking about the strange meeting that had just occurred.

* * *

**Next chapter: Progress and explanations!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: I like being unexpected! =p Thanks for the review.

Lucia Sennen: I'm glad you liked the chapter. Thanks for leaving a review. =)


	96. Progress and explanations

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**96.**** Progress and explanations**

"So, Sailor Mars, how are we feeling today?" the Great Being known as Angonce asked when he entered the medical bay the day after Ignika and Traveller's visit. His divine eyes scanned the data on the machines, an approving smile appearing on his handsome face as he read the results. "According to the readings, you are recovering well."

Rei smiled at the Great Being. "Yes, I think I'm indeed getting better. I don't feel any pain thanks to the painkillers, but I've noticed I don't get tired as fast anymore." She reported.

"Good, good," her caretaker replied approvingly. He operated a few of his machines and the blue light that had been shining on Rei ever since she arrived here lessened considerably. "Did you manage to catch some sleep tonight? Natural sleep is important for your recovery."

"True, but… It's kind of hard to sleep with light always shining." She admitted. "I did drift off to sleep for a while several times, though."

"I apologise for your discomfort," the divinity said quietly, placing a hand on Rei's forehead, easing her fatigue. "The light helps heal you, however. Perhaps I should have mentioned this before." Angonce removed his hand from her head, then tapped the fabric encasing Sailor Mars' body lightly. "This does not hinder you too much?"

Rei shook her head. "No, it's alright, Master Angonce. And, being unable to move is more annoying than hindering… But I understand it's needed."

"Nevertheless, if you feel strong enough, I think we could try removing it," the Great Being suggested. "The medicine I gave you has done a marvellous job so far, and if you keep resting and don't overexert yourself, I see little reason to keep you confined."

Rei smiled gratefully. "If you're sure about it, Master… I'd like to have it removed."

"Very well, but if start feeling weak or worse after the removal, you will notify me or Crast immediately, do I have your word?" Angonce asked sternly, his golden eyes boring down in Rei's, as if he dared her to make an empty promise.

The Senshi of Mars nodded slowly. "Yes, I promise."

"Good," the Great Being concluded. He took an empty, thin white slab from inside a glyph in the wall, and typed briefly on it with his divine fingers. The light shining on Rei briefly turned from blue to yellow, and then blue again. The white fabric encasing the wounded Senshi loosened, and then fell open like a blanket, to the ground, leaving the raven-haired woman naked on her bed.

Rei gasped slightly as she felt the air with her skin again. The temperature in the room was a bit cooler than the fabric provided, and Rei welcomed the change. But then she realized that she was now all naked before Master Angonce, and she blushed from embarrassment and shyness.

The Great Being didn't immediately notice, too busy placing the control panel back in the glyph and making sure the cables were still correctly attached to Rei's body. When he did, however, he looked slightly amused, though dignified. "Ah yes, an unforgivable oversight on my end," he apologised quietly. "I forgot about you humans' feelings of modesty that comes with being naked."

"Umm…" Rei said, feeling shy. "It's… It's alright, Master Angonce. I mean, it's such a little thing…"

"Indeed it is, you were naked when Crast and I treated you, too, after all," the divinity confirmed. "I shall provide a robe for you immediately, but first I want to make sure you are up for this freedom. Can you lay down on your stomach, please? Mind the cables, though." Angonce looked at her patiently. He felt not a single bit of attraction or anything akin for her, even when she was in such a state. He was a Great Being, and above such things. His life and heart belonged to knowledge and knowledge only.

Rei nodded and slowly, carefully turned over. It felt good to move, even if the movement was so small. Lying on her stomach was a nice change of pace after three days of being forced to lie on her back and her back only.

Angonce kept his eye on the readings, and when no alarming signs were given, he decided it was enough. "It seems your body is up for it at first glance, Sailor Mars. You can turn back now," he told her quietly. "I'll set the light to a higher intensity to make up for the lack of fabric giving your body support by giving it more relaxation and strength."

Smiling, Rei turned on her back again. She still hesitated to move more, as if afraid to overexert herself and be encased in fabric again. Angonce nodded approvingly, then snapped his fingers and suddenly the Senshi found herself clothed in a long white robe, the fabric unknown but soft and strong, just like the fabric that had encased her before.

Rei nodded at the Great Being gratefully. "Thank you, Master Angonce." Now she believed that she was really getting better, and her recovery was underway. The thought of returning to her friends and normal life soon made her happy.

"You're always welcome, Sailor Mars," Angonce replied with a kind smile. "Just keep resting. Your recovery is going very well, and if you do your best, I think I might let you go home when the week is over, if you stay in bed for another week once home."

Rei lowered her eyes. "If that's possible… But… I'd rather stay a few extra days here and going straight back to normal than risk overexerting myself and ruining everything…"

"It all depends on how much progress you make from now on. I will give you another dose of the medicine from before tomorrow, which will further help your recovery," Angonce informed her. The divinity then took one of her hands in his and smiled encouragingly at her. "Keep in mind that all I am doing, Sailor Mars, is let you heal the naturally, only speeded up. I could heal you to normal health in an instant, if I wanted to, but the price you'd have to pay for it is one I'm not willing to ask of you."

Rei wondered what that price is, but years and years of discipline as a Miko didn't allow her to ask that. "I see. Thank you, Master Angonce, for everything." She smiled gratefully.

"The price would be ten years of your total life span," Angonce said darkly, having guessed her question by brushing her mind with his own incredibly powerful one. Then his dark expression vanished, replaced with a smile of his own. "But as I said before, you are always welcome."

Rei nodded slowly. The price sounded dark an ominous… However, she was promised eternal life in Crystal Tokyo, wasn't she? Ten years mean nothing to eternity… But then again, what if she died before Crystal Tokyo if ten years of her life would be taken? That's a whole different story. And also, it would be losing ten years for the sole purpose of not lying in bed recovering for mere days. It was definitely not worth it.

"I see you understand," Angonce noted, pleased. "Very good. Now please excuse me, I wish to check on my other patient."

"Of course." Rei said, smiling, then turned on her side, bending her knees slightly, put her hands under her cheek and sighed blissfully. Angonce gave her one last observing look, then turned away and left the Senshi to her own devises. He knew it would be easier for her to sleep now, now that she could get herself into a position she preferred while sleeping. That eased him, and the Great Being had no worries about her health.

A sigh escaped his lips. The same could not be said about her two guardians, who were still comatose. Their condition barely improved, if at all, but there was nothing more he could do for them. He had already thrown all his medical knowledge into the fight for their lives. He kept them alive mechanically in a desperate attempt to heal their bodies to the point where they could sustain themselves again, but there was no progress, and Angonce was starting to loose heart. But he refused to tell Rei that, not wanting her worries or grief to have any influence on her own recovery process. And unlike the Senshi of Mars, he could not just heal the two crows back to full health with his own power. That would require sacrificing more than hundred years of their lifespan, something they would not survive. He'd be effectively killing them.

Troubled by these worries, the Great Being arrived at Vulcan's bed. The Saurian of Magma was awake, but resting. He felt the Great Being's presence, and averted his eyes, as he always did. When Angonce greeted him, he quietly said a response. The Kind understood, Vulcan was a Saurian of little words, and it wasn't hard to see that he felt small and insignificant in Angonce's presence. So the divinity said little, as to not alienate the reptile even further. He just observed the readings of the machines in silence for a while.

"You have made good progress again, Vulcan," Angonce informed the Saurian once he had finished reading. "The rest you are taking is working wonders. Tomorrow, I think I shall allow you to stretch your legs, under supervision."

The reptilian patient of the Great Being smiled happily upon hearing that. It was good news indeed. "I'm glad to hear that, master… No offence meant, but I long to get off this… bed. My days are long and boring."

"I am aware," the Kind replied with his trademark gentle, understanding tone. "But the end of your treatment is in sight, Vulcan, so please bear it a little longer, and have patience. You've done marvellously so far."

"You are too kind," the Saurian muttered. He shifted uneasily on his bed as Angonce moved closer and fiddled a bit with the few machines the reptile was still connected to. But in truth, Angonce wasn't doing much. There was no need, Vulcan was almost back to full health. The chance of his life being threatened now, at this stage, was nonexistent.

After making sure the machines supplying the Saurian with energy and the necessary minerals and vitamins were still functioning, the Great Being prepared to leave. "Keep resting, Vulcan," he commanded gently. "I will let your family visit this afternoon again, for an hour longer than usual, and I myself will come check upon you once more before nightfall." Angonce prepared to leave then, when he was held back suddenly by a question, coming from the Saurian, whispered so quietly it was barely audible:

"Why are they so kind?"

Angonce stopped in his tracks and slowly turned back to the Saurian laying on his side on the bed. The Great Being smiled softly and kindly at his patient. "You mean the Senshi, do you not, Vulcan?" The Saurian nodded in confirmation, and Angonce let out a small sigh. "It's their nature."

"Their nature?"

"Yes…" Angonce, feeling that this was going to take a while, walked back to the edge of the Saurian's bed. "They are the guardians of this world, and have been for generations, and always will be. However, this kindness you speak of, is mostly a result of the current incarnation of their leader: Sailor Moon. It is her power to be compassionate, and see the light and the good in every being. Even in those who call themselves their enemies."

Vulcan snorted sarcastically, for a moment not caring if it was impolite. Angonce merely smiled. "I know what you are thinking, Vulcan. You think that they think they can see the light in everyone and be so kind because they are perfect, do you not?" The Great Being laughed softly and shook his head when the Saurian of Magma nodded curtly. "But that's not the case at all. They're not perfect…" The Kind stopped and corrected himself: "No, they are perfect. But not in the way you think. They have their flaws, all of them. They all have their selfish whims, their childish behaviour moments, moments of recklessness, moments of hate, of unwillingness to forgive, moments of cowardice…"

Angonce placed a hand on the Saurian's shoulder, wishing his guest to look at him. Reluctantly, Vulcan turned around to face the Great Being, but still averted his eyes. "But having those things, Vulcan, that makes them perfect. It proves they have their inner darkness, and can harmonize it with their inner light. And inner harmony, knowing both light and dark, allows them to understand those whose motives lie in the grey zones, between light and dark, such as yours were. That understanding allows for kindness, because they truly do understand, are aware and in some cases even have personal experience with it."

The Saurian had a thoughtful expression on his face. "So their kindness is not born just from… blind trust?"

The divinity at his side shook his head. "No. I won't deny that a lot of their kindness is born from the great amount of inner light they possess, but it is not blind trust. They know when to reach out their hand, and when not to. They're rational, Vulcan, but being rational does not prohibit being kind even to former enemies. Nor does being kind prohibit being rational. They know your reasons, understand them, can even relate to them, and they know you are no longer their enemy. So in their eyes, why can they not offer you kindness?" Angonce squeezed Vulcan's shoulder slightly. "I am aware it is different for you Saurians, for you and your family. But do not condemn them for it, it is not necessary nor justified. Offering you and your family kindness is not an act of foolery or blind trust, but of understanding and kindness, and nothing else."

The Saurian of Magma was silent for a long time, until finally he whispered: "I see…" A sigh escaped his sharp-teethed jaws. "Thank you for your wisdom, master… I have a lot to think about now."

Angonce nodded in understanding. "I shall leave you to it, then," he said calmly. He patted his patient on the shoulder one last time, reminded him to call on him whenever he needed something, and then left the room, leaving Rei to her rest and Vulcan to his thoughts.

However, Rei wasn't quite resting, having heard the talk between Master Angonce and Vulcan. It pleased her to hear the Great Being explain things as they truly were, yet in such a way Vulcan could understand their position, which Hotaru had failed to do. Sighing contently, she turned on her other side, enjoying the feeling of being able to move and shift on the bed, and the soft warmth of the robe. Cuddling up, she drifted off to sleep.

In his own bed, Vulcan was quite the opposite of Rei. He kept thinking about what the Great Being had told him, and he couldn't stop musing about it. Restlessly he twisted and turned on his bed, uncertain of what to do with the answer he had received, or what the master wanted him to do concerning the Sailor Senshi. He wished now that he had asked that, too. Now, it kept bothering him, the uncertainty gnawing at him. There was no rest for him because of this, and hours after Rei had sailed on to dreamland, Vulcan was still wide awake, his dark eyes fixed straight ahead of him, and his thoughts in turmoil.

* * *

**Next chapter: The Prince, the Princess and the Sword!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: The volleyball girls will at least try to apologise. ;) Thanks for the review!

Lucia Sennen: Glad you liked the chapter. Thanks for reviewing.

SoulLoss: Oh dear, I feel for you. If you ever feel you're day's being too good and you want to ruin it, just open up Sailor Stars and read. You will feel terrible once you're done, rest assured! The manga has such nice art and great characters, but I really cannot like Sailor Stars. And believe me, I tried. Good to know I'm not alone in this. Take your time in reviewing, no pressure. ;) Glad you still liked the story. Thanks for the review!


	97. The Prince, the Princess and the Sword

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**97. ****The Prince, the Princess and the Sword**

"And don't forget you need to get up early tomorrow!" Came a voice from the kitchen of Tsukino's house.

"Yes, aunt Ikuko!" Chibiusa, who was going upstairs, called back. It was late in the evening, just about time to go to bed, but that wasn't what the pink-haired Princess was planning.

Entering her room, Chibiusa locked the door and sighed. It would still take a while before all the others went to sleep, and she didn't like waiting. Not for things like this.

Chibiusa came over to the set of shelves on the wall, and, standing on a chair to reach the top shelf, carefully took her most prized treasure: the Stallion Rêve. The beautiful teal-colored orb on a stand with golden handles and with a crown on top looked kind of like a school trophy, which made explaining Ikuko-mama what it was easy.

Chibiusa put the orb on the windowsill and traced her fingers along its surface lovingly. Just a simple wish, just simply pushing a gem on the crown – and it will light up, giving an image from another world… From Elysion, the land of dreams. Chibiusa sighed. Still far too early…

What made her so concerned that she decided to stay up late and contact Helios, however, was something else. Tearing her gaze off the magic orb, Chibiusa went over to her bed. After looking under it for a while, she took the thing that bothered her so much – the sword Ignika gave her.

Slowly, Chibiusa unsheathed it, admiring the blade, the way moonlight reflected on its surface. It was a fine sword, light, elegant, easy to use and perfect for a child like her, except…

"Chibiusa! You asleep yet?" Shingo's voice came from outside her room.

The pink-haired girl was so startled she nearly dropped the sword. "No, thanks to you I'm wide awake!" She shouted back at him. "Waddaya want?"

"Nothing, just to wish you good night." Her 'cousin' admitted.

"Oh. Well…" Chibiusa hesitated. "Well, I'm in bed already, and don't feel like unlocking the door. So, good night."

"Sheesh…" The Senshi could practically see Shingo rolling his eyes. "Why do you even lock your door, anyway? Sleeping nakey and playing with yourself, perhaps…?"

Chibiusa blushed furiously. "Wha… SHINGO!" She cried, embarrassed and angry.

Her cousin just laughed. "Just kidding, Chibiusa. Good night!" A few moments later, she could hear the door to Shingo's room close.

"Idiot." Chibiusa thought. "Good thing my Helios is nothing like him." With a sigh, she put the sword back to its sheath and lay on her bed. She lay staring at the ceiling for a few moments, then rolled on her stomach and put her chin on her arms in thought.

A few minutes later, she could hear Usagi going to her room, humming a tune. The older girl stopped to wish Chibiusa good night as well, but wasn't surprised she locked her room. The Moon Princess knew her future daughter had a reason not to be bothered at night.

Kenji-papa and Ikuko-mama took the longest time to go to sleep. Apparently, they were watching some kind of a movie together, or maybe were discussing some things not meant for children, but it dragged on for eternity to Chibiusa, and she nearly fell asleep herself while she waited for them to go to bed. Finally, they did, and Chibiusa went over to her window. It was time.

Sitting down on her windowsill comfortably, Chibiusa pressed the gem on the crown of the orb and willed her Prince to appear. Immediately, the solid surface disappeared, revealing a soft pink glowing orb of energy. A few moments later, the pink light was replaced by the image of Helios.

"Yes, my Princess?" He said softly to Chibiusa. "You called upon me?"

"Yes, my Prince." Chibiusa smiled back at him. "I need your help on something. Could you please come to me?"

"At once, Small Lady." The image of Helios bowed and vanished, turning the orb back to solid and teal, and a mere second later, the Keeper of Elysium himself stood before Chibiusa.

Chibiusa smiled, looking up at her beloved Pegasus. Time in Elysium flowed differently, it seemed, because Helios didn't change at all. Chibiusa could forever admire his looks, his pure white hair and golden horn, but instead she got off the windowsill and curtsied before her golden-eyed prince.

"Small Lady." The Keeper bowed.

"Helios." She smiled and stood straight again. She loved this little game of theirs, playing Prince and Princess, like they were in a fairy tale. Small Lady Serenity knew the reality of being a Princess all too well, but during these games, she was only living the dream of so many girls on planet Earth.

"Why is it that you called upon me in such a late hour, my Princess?" The white-haired boy asked, continuing the play.

"Oh my Prince, it is…" Suddenly, Chibiusa giggled and shook her head. "Oh, let's quit for now, okay, Helios? I actually do have a problem here."

Helios laughed softly, and smiled. "Okay. So what is that problem?" He tilted his head, looking at his pink-haired girl.

Chibiusa picked her sword up from her bed and gave it to Helios. "Take a look at this."

Small Lady's prince did as requested, turning the sword made by Ignika out of a living Saurian carefully in his delicate hands. The weapon was light, the blade so finely polished he could see his reflection in it, the edges razor sharp. The hilt was sand-coloured, of a simple but fine design, and it lay well in the hand. He could not get over how light it was. It weighed less than a feather.

"It's a fine sword," he concluded, looking at the pink-haired girl from the future.

"Indeed, it is." Chibiusa nodded. "It was given to me by Ignika to protect myself, but…"

"But?" Her future Prince urged her to go on.

"It is just an ordinary sword." Small Lady explained. "And while I simply love it and would like to use it, I can't carry it around in civilian form, and without that, I wouldn't be able to use it in the Senshi form, either."

Helios nodded, understanding her problem. "And you want me to solve this issue?"

Chibiusa nodded. "Yes. I mean, Hotaru and Setsuna have weapons, so, I was wondering…"

"… if you could make this sword into your Senshi weapon." Helios finished for her.

"Yeah… So can I?" Chibiusa asked her Prince.

The Pegasus thought for a long time. "There is a way, I'm sure. I remember coming across such information before, in Elysium…" He rubbed his chin, thinking, trying to recall what he read. "Saturn's Silence Glaive and Pluto's Garnet Rod had not originally been a part of their Senshi attire, but were crafted and tied to their Senshi powers millennia ago… Wish I could remember the way…"

Chibiusa smiled at him happily. "Well, as long as there is a way… It's okay if you don't remember it out of your head now, as long as you do find it out and tell me."

"If I may ask, my Princess…" Helios said, looking at the sword thoughtfully. "Why do you want to use a weapon like this?"

"What do you mean?" Chibiusa frowned in confusion. Didn't he just say it's a fine weapon?

"A sword, not a wand." The Keeper of Elysion elaborated.

"Oh." Chibiusa shook her head. "It's just the way our current enemies are… The Saurians are a strong race, as you have seen yourself. They not only have supernatural powers, but also are covered with scales and armed with claws and sharp teeth. And while we Senshi can fend them off in ranged combat, once up close we're almost done for. I don't want that to happen…" Chibiusa explained.

"I can understand that," Helios said slowly. "Only, you have no experience with the usage of a sword, Small Lady."

Chibiusa smiled softly again. "That can be fixed. Chameleon and Nightmare could both train me… Though Nightmare has quite severe methods."

The Pegasus shook his head and placed a hand on Chibiusa's young shoulder. "I do not like it. It isn't safe."

Chibiusa raised her eyebrow. "Safe…? But I am a Senshi, Helios. No battle can be safe for me."

"There is no need to increase the risk by going into close combat, Small Lady," Helios objected, still not a fan of the idea. "If you were to take up the sword, I cannot stop you, but I implore you to leave the close combat to your allies, the experts."

The Future Princess shook her head. "Helios, it's not like I'm going to rush into close combat just because I have a sharp pointy thing to swing around… And of course it's better if the Saurians do all the close combat. But that isn't always possible, and if I'm forced into closed combat, I'd rather be prepared, to survive it." Chibiusa answered seriously.

"I do not like it," the Keeper said once more, sighing.

Chibiusa sighed. "You have better ideas?"

"Do I have a say in the matter?" he retorted calmly.

"Helios…" Chibiusa said uncertainly. Suddenly it looked like this talk was going to turn into an argue. "Helios… I understand you're worried for me, but… But I'm a Senshi, and if I have to fight up close, I'd rather do that with a good weapon meant for it…"

"I see your point, Small Lady," he assured her with a soft smile. "But can I not be worried for you? Please be careful, and use this sword only to channel your powers, I beg of you." He took both her hands in his and looked at her with pleading eyes, his worry evident.

Chibiusa smiled. "I will try my best to do so." Then, obeying the sudden urge, she embraced her future Prince. Helios' eyes widened, but he quickly recovered and returned the embrace, lightly caressing through her pink hair.

"I'm growing up, you know." She told her Prince proudly and happily.

Helios smiled at her and nodded. "I have noticed, Not-so-small Lady."

"Hey!" She giggled at the joke. "It's still taking so long… But I don't mind." Chibiusa smiled. "I wouldn't like things to be like that time when me and Usagi swapped our ages."

"Patience, my Princess," he whispered lovingly, staring in her big pink eyes.

Chibiusa nodded. "I know… Well, aging is better than not aging… No matter how annoying it is to wait…"

Helios nodded. Then, coming back to the subject of her sword, the Pegasus said: "Perhaps Sailor Pluto could help you with your problem, Small Lady. Her memory goes back far."

"True… I'll need to ask her that." Chibiusa nodded. Now she wondered why she didn't think of it in the first place, instead immediately wishing to contact Helios… Then again, did it matter? Even if it was just a reason to see him…

"Nevertheless, I'm glad and… flattered, that you asked me first," the Keeper said, as if reading her thoughts. He blushed a little and smiled.

"Mmm-hm…" Chibiusa nodded, smiling back at him. "I'm glad, too."

The Future Princess then glanced at the alarm clock on her table. The time was well past midnight, and Chibiusa indeed needed to get up early. She let go of Helios and did a couple of steps back.

"Alas, my Prince, it is time for us to part…" She said, returning to the fairy tale game from earlier.

"It pains my heart that it is so." Helios said, immediately catching up. "Yet these brief moments of our meeting will keep my heart warm for a long time after this."

"So will mine." The Princess curtsied gracefully. "Farewell, my Prince."

The Prince bowed. "Farewell, my Princess. Until we meet again…"

With those words, the golden-eyed Keeper of Elysium vanished.

Chibiusa sighed and began to undress. It was too late to take a shower, so she just put on her nightgown and went to bed.

"Helios…" She whispered, warm and comfortable under the covers. Closing her eyes, she drifted off to sleep, reliving the happy moments of their meeting.

* * *

**Next chapter: Of depressions and plans!**

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**Review replies:**

Lucia Sennen: I'm glad you enjoyed the chapter! Thanks for reviewing!

Kuroui: Glad you're still reading and enjoying the story. =) You'll find the answers to all your theories and questions in future updates! ;)


	98. Of depressions and plans

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**98. Of depressions and plans**

It was the day of another volleyball training, and the entire team was present in the sports hall. All, aside from two, that is. A certain blonde Senshi of Love and her adopted Saurian sister were missing, and everybody had noticed it. That Kira wasn't there, for most it didn't truly matter that much, she was new and they didn't know her all that well, so there could be many reasons why she wasn't here. Minako missing, however, was a whole different story altogether.

Ever since the sunny girl had taken up this sport again, she hadn't skipped or missed a single training, so why wasn't she here today? Why hadn't she let them know so beforehand either? It was strange. Even stranger was the fact that Chiara, Miyuki and Rumiko were mostly silent during the entire training, and they avoided speaking about the two missing team members, their cheeks weirdly colouring red with shame whenever the subject of Minako and Kira was brought up. They tried talking about something else as soon as possible. It was quite obvious there was something they weren't telling the others. Miyuki even ended the training earlier than usual, which was completely unheard of. Puzzled and uncertain, the members of the volleyball team, aside from the three unfortunate spies, went home. All except for one.

"Alright, girls." Takako said sternly with her hands on her hip. "Spill up."

"What?" Chiara asked.

"What was this all about?" The short-haired girl gestured to the now empty volleyball hall. "You were all playing… I don't even know how to describe how bad. And Miyuki, you let everybody go twenty minutes earlier! What happened, girls?" Takako put her hands on her hips again. "It's about Kira, no?"

The three girls avoided her stern gaze.

"Yeah…" Rumiko said finally. "You were right, Ta-chan, nothing good came out of spying…"

"It would've been fine if that Hiroko didn't catch us." Chiara grumbled.

Miyuki sighed. "Kira just took it all way too personally…"

Takako shook her head quickly. "Wait, wait, wait, I don't understand anything. Who's Hiroko? Took what personally? What happened?"

And so the three spies told Takako everything that happened that day, told her every single detail. The dark-green-haired girl could only sigh and shake her head as the story went on.

"Idiots. You just don't know when to give up, no?" She said when the story was finally over. "Everybody has their secrets, you know, and didn't Minako say Kira had major problems with trusting people?" She shook her head again. "Now you've also set her autistic sister against you."

"Look, that's not the point." Miyuki said. "The point is that we've, apparently, hurt Kira, so much that she didn't even come to the training, and probably talked Minako into not coming, too."

"Can't you, well, you know, apologize?" Takako said as if talking to idiots.

"I tried…" Rumiko said quietly. "I phoned Minako and asked if I could speak to Kira, but… I could actually hear her scream she doesn't want to talk to any of us… Of course Minako said I couldn't talk to her."

Takako sighed, annoyed. "I get it. Well, fine. I'll go and talk to her then."

Her three friends stared at her in shock. "What?" They exclaimed.

"Well, someone has to clean up the mess you made!" Takako shook her head. "Minako is a valuable player, and thanks to Kira, she won't come to trainings. And for Kira, we were the first people who didn't bully her, who didn't have any prejudice. Somebody has gotta tell her you three idiots didn't mean to hurt her! And unlike you three, I didn't spy on her, she'll listen to me."

The three spies smiled at her. "Thanks, Takako." Miyuki said warmly and gratefully.

"Don't mention it." Takako rolled her eyes. "I don't even know if it'll work out. But I'll try my best."

The girls nodded at her, and went home together. Takako was going to have a long day tomorrow…

* * *

Nightmare felt horrible, to say the least. More than a day now since the incident, and she still hadn't gotten over it, her chest aching with pain and hurt every time she thought of the 'betrayal' of the volleyball girls, and the shame she felt for hurting her sister the way she had. A sigh escaped her lips, and she hugged her legs up to her chest while she sat in the couch, watching television with no interest whatsoever. Minako was sitting in the same couch, but the Saurian girl had made sure there was as much space between them as possible, feeling she didn't deserve to be close to the blonde until she repented properly.

"Nightmare…" Minako said in a begging tone for a hundredth time that day and tried to close the distance between them. "Come on, let me at least comfort you! I know you feel horrible, but there's no reason to sulk up in it!"

"I don't deserve your comfort," Ignika's youngest sister muttered in reply. "I've hurt you in an unforgivable way, and you shouldn't forgive me like that."

Minako sighed. "Nightmare, you know there's next to nothing I can't forgive! And getting a couple of slaps and falling down from a tree are definitely not on that list!" Minako moved closer to the girl and tried to hug her.

Nightmare pushed her older sister away firmly, as she had many times before. "I said you weren't my sister, I couldn't hurt you anymore than that even if I tried! You can't forgive that, you shouldn't!" she said insistently, before curling up in a ball again.

"Well, what do you suggest?" Minako said, crossing her arms. "To hold that grudge for fifty seven years? We have an eternity to live together, Nightmare, I don't want to spend it being pushed away by you just because you said a couple of hurting words!"

"Why can't you just be mad at me like a normal person?" Nightmare asked, nearly begging. "This sympathy is making me scared, and hurts much more than any grudge you could hold against me. I don't deserve your sympathy, Onee-chan, so just let me sit here and be miserable, hating those volleyball girls and hating myself, okay?"

"But why should I do that?" Minako said, no less begging than the Saurian. "I don't want you to feel miserable and hate yourself!" Nightmare just shrugged and curled up more, not saying anything.

Truth to be told, she had never felt like this before. Yes, she had been hurt thousands of times before, she knew what pain was, but the pain and hurt she felt now were totally new. The pain of betrayal, the hurt of regret, it felt alien and unfamiliar, not to mention unsettling. And since it was all new, she had no idea how to deal with it properly, and she didn't want Minako to comfort her, she didn't deserve that.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang, but Nightmare gave no indication whatsoever of having heard it. Inwardly, she just hoped it wasn't those three spies who had shattered her trust coming to 'apologize'. She wanted nothing to do with them anymore.

Minako went to open the door. Her eyes widened when she saw who it was.

"Takako…?" The blonde Senshi asked in disbelief. The reason was not only the fact she arrived, but also the way she was dressed. She seriously looked like she was heading for a metal concert… Or got ready to battle. The Helloween t-shirt, the black bandana with skulls and the spiked bracelets clearly indicated it.

"Hi. Sorry for not calling you beforehand." Takako said. "Is Kira there?"

"Y-yeah, but… She's… eh… Not in the mood to talk to anyone." Minako said, startled by Takako's straightforwardness. Usually she was more polite. Maybe the spy girls made her angry.

Takako nodded grimly. "I know. Can I come in?"

"S-sure…" Minako raised her eyebrow and let the green-haired volleyball player enter her house. In the living room, Nightmare picked up the newcomer's scent, and recognized it, but it didn't make her happy. In fact, she didn't react at all. She didn't want to see anybody, including Takako.

Takako took off her shoes and marched straight to the living room. She wasn't sure this would work, or is it supposed to work at all, but somehow, she felt it would at least help. Takako entered the living room, and, going right past Nightmare without even looking at her, put a CD in the stereo installation, letting Metal rip through the silence of the room.

The song 'Still we go' started to blast from the speakers, but Nightmare did not react. Takako didn't need it, however. She just sat in an armchair, facing Kira, and waited. Sometime soon, something had to happen. She'd get a reaction, she'd break this silence. But the metalhead didn't know the Saurian girl as well as she thought she did, and Nightmare could be endlessly stubborn if she wished to. She didn't even acknowledge Takako's presence.

Minako looked at that scene from the door of the living room, and shook her head. Sighing, she went to the kitchen. Takako was weird at times, and it was best to leave the two metal fans up to their own devises. Maybe she'd get Nightmare to react, who knows. Though chances for that were slim. Nightmare refused to even budge, let alone acknowledge that the other girl was there. She didn't want to see her, didn't even want to speak to her. The music left her cold.

"In a dark mood, huh?" Takako muttered, and changed CDs. 'Far in the Future' from Helloween was a lot more fitting to this occasion. But still Nightmare did not react.

"And here I thought you were a Metal fan." Takako rolled her eyes and came over to Nightmare, plumping herself down on the couch next to her. "Come on, what's wrong with you?" Silence was the only answer she received.

"Listen, don't you mind those three." Takako continued her tries to talk to Kira. "They never think of the other side, never consider the consequences. Not even Miyuki." Yet again, she got no reply.

"I know, Kira." She said, sighing. "I know you feel hurt and betrayed. But this… Being silent and drowning yourself in grief has no way out." Takako looked at the spiked bracelet on her hand. "I lost a friend like this…"

"Don't make friends and you'll never lose them, lesson learned," Nightmare snarled, her entire body unmoving, her face still burrowed in her arms. But her voice was the voice of nightmares, angry, bitter, venomous, full of spite, hurt and rage.

Takako smirked bitterly. "You think it's that kind of lose?" She chuckled bitterly, sounding hurt. "No, Kira. She didn't stop being my friend. At least, I kept considering her a friend until the very last day. She was just like you, shut us all out. She got herself a serious depression, and refused to accept any kind of help. In the end, Kira… She killed herself."

"Stupid," the disguised Saurian of Fear sneered, still unmoving.

"Indeed." Takako agreed. "Stupider than anything can be. But you know what, Kira? You're acting just like her now."

"You don't see me being a total retard and killing myself with my katana, now do you?" Nightmare snapped. Finally she looked up, and the glare she gave Takako was absolutely incinerating. "Don't compare me with that stupid friend of yours. I'm way better than her, and I'll never kill myself, I have a family to take care of. And if that was all you had to say, I suggest you get out of my sight and join those other trust-crushing assholes you call friends." Then she added, almost as an afterthought: "And you may want to hurry it up before I throw you out with my own hands!"

"Thank goodness, you're not completely lost for life." Takako said, her voice a mix of relief, sarcasm and bitterness. "Locking yourself up in your grief is still a completely pointless and stupid thing."

Nightmare let out an animalistic growl and slowly uncurled and got to her feet. Instinct told her to smash this girl's face in, but she managed to stop herself just in time. "Onee-chan, make this creature leave before I make her!" she snarled at the kitchen-door.

Minako immediately rushed to the living room, but before she could arrive, Takako said:

"Wanna do it? Do it."

Nightmare lashed out with her hand faster than Minako could say or do anything, and closed it around Takako's throat. The disguised reptile hoisted the volleyball player up in the air and looked furiously at her. Then she said, without taking her eyes off Takako: "Onee-chan, open the window."

"Let go of Takako, Kira!" Minako cried.

"She said I could do it if I wanted to," Nightmare growled. "So open the window and I'll throw her out. And if you don't do it, I'll just throw her anyway, open window or no open window." There was that glint of mad anger in Ignika's youngest sister her eyes again, one Minako knew all too well, and it was then that the Senshi of Venus realized just how badly the three spies had hurt her little sister.

"You've completely lost your mind?" Minako demanded. "You think Takako really wanted you to grab her by the throat? Let her go before you choke her!"

Stamping madly with her foot, Nightmare nonetheless dropped the older girl back on the couch. Furious, Nightmare grabbed the nearest thing she could find, which happened to be a tall standing lamp, and broke it clean in half with her bare hands, throwing the pieces against the wall. A scream of rage escaped the Saurian girl's mouth as she did so. She hated it. Every single moment she had to be reminded of the betrayal of the three volleyball girls by looking at Takako, she hated.

Takako coughed long and hard from being choked, inwardly feeling slightly happy. "Good, she's starting to let it out…" No matter what Kira said, no matter what her mind said, Takako was still afraid Kira will end up like her friend, and it felt good to break her silence, even if it turned into rage. The lamp that was broken… It indeed confirmed Kira's inhuman strength, and her growls only proved Rumiko's absurd theory about Kira being an alien in disguise. But Takako didn't care.

"I've had it, onee-chan," the Saurian girl hissed. "First they betray me after I went so far against my principles to apologise, and now they sent this one to attempt and fix the damage. Well tough shit! I'm through with them! I don't want to see a single one of those miserable humans in my life again!" Nightmare then brushed past her sister and ran to the door that led to the hallway. "As long as she's here I'm not setting a foot downstairs!" she screamed, before storming up the stairs and rushing into Minako's room, throwing the door shut behind her so hard and loud it nearly flew off its hinges.

In the living room, Minako sighed and bowed apologetically before Takako. "I… I'm sorry for her behaviour… She's just really, really hurt by what happened. She never had friends before, and it took me a lot of effort to convince her to try… Now this… She feels betrayed, and she doesn't know how to deal with it correctly…"

"I understand. I knew nothing good would come out of spying, but… Couldn't imagine consequences would be that serious…" Takako sighed, rubbing her neck. "I'm sorry as well… I seem to have ticked her off by comparing her to Namiko…" Takako shook her head. "Couldn't help it. When I saw her hurt and curled up and silent like this, I couldn't help it…"

"She'd never do that…" Minako muttered quietly, sitting down in the couch with a sigh. "She loves Hiroko, Eiju, Amane and Masahiro too much to do that… But still, yeah, it's bad… She doesn't even let me comfort her, wants me to be angry at her. I don't now what to do anymore…"

"Jeez…" Takako sighed. "I hoped she'd listen to me. I didn't spy on her, after all. And since Metal always helped me out of depressions, I hoped it'd work for her, too…"

"I don't have the courage to tell her family either… Hiroko would probably blame me for not taking care well enough of her little sister if I told her Kira's depressed…" the Senshi of Venus said, saddened. She shivered a bit as she imagined the reaction of her so-called other 'sister' for not taking care of Nightmare well enough. "It's not fair actually. Chiara and the others made this mess, they should come up with a way to fix it… Of course Kira doesn't want to see them ever again."

"Yeah, but that's the problem. How can they ever come up with anything if Kira doesn't want to see them?" Takako argued. "They could come up with a way to apologize, however how can they be sure Kira would listen and not try to throw them out of the window, like she nearly threw me out?"

"Well, she's susceptible to surprise, and she loves cake and sweet things. Combine those two with me there to restrain her, and I think they can have thirty-six seconds to say something to her," Minako mused, putting a finger to her lips in thought.

"Really? Who could have known…" Takako said, surprised, then thought for a while. "Saaay… Is there any way you could make her come to my apartment on, say, Thursday?"

"Ehm, I guess so, but why?"

Takako shrugged. "We'll use the element of surprise and cake. Surely she'll be startled by a surprise party?"

Minako's eyes got a bit starry upon hearing that. "That's actually a great idea! Kira's never been to a party before, let alone have one made in her honour! That would certainly surprise her!"

"Yeah, but would it help…" Takako wondered.

"Well, do you have any other ideas?" Minako asked in return.

"No, not at all." Takako shook her head. "Well, let's do it then!" She smiled at Minako, and the Senshi of Venus smiled back, giving her her signature V-sign.

"Let's!"

Takako nodded at Minako, returning her V-sign. She then stood up from the couch. "Well, I'll be off now, then." She went over to the stereo station and took her CD out. "Gotta tell the girls."

"And I'll try to calm my little sister down. You get the easy job, Ta-chan," the blonde girl replied with a wink.

Takako chuckled. "Don't call me that, I don't like this nickname. Doesn't stop Rumiko, though."

"What's wrong with it? It's cute."

Takako grimaced. "Sounds way too short and disgustingly simple. And somehow it does sound cute when said by Rumiko, but she can make even a piranha cute!"

"Or Kira," Minako grinned.

Takako chuckled. "Indeed. Well, I'll go now. Ja ne." She waved at Minako and went towards the exit.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, in a café, Miyuki, Chiara and Rumiko eagerly listened to Takako's report:

"Okay, so…" Takako looked at her friends. "The talk was difficult, as Kira was extremely closed up and depressed, but what it comes down to is: she's fucking mad at you guys and doesn't want to ever have to do anything with you or anything else of volleyball again."

"Jeez…" Chiara sighed, annoyed with herself for even thinking up the stupid idea in the first place.

"So there's nothing we can do?" Miyuki asked the only person who could talk to Kira.

"Well… From Minako, I learned that Kira has a weakness." Takako smiled mysteriously.

"Does she? What it is?" Rumiko asked, surprised.

Takako smiled yet again. "She is vulnerable for surprises and sweet food. So me and Minako-chan have thought up a plan." Takako fell silent and held the pause, loving her friends' eager waiting looks.

"Well, what is that plan?" Chiara finally urged her to tell.

"We're gonna make her a surprise party. Surely she can't resist a cake that says 'Forgive us, Kira-chan!'". Takako grinned and looked meaningfully at Rumiko.

"Um… Sure thing! I can make my special chocolate and cherry cake!" Rumiko smiled widely.

Chiara raised her eyebrow. "Will it help?" She asked doubtingly.

Takako shrugged. "Minako says we'll have about 36 seconds while she's startled."

"Worth a shot." Miyuki decided and held her hand over the middle of the table. The girls all put their hands on top of hers. "Let's do it!" And with that said, the four eagerly began to plan out the party in great detail, deciding to go all out with it. But as their excitement rose to great heights, so did their hope that it would all be worth it. This was their final chance to make Kira trust them again, after all.

* * *

**Next chapter: Racing the wind!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Well, Chibiusa/Helios is a canon pairing, and I try my best to stick to canon as much as possible in this story. And since it didn't interfere with my plot, I kept it in. Thanks for the review! =)

Rizwan Fariz: Mamoru might make an appearance near the end, but I can definately say that the Shitennou will not appear. Thanks for reviewing!


	99. Racing the wind

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**99. Racing the wind**

Ignika, the Child of Life, the mightiest of Saurians, the son of Angonce, the one with the power to ruin the world for eternity, was bored. Hotaru had gone with her Setsuna-mama to visit Chibiusa, since the pink-haired Senshi from the future had called her friend and asked her to come visit and bring 'Plu' along. With some confusion, but eager to see the Small Lady nonetheless, the two had left. Following that, Michiru had decided to take Traveller into town, to visit a music store where the Saurian woman could meet lots of new instruments, and to go shopping after that. Haruka had been invited along, but the manlike woman had refused, since she had practice at the racing track on her schedule.

This left Ignika all on his own, bored. Haruka was preparing herself to leave, and he simply sat in the couch in the living room, twiddling his thumbs. He could go to the garden and study the plants, but with everybody else doing new things or meeting friends, that seemed dull and unappealing. It saddened him Traveller hadn't asked him along. Or rather, she had, but Michiru had insisted on just the two of them, women amongst themselves. No children. Ignika could take care of himself on his own for a little while, the aqua-haired woman had said. While her confidence in his abilities made him happy, it didn't take away that she had essentially condemned him to death by boredom.

The white-haired boy heard Haruka come down the stairs. Truth to be told, Ignika was a bit scared of the Senshi of the Winds. Not that he feared for his life, of course not, since his power was of a superior level, but he feared her one a different, more personal level. He had, after all, made a few blunders she had suffered from. Turned her into a man, thus meddling with her private life which he had no right to do, embarrassing her and Michiru with his constant questioning of their relationship and all that came with it – mating included – among other things. This left Ignika feeling insecure. He knew Haruka wasn't really… angry with him, so to speak, but that didn't mean she _liked_ him either. She tolerated him, but he didn't know how much. That scared him, and made him a bit afraid of asking something of her when the two of them were alone.

"Alright…" Haruka said slowly to herself. "Seems that I haven't forgotten anything." She then looked at the Child of Life. "Well, I'll be going now. You're sure you'll be okay on your own?" To be honest, leaving a child alone in the house didn't sit quite well with her, even if that child was a thousand years old.

"Ehm, where exactly are you going, Haruka-san?" Ignika asked, looking up nervously from where he sat at the larger woman.

"To the race track. Gotta be in shape for the championship." Haruka answered, smiling proudly.

"What is a race track and a championship?" the immortal child wondered naively and innocently, his face bearing a frown of confusion.

Haruka sighed. "Jeez, how do I explain it in a few words…?" She checked her wrist watch. There was still a little time. "Well, in short, a race is a competition. Whoever gets to the finish line the fastest is the winner. There are various types of races, and ones I'm taking part in are car races."

Ignika pondered over that for a few seconds. A contest of speed and reflexes? That sounded logical, and not a bad way to practice and hone one's skills. Even if it was with a car. Hesitatingly, he turned to Haruka and asked, his voice trembling a bit and sounding quiet: "Can I… can I come along? I… I'd like to see it."

Haruka raised her eyebrow. "Oh? Why so?"

"Well, I have nothing else to do… And I don't feel like studying plants for a change…" Ignika explained, avoiding Haruka's gaze. "But if I can't, that's okay, I'll just stay here and ehm… sleep or something. I understand that you don't want me along."

Haruka shook her head. "No, it's not that. I was just surprised." She looked at her wristwatch again. It was time to go already. "Well, okay. Leaving you alone in the house doesn't sit well with me, so… You can come."

"I can?" Ignika asked, startled by her agreement.

"Yes, but hurry." Haruka said. "I may be a racer, but I'd rather not use those skills in the street. Come on, I hate being late." Ignika nodded, and hurriedly ran to the hall, quickly slipping on his sandals and following the blonde to her car.

The said blonde locked the house and got into her car as well. "Alright, here we go…" She started the car and quickly drove into the street. After a while she asked the Child: "Do you really come with me to the track just because you're bored?"

From where he sat in the backseat, Ignika shifted a bit uncomfortably in his place. "Ehm, it certainly isn't a made up reason," he said nervously, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.

"Heh. I see." Haruka chuckled and focused on driving again. "Well, hope it won't be as boring at my practice."

"You don't mind I'm coming with you, Haruka-san?" Ignika inquired fearfully.

Haruka shrugged. "Nope, not at all. Why should I?"

"Well, ehm, I know you probably don't like me very much… Given the bad things I've done and said to you and Michiru-san… I'd understand if you'd rather not have me around when you have the choice…" came the difficult answer.

The Senshi of Wind chuckled. "I don't mind it, Ignika. What done is done, and forgiven. Though yeah, it was kind of difficult." Haruka laughed softly. "After you turned me back into a woman, I even… Considered putting on a dress. Just once. Maybe."

Ignika giggled a bit upon hearing that, and tried to picture Haruka in one of Michiru's dresses, or one of Setsuna's, for that matter. It gave birth to a new question, however: "But, Haruka-san, you are a woman, so why do you dress like a man? I know you look a bit like a man, and are easily mistaken for one, but why keep up that act?"

Haruka shrugged. "It's my way. Partly it comes from liking girls… Partly it's just wanting to be strong and independent." She fell silent for a while, then repeated: "It's my way."

Ignika swallowed hard. Haruka suddenly sounded sad or rather troubled while speaking about her way, and it made the boy afraid he had asked something wrong. "I'm sorry, Haruka-san, I didn't want to make you feel bad… I'll shut up now."

"It's okay, Ignika." She said softly and continued driving in silence.

Ignika sighed deeply and looked uncomfortable. "I always end up messing up when asking you questions, Haruka-san… I'm really sorry, it's never my intent, I swear…"

"It's alright, Ignika, really…" Haruka said. "I'm just not really into such talks. I don't like getting deep into myself to find out reasons or stuff like that." She sighed. "I want to be free, like the wind, and the wind exists only outside. There's no wind in closed space."

"That seems rather lonely to me," Ignika muttered as he looked outside the windows of the car. "Is there anyone but Michiru-san who you confide in, Haruka-san?"

"No." Haruka admitted. "And I don't need it. Michiru… She's everything to me. And I'm fine that way."

"It still seems lonely…" the disguised Saurian replied. He looked at the back of her head, thinking deeply. "It reminds me of that old Saurian legend about the wind."

That got Haruka's interest. "A legend?" She asked. "Could you tell me that?"

"Sure thing. This one is insanely old, however. It dates back to before the Great Beings came, even before the crisis of our world, back to the beginning of my species, when we were young and ignorant about the working of the world," Ignika explained happily, glad he got Haruka's interest for a change.

Haruka smiled. "Tell me still." She asked him.

"Well, this was a legend the elders used to explain why birds could fly, and why some plants had seed instead of fruit. That's what most legends are for: to explain what we don't understand," the Child of Life continued. Then he began telling the legend itself: "It is said that before the Saurians came, before there were even birds, the Wind was harsh, cold and lonely. And the Wind thought that was good. But then the wind started to look around. Whenever the wind blew, the creatures that lived sought shelter. The Wind thought they didn't respect him, and used his powers to create storms and shred even mountains. But it only made the creatures hide even more."

"The Wind wondered what was going on, and went to seek out the Water, asking for advice." Ignika was telling the story excitedly and eagerly now, for he enjoyed bringing a bit of his culture to the Senshi. "But when he saw the water carrying and nurturing the fish and sea reptiles in her embrace, the Wind left without asking. The Wind went to the Earth, but when he saw the Earth nurturing the reptiles and mammals in her embrace, the Wind left without asking. The Wind then went to the Fire, confident that no creature could be held in Fire's embrace. And the Wind saw the Fire burn down forests and plains, but the creatures of the world were not afraid. And the Wind asked the Fire why they did not fear his destruction, but feared the Wind."

"The Fire said: because for all I take I give in return. I burn down these trees, but the ashes will be good for new ones to grow tall and strong. I burn down the plains, causing even greener grass to grow in its wakes." The landscape passed by while Ignika told his story. "And the Fire also said: you, Wind, are feared because you bring destruction and nothing else. You make the storms, you tear down the mountains, and leave it to Earth and Water to restore what you tore down."

Ignika paused for a moment to look at Haruka's reaction so far, but she was just listening with interest, so the boy continued his tale: "The Wind then left, and retreated to the top of the highest mountain. There the Wind sat and thought long and deep about what Fire had told him. Finally, the Wind realized he was lonely and decided to change his life. He came down from the mountain, went to plains and asked the grass: is there any way I can help you? And the grass replied: if you want, we'll let you carry our seeds, so you can blow them all across the world, where they will land in new soil and become new, healthy saplings, creating more plains for the creatures to live in. The Wind liked this idea, and accepted. Since then, the Wind has carried the seeds of the world all over the earth and sea."

"But the Wind wanted more," Ignika added. "He had helped the plants of the world, but desired to be like the other elements and nurture creatures in his embrace as well. Then the Wind came across the first bird of the world, who was bound to the ground, and laughed at by the other animals of the world for its lack of arms and silly feathers. And the Wind said to it: spread your feathers, bird, so I may carry you to the greatest heights, to a realm no creature has visited before. The bird obeyed, spread its wings and with the wind through his feather, ascended to the heavens. And so the birds learned to fly, so the plants had their seeds carried, and so the Wind found its purpose."

Ignika finished his story and looked at Haruka expectantly.

Haruka smiled warmly. "That's a good story." She said softly.

"Thank you, Haruka-san," Ignika replied happily. "Though now of course we know better about birds and grass. But the story still has a moral aspect to it, which is why we keep telling it. Do you understand what? It means being the Wind doesn't have to equal being lonely. And not being lonely doesn't equal not being free."

"I understand." Haruka said. "I've learned from my mistakes back then, when we sought the Talismans… Now I have other Senshi as friends and Hotaru as my daughter… I'm not lonely."

"Are we your friends?" Ignika whispered quietly, almost as if he didn't want her to hear the question. He stared outside the window as he whispered it.

"You are." Haruka replied.

That surprised him, and he looked at her wide-eyed. "We are? Even me?"

"Of course you are." Haruka smiled, then chuckled. "Seems you yourself can't quite grasp the concept we tried to explain to Vulcan."

"Ehm, I do understand, but it's just… I did some really bad things to you, Haruka-san… I can't quite get over it myself. It was just bad of me… I'm sorry," he apologized.

"You're forgiven." Haruka said simply. "Ah, here we are." She smiled as she mentioned to the racing track just ahead of them. Ignika excitedly looked outside again, wanting to see this 'race track', but from where he sat, he couldn't see much yet.

Haruka, meanwhile, drove straight into the track's garage and parked her car. As soon as she got out, a man came over to them.

"Ah! Haruka-san! Just on time." He smiled and bowed to her.

Haruka nodded at him. "Hello, Shino-kun. The rest of the mechanics are preparing my car, I hope?"

"Haruka-san, you know us, the car is already prepared for your training!" Shino said in a mockingly offended tone. Then he noticed something. "Hmm? Who's there in your car?"

Ignika by now had unbuckled his seatbelt and, thinking it was okay for him to do so, got out of the car as well, looking around curiously at his new surroundings and at the man talking to his Senshi guide.

"Ah, that's Eiju. Eiju Genkai. He's a son of a family's friend, and today there was absolutely nobody to watch over him." She rolled her eyes. "So I decided he could come along and watch me train."

"I see." Shino smiled. "Well, shall I guide him to the seats, then?"

Haruka nodded. "Yes. Oh, and you can keep him company. If you don't mind, Eiju-kun?" Haruka asked the Saurian kid.

Ignika shook his head. "I don't mind, Haruka-san, I need somebody to explain this all to me after all, I've never been to a 'race track' before, so…" He looked briefly and shyly at the other man, whom he sensed with his powers was just an ordinary human. He had to watch his mouth then, and say nothing that a human wouldn't say.

"Alright then." Haruka smiled. "Well, have fun, you two." She went deeper into the garage, eager to get to the racing car again, to feel the incredibly powerful engine and amazing speed again.

"So, let's go, Eiju-kun?" Shino asked the white-haired kid.

"Okay," the boy nodded eagerly. He looked up nervously at the other man. "Does Haruka-san come here often?"

The man nodded. "Often, yes, but no more often than needed anymore, which is good." He smiled. "Well, let's go then." He led the Saurian child outside the garage into the racing track itself. Ignika went wide-eyed as he looked around at the big racing track, and the buildings and rows upon rows of seats around it. So many new things he had not yet seen before, not even in the concert hall or in the city outside.

"Wow… It's big!" the boy exclaimed innocently, as he went close to the railing around the tracks and pulled himself up so he could look over it.

Shino chuckled. "Of course it is. Careful there, though. Let's go up and take a seat, you'd have a better view of what's happening then." Ignika nodded again, and let the other man show him the way to the seats.

Shino lead the white-haired child to the best seats one could take on a race, and seated himself comfortably. "Aaah, now here's a good view!" He then pointed at the garage. "See the garage gates over there? That's where Haruka-san's car will appear from."

"Is she good at this?" Ignika wondered curiously, looking at the gates his guide pointed at. Truth to be told, he didn't know much about Haruka's hobby and how good she was at it, aside from her piano play, which was excellent.

"Good?" The man exclaimed and looked at the child wide-eyed. "She's among the best of the best! Surely you know that?"

"I didn't even know what racing was until recently," Ignika replied honestly, still looking at the race track. "I've lived a rather… sheltered life, so to speak."

"Oh…" Shino said, taken aback a bit. Haruka said this child was of a family friend, so how come he doesn't know what a race is? Then again, many parents have strange quirks… "Sorry then."

"No, it's okay, I'm just happy I can learn new things, even if I know nothing about cars," the white-haired boy exclaimed happily, smiling briefly at the other man before turning his eyes back to the racing track.

"Ah, that's good." Shino smiled. Then sat up straight and pointed to the garage gates. "Ah, here she comes!" Ignika perked up and fixed his gaze on the garage gates, waiting impatiently for something to happen.

The gates opened, and Haruka came driving out in her racing car. She was smiling, although nobody could see that behind the car's windows and the helmet she was wearing. Haruka was glad to be back in her car, to hear the soft hum of the engine that was ready to become a roar the moment she needed it, to feel the vibration of the car, the car she knew all too well, the one which helped her win many races. Skilfully, Haruka drove to the start line. Just a few more moments, just a swing of the flag, and she'll be faster than the wind. Haruka gave thumb up to her mechanic team, showing everything was fine and she was ready.

In his seat, Ignika observed what was happening on the track carefully. This car looked very different from most he had seen before, and he couldn't even recognize the person behind the steering wheel as Haruka, wearing that helmet and all. "So what will she do now?" the boy asked innocently.

Shino smiled at him. "Well, she's at the start position now, so she'll just wait for the signal, and…"

At that exact moment, the person at the start line waved the flag.

Haruka stepped on the gas, and the car sped off. This was it, the moment she was waiting for, the racing, the insanely fast driving, the moment when the whole world narrows down to your car and the race track, when the only things that matter are skill, speed and time. The car sped down the track, obeying her mistress, perfectly doing all the turns. It was at these moments that she could completely forget all that troubled her, forget her life and her mission for the sake of the race, for the sake of speed, for the sake of victory.

Ignika's eyes were wide like saucers as he followed – or at least tried to – the speeding car with his eyes. Haruka was going insanely fast with her vehicle, at least when one considered that her car didn't have any powers aside from its machinery. It was amazing she could even turn like that. By all logic, she should fly off the track anytime she even tried to steer her car in another direction than straight ahead. It was mind blowing and…

"Isn't that dangerous?" he wondered aloud.

Shino nodded, grinning widely. "You bet it is!" He said proudly. "Why do you think it's so popular?"

"Where's the logic in that?" Ignika asked, not understanding why something dangerous was popular. Haruka could die down there!

"Heh." Shino leaned back on his seat and put his foot on his knee. "There isn't any logic, I guess. It's about the risk, the adrenalin and emotions, and the spirit of competition." He smiled at the speeding car again. "She's the only racer there now… But imagine when six or ten cars are on the same track, racing for the victory."

"Suicidal," Ignika concluded, leaning back in his seat as well, his arms crossed as he sighed and shook his head.

Shino shrugged. "Maybe. But it is still amazing." He smiled again and watched the track with sparkling eyes.

Haruka, meanwhile, finished her fifth lap and slowed down, driving another full lap before fully coming to a halt at the start line. She got out of the car and took her helmet off, looking somewhat tired, but absolutely, genuinely, happy. She went over to the man who waved the flag and measured her time, while the mechanic team hurried to check her car.

Ignika saw her expression, and it puzzled him somewhat. He could understand an adrenaline rush could feel exhilarating, but as far as he knew, people didn't become genuinely happy and content from them. He told himself to ask the older woman what she liked so much about this dangerous game. "Can I go to her now?" he asked his guide.

Shino shrugged. "I dunno, she's just checking her results for now, and if everything's alright with the car, which probably is so, she'll most likely go for another ride."

"Okay, then I'll wait," Ignika decided, happy either way.

* * *

It turned out Ignika had to wait for quite a while, until the very end of the training. The novelty of it all had quickly worn off, and watching a car do the same lap over and over again wasn't as much fun as he had thought it would be. He might as well have stayed home and watched plants, his boredom would have been the same. Still, he didn't regret his choice to tag along, after all, it had allowed him to learn about new things and more about Haruka as a person. But the racing itself… It was noisy, dangerous and monotonous. He really wanted to ask Haruka what she liked so much about it.

"Hey, relax it'd be over soon." Shino said to him. He never tired of watching Haruka on the track. "Look, she's driving into the garage." Indeed, Haruka's car soon disappeared in the garage gates.

"I didn't say anything," Ignika said, surprised the other man had guessed his thoughts. Had he been that obvious and easy to read?

Shino chuckled. "Anyway, kiddo, let's go see Haruka-san again. She's done with her practice, so she'll probably be going home soon. And you don't wanna be left here, do you?" The man winked at the child.

"I'd rather not, no," Ignika agreed, getting off his seat and to his feet.

Shino led the boy to the garage, where Haruka was already dressed in her normal clothes, exhausted but happy. "Hey, Eiju-kun, Shino." She greeted the newcomers softly.

"Hi, Haruka-san," Ignika greeted her in return, smiling happily at her. "It's good to see you're still alive. That was dangerous, you know."

Haruka chuckled softly. "Thanks for your concern, but that's the risk I'm willing to take." The racer then looked at Shino. "Thanks for watching over him."

"No problem, Haruka-san!" The man smiled at her. "When will we see you next time?"

"Oh, I'll arrange the date later. I've been quite busy lately…" Haruka shrugged. "Anyway, I'm going home now."

"Alright." Shino bowed to Haruka again. "Good bye and good luck!" He wished to the racer, then winked at Ignika. "And you too, kiddo!"

"Thanks for being my guide," Ignika replied gratefully, making a polite bow as well.

"You're welcome." The man smiled and went to the rest of the mechanic team, who had already bid their farewells to Haruka.

"So, shall we go, Eiju?" Haruka asked the Child of Life. The boy nodded and quietly followed the Senshi of the Winds to her car. He just hoped she wouldn't think she was still on the race track. That would be scary.

Haruka smiled as she made herself comfortable on the driver's seat of her sports car and drove away from the race track. Compared to the beastly force of the racing car, her sports car was gentle, and driving it through the city after a long and tiring racing practice was welcome and relaxing like a slow pleasant walk on the beach after a long, hard run. Haruka was smiling as she easily made her way down the streets at a comfortable speed.

"Why do you like that dangerous 'racing' so much, Haruka-san?" Ignika wanted to know once they had left the racing track far behind them.

Haruka chuckled. "Can't you guess it yourself?"

"Not really, since I wouldn't do it if I were you. Way too dangerous," the Child of Life answered honestly.

Haruka smiled and shook her head. "It's the same as why Michiru loves swimming. You've seen how I drive on the race track, now imagine me inside the car, how it feels to be in it."

"Scary?" Ignika tried.

Haruka couldn't help but laugh a bit. "I guess it would be for you. But no." Haruka looked dreamily at the road in front of her. "Racing is… Racing is speed, racing is the powerful roaring engine, racing is speeding through the track avoiding obstacles, heading to the finish without looking back. Racing is… Like a storm wind."

"Racing is dangerous," the disguised reptile added helpfully.

"Exactly." Haruka agreed eagerly. "Fast, dangerous and powerful. Like the wind." Haruka smiled. "Like only wind can be…" She added softly.

Ignika scratched his head. "If you want something fast and dangerous, why not go to master Angonce's simulation room and fight a Saurian of Speed? They can outrun the wind."

Haruka shook her head, smiling. "Ignika, there's one big difference. It's the Saurian of Speed that has the speed and outruns the wind, and on the race track, it's me, got it?" She winked at the Child.

"Oh, now I get it. You want to be fast, right?"

Haruka chuckled. "Exactly. The only thing closer to the Wind for me is an airplane, but not even me and Michiru have enough money to buy a private one. Besides, I can't pilot that." Haruka rolled her eyes.

The white-haired child scratched his head in confusion. "A private what?"

"Airplane. It's a flying vehicle." Haruka explained.

"You humans have machines for everything, don't you?" Ignika said in wonder, trying to picture what such a machine would look like in his head, and failing to come up with anything that made sense.

"For most of it, anyway. I'll show you what airplanes look like when we get home." Haruka promised.

"But I thought you said you didn't have one…" the Saurian boy muttered.

"In pictures, of course." Haruka explained.

"Oh, right, sorry, that was stupid of me…" Ignika admitted, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head, his cheeks red from blushing. He looked apologetically at Haruka in the driver's seat.

Haruka chuckled softly. "It's okay."

"Well, regardless, it was still a nice day. Thank you for taking me along, Haruka-san, I learned a lot of new things again," the Child of Life thanked her happily, a wide, sunny smile on his childish features.

"You're welcome, Ignika." Haruka smiled back.

* * *

**Next chapter: Party night!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: You'll see next week if our volleyball girls will have to run or not. ;) Thanks for reviewing!

Lucia Sennen: Just like with Kuroui, you'll find out what Nightmare's face will look like next week. As for Minako's identity, you'll see eventually. Thanks for the review! =)


	100. Party night

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**100. Party night**

"Let's see..." Takako mused, looking into her list. "Cake... Check. Juice... Check. Movies... Check. Decorations..." She looked up at Miyuki and Rumiko hanging baloons onto the walls. "Check. Tons of make-up... Check. Lots of pillows..." Takako looked around her living room and frowned. "Chiara, where are the pillows?"

"Over there." She pointed to the big bag standing in the corner. The black-haired girl sighed. "You sure a sleepover is a good idea?"

"Yes, I'm pretty sure." The party's host answered.

"Why?" Rumiko inquired. "Wouldn't a normal party work better?"

"If it was for a normal girl, maybe, but this is Kira we're dealing with," Takako replied as she began unpacking the pillows. "Kira's a girl in need of comfort. According to Minako, she's never been to a party before, so in order to not overwhelm her, which would not comfort her at all, we need to surround her with things she does know, like pillows. Who doesn't like soft comfortable pillows? And he who says pillows, says sleepover."

"Gee…" Miyuki scratched her head. "I'd expect such logic from Rumiko, but coming from you, Takako…" The team captain shook her head and smiled. "It still just might work, though."

Rumiko nodded. "Yep. I did my best with the cake, so we're sure to succeed!" She punched the air above her enthusiastically… CRASH! … and fell down together with the stepladder. "Oww…"

At that moment, Takako's cell phone gave a ring, indicating there was a new message for her. Picking up her phone, Takako read it and said: "Okay, girls, they've left the house already. Let's clean up the preparation stuff and set the table, then change into pyjamas."

The girls nodded and hurriedly set to work, determined to make this the best sleepover ever.

* * *

"Where are we going, onee-chan?" Nightmare wondered as she walked at her adopted sister's side. "It's already evening, the sun's setting, there's no enemies to fight, so why are we out here on the streets going to Great Beings know where?"

"Oh, you'll see." Minako smiled at her sister. "It's a secret surprise for you."

"Why so secretive? I barely had time to watch Death Note properly! What could be so important that I can't watch Death Note in all comfort?" the disguised Saurian demanded, not convinced or pleased with the answer she got at all.

Minako chuckled, remembering Takako wanted to get the OVAs of Death Note for this party. "Oh, you'll get your Death Note, don't worry." She smiled. Now that did please Nightmare, somewhat, but realizing she wouldn't get anything out of the blonde, she decided to remain silent.

"Ah, here we are!" Minako said, stopping by an apartment block. She came over to the door intercom and phoned Takako's apartment. "It's us, open up!" She said cheerfully as soon as Takako answered it.

Nightmare frowned. "Whose place are we at now, onee-chan?" She suddenly started to become suspicious. What had her sister been planning?

Minako didn't answer and simply led her sister into the building, walking up the stairs to the second floor. The Saurian of Fear followed cautiously, tensed and ready to summon her katana. Maybe her beloved sister was possessed by one of Zyglak's minions and she was leading her in a trap!

Minako, sensing her suspicions though their bond, chuckled and led her to one of the apartment doors. "Don't be silly." She said and pushed the door's handle. The door opened, as was planned, and Minako led her sister inside. Nightmare followed, eased by Minako's words. As soon as she came in, a sweet, delicious scent filled her nostrils, it was a scent she knew and loved.

"Cake?" she exclaimed, her eyes wide and she turned to her sister, begging for confirmation.

"Yep!" Minako smiled. "Let's go and get it!" Nightmare nodded and eagerly, maybe too eager, followed her sister to the living room of the dark apartment.

Minako turned on the light, revealing the beautifully set table with a huge chocolate cake in the middle. "The cake says 'Forgive us, Kira!'" Minako read aloud for her little sister.

That was the signal, and the four volleyball girls jumped from behind the couch, shouting "SURPRISE!"

Nightmare was taken aback by the surprise, her jaw hit the floor and her eyes as wide as saucers. She stared at the cake, then at the four volleyball girls, then at her sister, and then back again, repeating the process. She couldn't bring out a word. "Onee-chan! I… You… They… Cake… What?" Nightmare found herself overwhelmed, and she hated that immensely. "WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?"

"We wanted to apologize, Kira-chan." Rumiko said quickly.

"Yes, and since you didn't want to listen to anything we say, we made this party for you." Miyuki continued.

"And made the cake." Chiara finished. Then the three unfortunate spies bowed to the girl they hurt.

"Forgive us!" They said in unison.

Nightmare just looked at Minako, utterly bewildered and caught off guard. She had no idea what she was supposed to do or say. Minako smiled at her sister. "I say you forgive them. In that case, we're gonna have a lot of fun!"

"I… But… You… They… We…" Nightmare couldn't utter any coherent sentence. What was with the cake? With all those strange round, colourful things hanging all over? Why had her onee-chan agreed with this in the first place?

"Come on…" Minako said, smiling. "They tried their best to bake the cake, to prepare this party, all for a chance to apologize to you. You should appreciate their effort." Nightmare finally calmed down enough to take calm breaths, but she didn't reply, merely turned her back to the other girls and crossed her arms, huffing in annoyance.

"Kira… We acted carelessly and without thinking how you would feel…" Chiara said quietly, still bowing. "It's my fault, and I deeply regret it. Forgive me…"

"Yes, Kira-chan… We're also sorry for going along with this idea." Rumiko said.

Takako bowed as well. "I am sorry for not talking them out of it."

Miyuki sighed and said in a begging tone: "Please, Kira… Forgive us, and come back to the volleyball trainings."

Nightmare didn't reply right away, her arms crossed and her back turned to them still. She was thinking, her face an angry frown. They sounded sincere… but that didn't mean anything to the Saurian girl. They had betrayed her once, they could do so again. "You hurt me," she growled finally.

"We know it, Kira…" Chiara said quietly. "We regret it a lot…"

"But we didn't mean to! We didn't know you'd take it so personal…" Rumiko added, almost crying.

Minako, who had been standing still up until now, came over to her sister and put a hand on her shoulder. She whispered: "They hurt you, yes… But you need to learn to forgive that. I forgave you, didn't I?"

"Easy for you to say," Nightmare hissed.

"Is it…?" Minako reached to her through the bond and briefly touched the feeling of pain she had from when Nightmare told she's not her sister. In return, Nightmare touched the feeling of pain she had from the 'betrayal' of the other girls.

Minako closed her eyes. She could remind her of the time of their first symbiosis, but decided not to. It would be unfair. "Perhaps…" She slowly said. "But, Kira… Do you see any other way out?"

"Never see them again?" the other girl tried.

"It isn't a way out." Minako said quietly. "It's running away from the problem. Besides, do you think the hurt will go away that way?"

"Will it if I open myself for more hurt?" Nightmare asked loudly. "There's no guarantee that even if I forgive them, they won't just end up betraying me again. They did it once, they're more than capable of doing it again!"

"But we didn't do it on purpose, Kira!" Miyuki tried to reason. "We didn't know we were betraying you…"

"Then why?" Ignika's youngest sister demanded.

"We were just curious, that's all!" Chiara said.

"If you really turned out to be an alien… It would be so cool!" Rumiko said. "It'd be like we're in a story from my favourite books…"

Takako sighed. "Those idiots were just playing a game."

Hearing Rumiko, Nightmare gasped inaudibly. She grabbed her sister by the arm and tugged her out of the living room, whispering: "Do they know?" Looking frightfully over her shoulder at the bewildered girls in the living room.

Minako shook her head wildly. "No they don't. I know it, their suspicions were unconfirmed. Until Gravitas showed up, at least, but her behaviour is explainable, I told them she's autistic…"

"She's what?"

"It's a mental illness…" Minako said slowly, then quickly added: "Look, I know she's probably not, but saying she is perfectly explains her emotionlessness."

"So it's an excuse, like my fake background story you told them?"

"Yes, it is." Minako nodded. "Now let's go back to them…" Nightmare reluctantly nodded, and allowed her adopted sister to drag her back to the living room.

The girls, who were looking at each other, confused by the two 'cousins' suddenly exiting the room, quickly bowed again. "Will you forgive us, Kira?" Chiara asked.

"I… I don't know…" the younger girl muttered, feeling uncertain and confused. Instinct said not to forgive them, that broken trust could not be mended. But her sister, and everybody else in the room, was practically begging her to forgive her. And Minako did have a point, she had forgiven her after Nightmare had hurt her so badly. Kira sighed. "If I do, will you never hurt me again…?" It sounded more like she was pleading than she was asking, for she felt vulnerable at this moment.

"We won't." Miyuki said. "We promise."

"We all promise." The guilty girls said in unison.

Nightmare looked at Minako questioningly, silently asking her if the girls were sincere. Ignika's sister herself could not say. Minako nodded assuring, smiling. 'Kira' let out a very deep sigh, clasped her hands together, twiddled her thumbs for a bit, bowed her head and finally said: "Then I… I guess I forgive you."

The girls looked up at her. "Really?" They asked in unison.

"Yes, she's serious about it. Right?" Minako smiled, putting her hand on Nightmare's shoulder so she could feel all the pride and happiness she felt for her sister. Nightmare merely nodded in silence, still not sure if she had made the right decision. Why did she feel so vulnerable now? Heck, why did she feel like she was about to cry?

The girls finally rose up from their bowing position. "Thank you, Kira!" They all said.

"So, girls, party?" Minako winked. "Let's eat the cake!"

"Alright!" Takako said cheerfully. "Rumi-chan, cut the cake, Miyuki-chan, pour the juice, Chiara, you put the cake on plates, and I'm putting music on!" After handling out commands, Takako practically danced to the stereo station.

Minako laughed softly. "Wait-wait-wait, girls. It's a sleepover party, right?" She gestured at the girls who were dressed in pyjamas.

"Oh yeah, right." Takako said sheepishly.

"It's a what?" Nightmare asked, bewildered.

"A sleepover party." Minako explained. "We have fun wearing pyjamas and then stay for the night!"

"Oh," came the quiet reply. Despite all the happy moods surrounding her, the Saurian girl herself didn't feel all that fantastic. She was struggling with herself, doubt and stubbornness tearing at her, dragging her between her two sides: one which was happy with her decision, the other which berated her for it.

"So let's go change, I brought our pyjamas with me." Minako said. "The girls will prepare in the meantime, right?" Minako winked at her friends.

"We sure will." Miyuki smiled broadly. Nightmare didn't say anything, in fact, she hadn't even heard what her sister had said, too occupied by her own thoughts.

Minako simply smiled and took her sister to Takako's room. "Here." She handed Nightmare a red pyjamas. Nightmare looked at it once, sighed, shook her head and pushed her sister's hand away. "What? You don't like it?" Minako said, frowning. "I spent two hours choosing it!"

Nightmare walked to a corner of a room, sat down in it, hugged her legs up to her chest and started to sulk. She buried her face in her arms and nearly started to cry.

Minako frowned and came over to her. "Come on, what's wrong?" She asked kindly, kneeling down to her. To her surprised, Nightmare sobbed. "Imouto-chan…" Minako hugged her crying sister. Her little sister liked the embrace, but still didn't say anything, too caught up in her misery.

Minako felt her sister's misery, but couldn't really understand why she felt that way now. "Come on… What's wrong, imouto-chan? You forgave them, we're having a party, there's lot of fun things to do, why are you crying?" She asked gently, stroking her hair.

"I… don't know, onee-chan," Nightmare whispered back, very quietly, interrupted now and then by sobs. She leaned into her sister's embrace.

"Well, try and tell me…" Minako smiled. "I'm very proud you forgave them, you know…"

"Are you?" the Saurian girl wondered aloud. "Why?"

"Because it was a right thing to do… And a big step for you, imouto-chan." The Senshi explained, hugging her sister tightly. Nightmare just sighed, and cried further. She seemed to be crying a lot lately, the Saurian realized with disgust. When did she become so weak? It bugged her.

"It's not weakness, you know." Minako said, guessing her thoughts. "It's quite a natural reaction, spilling out sadness and other negative emotions through tears… It's much better than bottling it up."

"I'm doing it way too much lately!" Nightmare objected.

"That's just making up for all the time you kept suppressing it." Minako said. "Also, there's a lot of completely new things that never happened to you before going on lately, so, it's okay." Nightmare snivelled and hugged Minako tightly.

"Well, come on. Wipe your tears, let's change into pyjamas and have fun with the rest of the girls, okay?" Minako offered to her sister.

"I can't…"

"Why so?" Minako asked, surprised.

"I don't know… I just… feel that way," came the hesitant reply. "I feel out of place."

Her sister smiled. "Don't worry, Nightmare. The girls know that, and will do their best to make you feel at ease." She assured her sister. Nightmare knew her sister was speaking the truth, but still couldn't quite convince herself of it.

"Come on!" Minako smiled, then looked around as if trying to make sure nobody would hear, even though there wasn't anybody else in the room. Then she bent down and whispered in Nightmare's ear: "I wasn't supposed to tell you this, but! Takako rented DVDs of Death Note OVAs, the Director's Cut version!"

Nightmare's eyes widened. "She what?"

"Yep! OVA means it's only available on DVD, and the Director's Cut includes scenes that weren't in the series! The whole Death Note story in two movies!" Minako eagerly explained.

That got Nightmare excited, and she wanted to go downstairs to watch it immediately, but remembered something about having to change in sleeping clothes first. That was another thing that didn't sit well with her. "Onee-chan, if we have to be in our sleeping clothes, why didn't you bring my nightgown?"

"Well, pyjamas are more suited for this…" Minako said reluctantly. "And, you said you don't like that pink frilly thing, didn't you?"

"I guess…" Nightmare said with a shrug.

"So wear this!" She gave Nightmare the red pyjamas. "I spent a lot of time choosing the right one, you know."

Nightmare studied it for a moment. It was a nice summer pyjama, with short sleeves and short legs. All the better, for Nightmare disliked long pants. Having the entirety of her legs and arms covered up didn't feel natural or right to the disguised Saurian girl. "I like it," she said with an appreciating smile.

"Yay!" Minako said, picking up her own pale-yellow one. "Now let's change and get this party started!" Her adopted sister nodded, and began to change.

* * *

"What took you two so long?" The party host asked, smiling. Everybody was sitting on the floor around the glass table, waiting for Minako and Kira to come. The disguised reptile looked around, trying to catch a glimpse of the cake and of Death Note. She did see the cake pretty soon, since it was on the table, already sliced and partly on plates, but it didn't look like anybody had started eating yet.

Nightmare tugged at her Onee-chan's sleeve. "Onee-chan, what do we do now, actually? I've never been to a 'par tee' before."

Miyuki winked at Nightmare. "First of all, Kira-chan, we have cake!"

Chiara nodded. "Come on, have a seat and have some!" She invited the Saurian. The Saurian girl eagerly accepted that invitation, took a seat and looked at the piece of cake on her plate. It smelled like cake, but had 'chocolate' on it, making it all the more appealing for the girl, and she eagerly wolfed it down.

"Heheh… How is it?" Rumiko asked, a little baffled by Kira's lack of manners.

"I love cake!" Nightmare grinned triumphantly. "It's the best food ever. We never ate stuff like this in Voya."

"Where?" Chiara raised her eyebrow.

"Ahh, ehh, it's the name of the orphanage Kira comes from!" Minako said as quickly as possible, making it up as she went on. "It's not really a word, just the founders' initials mashed together or something like that, heh…" Minako hit Nightmare with her elbow, both to urge her to agree and to make her watch her tongue.

Nightmare merely nodded, extending her plate, wanting another slice of cake.

"Here you go, Kira-chan!" Rumiko gave her some more cake. "I'm glad you like it! I made it myself."

"It's great," Nightmare replied quickly, already stuffing her mouth with more cake, stars in her eyes.

The others smiled and ate their cake, too, until Chiara raised her glass. "I have a toast."

Everybody raised their glasses and waited for Chiara to continue. Nightmare looked confused at her sister, whispering: "Onee-chan, what's a toast? Why are we raising our glasses?"

"Aah, it's just cheering for something by drinking." Minako whispered back. "When she says it, just clink your glass with the others and drink it fully."

"I'm glad we all finally made peace with Kira-chan, and would like to toast to that! Cheers!" She said cheerfully and the girls began clinking glasses. Nightmare did so as well, obeying the instructions she had just gotten from sister.

After the girls drank, Takako said: "Say, why don't we make it a bit more fun? I'll put on some music…"

"Actually…" Minako said. "Kira-chan had been really looking forward to seeing Death Note." She winked at the host, and Nightmare nodded eagerly, looking at Takako with begging eyes. The Saurian girl tried her cute look again, and ended up looking scary.

Takako shivered. "Don't do that… I was going to put it on later in the evening, anyway…" She went over to the TV and turned it on.

"I'll get the popcorn!" Rumiko scurried to the kitchen.

Nightmare looked sad at Minako. "Why does it always work when you do it, onee-chan, and never when I do?"

"Ehhh…" Miyuki, who had been doing theatre once, said. "Umm… The smile looks artificial… it's plastered on your face and somehow resembles a scowl… And the eyes lack the cute expression, they're scary."

The disguised reptile scratched the back of her head. "Well, I suppose it's a compliment that I can't be cute." She grinned. "We can't all be Eiju's."

Miyuki raised her eyebrow. "Actually, you can be cute. Just not when you try to fake it. You were pretty cute when eating cake…"

"Agreed!" The other three girls said.

Nightmare glared at them in mock-anger. "I was not!" she protested loudly.

"Yes you were!" Rumiko said, returning with the popcorn. "Believe me, I'm the expert in cuteness!"

The girls sweatdropped. "Wouldn't say that about your pet piranha…" Takako muttered.

"I can't be cute!" Nightmare insisted. "Hiroko, yes, me, no way!"

All the girls looked at her wide-eyed. "Hiroko can?" They asked in unison. Nightmare raised an eyebrow, looking unimpressed, almost challengingly. She crossed her arms.

"Why could my sister not look cute?"

"Uhh…" Chiara said, looking at the other girls… "Umm… It's not that she can't… It's just we know her too little, and it's kind of hard to imagine her being cute…"

Nightmare glanced at her blonde sister. "Onee-chan, you know my sister can be cute, right?"

Minako smiled. "Sure she can. In her own way, but… She can." The Senshi nodded. The Saurian of Fear grinned triumphantly and looked at the other girls with a look that clearly said: 'see?'.

"Heheh… I guess…" Chiara smiled.

"Anyway, let's watch the movie." Takako said, putting the DVD into the player. Nightmare jumped up from her place and immediately crashed into the couch, overexcited eyes fixed on the screen, waiting impatiently for her favourite show to begin.

"And then you go saying you're not cute…" Miyuki smiled, and the girls took their places on the couch and armchairs, too. For once Nightmare didn't deny the claim, too focussed on the screen, wanting to miss not even a microsecond.

The girls, while not really being fans of Death Note, still watched the movie happily. Somehow, Takako's seemingly crazy plan worked. Not only they weren't shouted at by Kira, but also made peace with her and even were going to have a fun sleepover party! This made all the effort it took them to make this party worth it.

* * *

The credits rolled over the screen, and Nightmare sat back in the couch, letting out a satisfied sigh. The movie had been great fun to watch, and she was happy that they had. She glanced to her sides, trying to guess from their facial expressions if the others had liked it as much as she had.

The girls liked the movie alright, especially Rumiko, who happened to be Near's fan. "Lovely movie, no?" She asked Kira.

"You bet it was!" the disguised Saurian replied enthusiastically.

Chiara chuckled and looked at Nightmare. "It must be cool to have the same name as the most hot-looking madman in anime."

Nightmare frowned in incomprehension. "Hot-looking? He seemed to have a normal body temperature to me." She looked at her blonde sister, silently asking her with her eyes what the other volleyball girl had meant.

"Heheh, Kira-chan, Chiara means he's handsome and attractive." Minako winked. "Personally, I agree."

"Oh, I see," Nightmare muttered quietly, in her head still trying to figure out what 'hot' had to do with being considered attractive or handsome. It made little sense to the disguised reptile. Then again, it proved there were still differences between the human and Saurian language, which suited Ignika's youngest sister fine.

"Who's your favourite character, Kira-chan?" Miyuki asked.

"Definitely Ryuk," came the confident answer, and 'Kira' smirked. "I just love that smile…" she added dreamily, her eyes glazed.

"Ehhh…" The volleyball girls sweatdropped. "Okay…"

"Now I get it why you said to have many apples at the party…" Takako whispered to Minako.

Heedless of the stares she was getting or Takako's whispering, Nightmare sat up straight and clasped her hands together. "So, that was the movie. What are we supposed to do next? I never have been to a 'par tee' before, so I have no clue." She then leaned closer to Takako. "And did I hear you say 'apples'?"

"Yep, you did." Takako smiled. "And now… Well, let's listen to some music, for starters. There are a lot of Helloween and Gamma Ray songs you haven't heard yet, Kira-chan." She winked at the Saurian. This nearly made Kira jump with joy. The other girl walked over to her CD collection and fished out the desired album, putting it in the player.

"If you're a power metal fan, Kira-chan, you must know where it all began," the metal head explained with a grin. "And that is with this album, the legendary 'Keeper of the Seven Keys – Part 1'!"

"Heh, metalheads…" Chiara rolled her eyes.

"Here are the apples!" Rumiko said, bringing a whole bowl of them from the kitchen.

Nightmare, who had been listening transfixed to the music of the first song "I'm Alive", snapped out of her trance and looked at the bowl of apples, eagerly picking one up. Sure, Saurians preferred to be carnivorous, but they could stomach things that weren't meat, too, like fruit. And she liked apples. Licking her lips, Nightmare began to wolf it down.

"She's a Ryuk fan alright…" Miyuki muttered. Hearing that, Minako whispered to her sister:

"Kira-chan, watch your manners."

"My manners?" Nightmare echoed after she swallowed her current bite of apple. She wiped her mouth off with the back of her hand. "What's wrong with my manners?"

"Umm, pretty much everything…" Minako shrugged. "I understand you love apples, but could you please not devour them so eagerly when visiting other people?"

"What's wrong with showing my love for apples?" she countered, tearing another big chunk of apple out of the one she had in her hand. She looked questioningly with raised eyebrows at her sister, and then at the other girls, while still trying to catch the music in the background.

"Umm, well…" Miyuki said. "Japanese girls tend to be… more modest."

"But I'm not Japanese," Kira said.

"Still, you're in our country now." Minako said. "It's a matter of showing politeness and respect, Kira-chan."

"So is this what we do at a 'par tee', complaining about manners?" Nightmare huffed, annoyed.

"No-no, of course not." Rumiko said quickly, not wanting to give Kira a wrong impression. She looked at her fellow teammates: "So what do we do now? Make-up or pillow fight?" Nightmare shivered, not sure if she liked the sound of that first option.

"Make-up?" she repeated, swallowing hard, nearly choking in her apple.

"Yep!" Minako smiled. "At sleepover parties, girls do make-up, both for themselves and on each other. It's a great way to try new styles and cosmetics without having to buy them." Nightmare groaned audibly.

"Aww… Come on, Kira-chan, it's fun!" Rumiko said.

"I'm pretty enough on my own," the disguised Saurian grumbled.

"We know you are. But remember how you looked that time when we went to the concert?" Minako winked at her sister.

"Concert?" Takako raised her eyebrow.

"Yep. Kira-chan and her family went to a concert of Michiru Kaioh." Minako smiled.

Everybody's jaw dropped. "Michiru Kaioh?" They exclaimed.

"It was boring as heck," Nightmare said with a shrug. She gestured at the stereo that was still playing Helloween. "That's much better music."

"Each to his own, I guess…" Rumiko said uncertainly. "But man, Michiru Kaioh herself!" She sighed dreamily. "Hey, you heard the latest rumour?" She said, sitting down and getting everybody's attention. "They said that at the last concert, Haruka and Michiru played some kind of an amazing melody! People say it sounded alien and strange, but amazingly sad and beautiful."

"Is that so? Who's the composer?" Chiara asked.

"That's the point!" Rumiko exclaimed. "Nobody knows who composed it, the style is unlike any known composer throughout history! And that composition wasn't even announced in the concert's program!"

"It was my oldest sister," Nightmare said with a shrug. "Amane Genkai. She likes that kind of stuff, lives with Eiju at their house even, has manwoman and Michiru teach her how to play the piano. Apparently she's good at it." She didn't see why she couldn't share this piece of information, or that it could be considered amazing.

That caused shock much more grand than Nightmare could ever expect. All girls, save for Minako, stared at her, rendered completely speechless and not unable to believe their ears.

"What?" Nightmare asked, not really understanding.

Minako sighed and put a hand on her shoulder. "Kira-chan, that was supposed to be a secret… But yeah." Minako looked at the other girls. "Haruka and Michiru are doing a charity program, and her sister is indeed a talented pianist, so yeah, it's true… "

"Amazing…" Miyuki whispered.

"So Amane is… Michiru's protégé or something?" Rumiko asked.

"Yeah, she is. Dunno when Michiru is going to bring her on stage, but…" Minako shrugged.

"Wow… I'm in the same room with someone who is related to a musical sensation! Pinch me, I must be dreaming!" Rumiko exclaimed. Nightmare obeyed the command and pinched Rumiko tightly in the cheek. "OWWW!"

Ignika's youngest sister raised an eyebrow. "You asked for it, didn't you?" she said innocently.

"Yeah, but…" Rumiko said, rubbing her cheek. "I thought you'd pinch me in the arm, and not so hard… Oww…"

"Well, sorry then," Nightmare shrugged. After a moment, she added: "If it excites you so much, I'm sure I could convince Amane to meet you or something."

"Umm… That'd be nice of you…" Rumiko said, smiling shyly. "But… I think I'm kinda shy to meet someone famous… I mean, I'd be so nervous! Wouldn't know what to talk about…"

Ignika's youngest sister raised her eyebrow again. "Amane's hardly famous. Nobody knows her, or knows that _she_ composed that apparently revolutionary piece of music. I don't get the hype, myself. Sure, it was the nicest part of the concert and didn't bore me, but it still got nothing on some good heavy metal."

"Well, true, I guess, but still…" Rumiko said shyly.

"Hey, don't mind Rumi-chan." Chiara waved her hand. "It's just that Michiru Kaioh is very famous, and Amane being her student automatically makes her special."

Miyuki nodded. "She may not be known to the general public now, but she'll definitely be someday."

"If you girls say so," Nightmare shrugged. "Don't take me wrong, I love Amane, she's my big sister, but she's so obsessed with Eiju she often forgets me, Hiroko or useless. And why she picked the boring style of music I'll never get."

"Um, who's 'useless'?" Rumiko asked.

"Ah, that's her older brother Masahiro." Minako rolled her eyes. "Carefree and reckless. He lives with my friend Makoto now."

"Oh? That's interesting." Takako remarked. "Makoto is that tomboy girl who lives alone and loves cooking, right?"

"If I didn't know that airhead of my brother better, I'd say he was head over heels for that girl," Nightmare shrugged. "But of course he's not. He may be an idiot, but even he has more common sense than to fall in love, of all things." She gagged and made an expression as if she was going to puke. "Sickening."

Rumiko raised both eyebrows. "Why?" She asked with surprise. It was strange for her and the other girls to hear Nightmare say that, since they all thought love is beautiful and dreamed of one true love.

"Love's sickening and useless. Not familial love, of course, but the romantic kind," the disguised reptile explained with a matter-of-factly tone. "It's useless, has no purpose and is so painful…" Nightmare shivered again.

"Painful, huh…" Chiara said thoughtfully. The girls fell silent and wondered what could have caused Kira to think so. An unlucky crush? Or something worse? Takako shivered. Maybe Kira was abused by adults… Even Minako looked at her 'cousin' with surprise. True, Nightmare had never been a fan of romantic things, yet this was the first time she said love is painful.

Nightmare raised an eyebrow. Why were they all so silent? Had she said something wrong? Hesitatingly, she tugged at her sister's sleeve. "Did I say anything bad, onee-chan?"

"Um, no, you didn't." Minako smiled awkwardly. "It's just kinda… strange that you think love is painful. Makes us think something bad happened to you before." Her little adopted sister frowned, and crossed her arms while biting her lip thoughtfully. She suspected she had to tell the blonde and the other girls why she thought so, and if something bad had happened before or not. But how far could she tell the truth without blowing her cover?

"I've always been shunned, pestered or hated," she began slowly, carefully picking her words. "Nobody ever liked me, let alone boys… But then there was a… certain point in my life, where they began to express… unlikable interest in me." Nightmare growled softly and clenched her fists, close to snarling. "I mean, how would you be? First males shun you, and then suddenly they're all on you trying to shove their privates into you! Of course I started to think love sucks!"

The girls all gasped, and Rumiko even hid her face in her hands, blushing furiously. They now all imagined a gang of older boys in the orphanage trying to rape poor little Kira…

"Oh god…" Miyuki whispered, shaking her head. "We're so sorry, Kira-chan…"

"What are you sorry for?" Nightmare asked, a bit sharper than she had intended. She huffed and growled again. "It's not your fault. And they didn't succeed, if that's what you're worried about. I beat them to a pulp, but there were and will always be others."

"Sorry for asking and making you remember it…" Minako said slowly. It made sense now… She sighed.

"Like I said, it's not your fault," Ignika's youngest sister assured her older sibling. "Love just sucks, that's all there is to it."

"Yeah, except it doesn't…" Minako sighed. Then smiled and jumped up. "Alright, enough with the sad mood!" She declared.

"Hey, good idea." Takako smiled. "Parties are supposed to be fun, no reason to talk about the past." The other girls nodded and pushed the sad thoughts away.

"Eh, so what do we do then, if not talking about my messed up feelings and the sucking of love?" the Saurian girl asked, innocently and naively. She truly had no clue, having never been to a party before.

Minako ran to the corner of the room where pillows were piled up and cried:

"I declare a pillow fight!" With those words, she expertly tossed pillows to her teammates and Nightmare. Nightmare caught it with ease, but looked at the pillow in her hands with confusion in her eyes.

"What's a pillow fight?"

"It's a playful fight with pillows." Rumiko smiled, standing up. She had to immediately duck, however, to avoid yet another pillow thrown by Minako. "Hey!" She picked the pillow up and threw it back at her but was immediately attacked by Chiara. Miyuki meanwhile took cover behind the armchairs and sneaked up on Minako while Takako made her way to the pillow pile.

Nightmare observed the event from where she was sitting on the floor, a frown still on her face. It seemed so… stupid. Fighting with pillows? You couldn't pick a much more ridiculous weapon than that. You can't even hurt your opponent with it! But somehow, Nightmare thought winning and defeating the opponents were not the points of this 'fight'. So why call it a fight? It made no sense.

"Come on, Kira-chan, join the fun!" Rumiko urged the disguised Saurian, after yet another successful hit on Chiara. Nightmare wasn't sure she should. Sure, pillows used as weapons by humans was silly, but by her… With her strength, such a blow could hurt. A lot.

A pillow that came flying from behind her interrupted her thoughts, hitting her on the head. Nightmare let out a muffled screech and tried to find her attacker, the pillow clutched firmly in her hands. She saw Takako smirking and diving behind the couch. Nightmare jumped to her feet and dove after her. She'd teach her to throw pillows while she was being worried!

"Yep! That's the spirit!" Takako laughed, hitting Nightmare with her pillow. Nightmare hit right back, swatting her girl in the face with her own pillow. Takako fell on her back, and Nightmare jumped right on top of her, pinning her down. Minako saw it and threw another pillow at Nightmare, hitting her, hoping it'd get her attention. It did, and Nightmare let go of Takako in favour of chasing her sister around the room. After a while, Minako stopped running and faced her sister head on.

"Remember, it's just a game." She said quietly, hitting Nightmare with her pillow. The disguised reptile dodged the blow, but nodded in understanding, then pulled Minako's legs out from under her, making her fall. Luckily, Nightmare had been so considerate to put a pillow beneath her head so she wouldn't hurt herself. The Saurian of Fear then climbed on top of the blonde and pinned her down.

"I get that now, Onee-chan," she said with a smirk, sticking out her tongue. Minako smiled back and hit her sister on the head with her pillow, taking her chance and rolling over her.

"Yep!" She said smiling and ran towards Miyuki. Nightmare growled.

"Hey, get back here! I wasn't done with you!" she cried, chasing after her. The chase was interrupted by Chiara, who threw her pillow under Nightmare's feet, making her trip. The Saurian girl landed on her hands and flipped herself over, throwing her legs around Chiara's waist and dragging her down, before hitting the volleyball girl in the face with a pillow. The fun was interrupted by Miyuki who calmly walked past them and simply dropped a pillow on Nightmare's face.

"Oh now you've done it!" Nightmare growled playfully, letting go of Chiara and attacking the team captain. Miyuki eagerly fought back, smiling and laughing as pillows hit bodies. The Saurian girl soon got possession of a second pillow, and increased her assault. Miyuki got herself a second pillow, too, courtesy of Chiara, and parried Nightmare's attacks. The fights around them stopped, as the girls watched the duel with interest. Rumiko and Minako started cheering on Nightmare, while Chiara and Takako cheered on Miyuki, just so they'd be even.

It went on for a bit, until Nightmare stepped back too far, coming with her back against the couch. Another blow of Miyuki, and she fell over, landing upside down on the other side, the shirt of her pyjama sliding off.

Miyuki bent over the couch. "You okay?" She asked worriedly, for such a fall could easily cause a twisted neck or something. Nightmare grinned up at her.

"Just fine!" she threw her pillow at the other girl, but Miyuki dodged. Nightmare shrugged, not caring either way, and got herself up, trying to find her shirt. The shirt was captured by Chiara, who held it in front of herself teasingly. Nightmare shrugged.

"Give it back, or I'll take yours, and the rest you have on," she threatened.

"Sure thing!" Chiara smiled, tossing Nightmare her shirt.

"Aww, didn't think you'd give in so quickly," the Saurian smirked, putting her shirt back on.

"Nah, I just know my pyjamas would probably end up ripped, and I like it." Chiara rolled her eyes. Nightmare shrugged again, accepting that reason. She looked around the room, and noticed Rumiko was faced away, blushing.

"What's with her?" the Saurian wondered aloud.

"Ah, she's just shy." Minako chuckled.

"But she had no problem being with us in the shower when we were all naked!" Nightmare noted, scratched her head. Rumiko's behaviour made little sense now.

"B… but shower is different…" Rumiko said meekly.

"Eh, why?" Nightmare wanted to know, still not understanding. "In the shower, we were all as naked as the day we crawled out of our eggs, we were wet and open for all to see! Now I just accidentally had my shirt off! So less nudity makes you blush more, Rumiko? That makes no sense!"

"Umm… ehh… it's not that…" Rumiko said. She didn't want to bring the cheery mood down by saying that seeing Kira without the t-shirt reminded of the subject they talked about before the pillow fight, and she had very rich imagination.

Nightmare gulped hard, getting an entirely different idea, and she fled to the other side of the room. "You're not attracted to me, are you?"

"Wha? W-… No, not at all!" Rumiko nearly screamed, shutting her eyes tightly, embarrassed even more. Nightmare screamed too, running over to Minako and hiding behind her.

"She's denying it, Onee-chan, which means she means the opposite! Help!" the Saurian girl squeaked.

"Relax, I know she's not like that." The Senshi assured her sister. "She has a crush on Mokuba-sensei, doesn't she?" She smiled devilishly at the other girls.

"She sure does!" Miyuki confirmed in a singsong voice.

"STOP EMBARASSING ME!" Rumiko screamed.

Nightmare decided something had to be done by then. It was obvious the girl was embarrassed, and didn't like it, and she trusted her onee-chan when she said Rumiko wasn't like that. So, she went over to the older girl and put an arm around her, leading her to the couch, hoping she was doing the 'being kind' part good.

"Ehm… I'm supposed to say 'there there', now, right?" she asked sheepishly. "Followed by, 'it's okay'?"

"Yep!" Minako nodded, while the other three girls tried to muffle the "KAWAII!" screams that were about to get out any moment now. Nightmare glared daggers at them.

"I am NOT cute!" she growled.

No matter how embarrassed Rumiko was, she managed to mumble: "Yes you are…" Now Nightmare glared at her too.

"Am not!"

"Are too!" Takako said.

"Alright, that's it!" Nightmare said sharply, jumping to her feet. "I'm taking off Miyuki's shirt!" And she dove for the volleyball team captain, determination in her eyes.

"W… What the? Why?" Miyuki said, trying to defend herself.

Nightmare stopped for a moment. "Well, I won't take mine off, and I can't do that to poor Rumiko, and I can't do it to Onee-chan either. But Rumiko still has to be punished for calling me cute. So, I'm taking your shirt off. Or Chiara's or Takako's, take your pick, doesn't make a whole lot of difference," the Saurian girl explained patiently, with a creepy innocent smile on her face. Then she dove for Miyuki again.

Miyuki fought back for some time, then said: "Ah, what the heck." And took it off herself.

Rumiko immediately blushed and turned away, and the rest of the girls looked at the team captain with envy. Miyuki had the biggest and prettiest breasts of them all. Nightmare didn't care about that, she simply grinned as her plan had succeeded, and patted Rumiko on the shoulder.

"See? I'm not cute. I'm a devious little she-devil!" she grinned. "I embarrass others by making more others take their shirts off! I'm mean and totally not cute!"

"OKAY! OKAY! YOU AREN'T! YOU AREN'T!" The poor embarrassed girl screamed.

Nightmare giggled, and hugged Rumiko tightly to her chest.

"Uh… K-Kira chan…?" The girl with glasses said uncertainly, so surprised she forgot to be embarrassed.

"I didn't meant to hurt you, if that's what you were worried about," the Saurian girl shrugged. She looked hesitatingly at her sister. Was she doing this okay? "But maybe a little payback was in order, eh?"

"Umm… yeah, I guess…" Rumiko said, the unusualness of this situation forcing all the embarrassment away. Minako smiled and gave her sister thumbs up.

"Wait," Nightmare said, letting go. "What the heck am I doing? I shouldn't hug, that makes me cute! Aargh!"

Takako winked at her. "See? Don't deny it!" She said in a singsong voice. Nightmare growled lowly.

"Don't make me tear of your shirt!" she warned.

"Tsundere." Chiara diagnosed, nodding.

"What?" Nightmare asked, confused.

"Tsundere." Chiara repeated. "It's an anime term for describing a certain type of character."

"What type of character?" the Saurian girls pressed on, wanting to know because she was confused, and yet at the same time dreading the answer. Had she perhaps taken her payback teasing a bit too far? She hoped not.

"One that goes back and forth from being harsh to cute." Chiara rolled her eyes. The Saurian of Fear let out a deep sigh. She gave up trying to convince them she wasn't cute, they'd never get it. Instead, she asked another one:

"So, eh, what is there next to do on a 'par tee'? Or have we had it all?"

Takako looked at the clock and whistled. "Whoa… Midnight already… Let's clean up and go to bed."

"We can tell scary stories then, too!" Chiara smiled.

Nightmare scratched the back of her head. "For some reason, I'm not tired," she muttered, more to herself than to the rest.

"Well, we aren't really, either, but still…" Rumiko smiled. "Cleaning up will take a while, and then we can do something calmer, like play games, do make-up or tell stories until we go to sleep."

Nightmare nestled herself against her onee-chan. "What kind of games or stories?"

"Well, card games, board games, Truth or Dare…" Minako began. Nightmare knew what card games were, but not the other two. Still, it gave her an indication of what Rumiko had meant, and she was satisfied with that, even smiling a bit.

"Alright then, let's clean up," she said.

* * *

"So, what now?" Nightmare asked slowly and quietly as she watched the circle of girls, hiding herself a bit in the shadows. After cleaning up, the girls had gathered the sleeping bags, blankets and pillows and placed them in a circle on the floor in the living room, where they now where. A candle was in the middle of the circle, being the only source of light.

"Well, a circle of people around a fire… uh, I mean, candle, definitely calls for stories!" Minako smiled.

"What kind of stories?" the Saurian girl wondered aloud.

"Scary stories?" Chiara suggested.

Minako glanced at Nightmare, the Saurian of Fear, and gulped. Yes, normally scary stories were nice, but the blonde girl was afraid that her little sister would get too caught up in the storytelling and _really_ frighten the other girls so much they wouldn't be able to sleep. "Ehm, I don't think that's a very good idea…"

"Yeah, I don't feel like hearing scary stories, either." Takako shrugged. "So what stories shall we tell?"

"Happy stories then?" Rumiko suggested.

Minako chuckled. "Sure. Who starts?"

"Miyuki!" Takako said immediately.

"Hmm? Why me?" Miyuki asked.

"'Cause you're the captain." Takako winked.

"Heh, okay. Hmm, a happy story…" Miyuki began thinking.

"You don't have to tell your entire life story, Miyuki," Minako reminded the team captain gently. "A happy moment you remember is good, too!" She smiled and clasped her hands together in excitement. Happy stories were a much better idea than scary ones, it gave her an opportunity to hear of some good moments from Nightmare's childhood!

"Heh… A happy moment, huh…" Miyuki smiled. "That would be when my mom finally came back. I was ten years old then, and mom went on a trip abroad. The trip lasted for a week… Mom came back in two months. And when she did, it was the happiest moment of my life."

"Why did she stay away that long?" Rumiko asked shyly.

"Exactly, we had no idea, no contact with her whatsoever." Miyuki said. "She lost her tourist group and got robbed, so she couldn't come home…"

"Must have been horrible, not knowing, I mean?" Nightmare asked, as gently as she could.

Miyuki nodded. "It was… Yeah, it was… That cold feeling of uncertainty… Pushing away the fear that she might be dead… Forcing yourself to hope and wait…"

"But everything ended well!" Chiara smiled. She rubbed her hands together. "My turn!" The others nodded, feeling no need to object. "My favourite happy moment is… When my mom gave me a stuffed bear bigger than I was! I was five then, and the bear was twice as big as me! He was so soft and cuddly. I called him Kumakichi-chan!" Chiara told happily.

Nightmare elbowed her adopted sister in the ribs. "What does that mean, onee-chan?" she whispered.

"Remember the soft cuddly animal toys scattered all around my room?" Minako quickly whispered. "There's a green bear there, too. And Chiara got a giant brown one."

"Yes, I know that, but what does the _name_ mean?" Nightmare clarified.

"Ah, 'kuma' means 'bear', and 'kichi' means 'lucky'!" Minako giggled. A short 'oh' was the response she got. Satisfied, Minako looked around the circle. "So, who's next?" she asked with her bright sunny smile.

"I'll go." Takako said. "I didn't have much happy moments in my life, but…" She smiled. "When Namiko took me to my very first metal concert… It was KICKASS!" The metalhead eagerly punched the air with 'devil horns'. The other girls all rolled their eyes.

"I suppose that counts," Minako said. "Rumiko, you next!"

"Well, that was when my grandpa gave me a whole aquarium of guppy fish!" Rumiko smiled dreamily.

"Wait, guppy?" Chiara raised her eyebrow. "Don't you have a piranha…?"

"I do." Rumiko nodded. "I bought her two years later. She was so cute! But she ate all my guppy…"

"Gee, I wonder why." Miyuki rolled her eyes. "You really shouldn't have done that, you know. I feel sorry for all those fish. They were from your grandpa, and you let them be eaten! Couldn't you have put your piranha in a different bowl?"

"But they were all so cute, I wanted them to be friends… Come on, I was six!" Rumiko tried to defend herself.

"It was a _piranha_!" Takako hissed, seemingly close to banging her head against the wall out of frustration.

"So?"

"Piranha's are vicious killer fish! They don't make _friends_! They eat, no, wolf other fish down!" Takako explained with the last shred of patient she had left in her.

"How was I supposed to know?" Rumiko blinked helplessly at her.

"You could have, maybe, I dunno, _asked_?"

"Why?" Rumiko blinked again. "She was cute, she was a fish, and that's all I needed to know!"

"Your turn, Minako-chan," Chiara said with a sigh, ignoring the argument between the metalhead and the fish lover, which would ho absolutely nowhere, she knew. Best to end it before Takako exploded.

"Aaah… I had many happy moments." Minako grinned. "But the happiest one is this." Minako raised her finger and then hugged Nightmare really tightly. The Saurian girl looked at her sister with wide, teary eyes.

"Me?" she whispered, shocked.

"Yep! I'm glad we made peace with each other and all the other girls." She hugged her sister again, a hug that was eagerly returned, and Nightmare buried her face deep in Minako's embrace, feeling very warm, touched and happy.

"Awww…" Said the girls in unison.

"And then you dare say you're not cute!" Miyuki rolled her eyes.

"I'm not!" Came the typically snapped reply from within Minako's arms.

"Nevermind." Chiara sighed. "And what's your happy moment, Kira-chan?" Nightmare untangled herself from her blonde sister's embrace and sat up, a thoughtful expression and frown on her face.

"My happy moment?" she repeated, uncertainly.

"Yes, what is it?" Takako urged her to tell. "We all told ours."

The Saurian of Fear bowed her head and closed her eyes, thinking hard and deep, delving into her memories. Of course her happy moments were those she spent with Minako after the symbiosis bond, but Minako kind of had already said that, so she couldn't do the same, that wouldn't be original. Then it hit her.

"The moment Hiroko called me her sister for the first time," she said, smiling slightly as she thought back to that moment. "Before that, I had always been alone, but then there she was, even if she wasn't exactly what I wanted as a sister. But still, her calling me sister was the first sign of emotion she ever showed, and it made me happy, for myself, but also for her."

"I see…" Miyuki said softly, smiling. The other girls nodded, smiling as well.

Nightmare looked around uncertainly. "Did that count?"

"It sure did!" Rumiko nodded eagerly.

"It must be hard, to have a sister like that…" Takako said quietly.

"Why do you think so?" Nightmare asked out of curiosity. She did agree, but still wanted to know if Takako's reasons differed from hers.

Takako shrugged. "It's just very hard to get through to such people… To understand them, and to make them understand… anything." She sighed.

The Saurian of Fear scratched the back of her head. "Can't argue with you there. It's lucky I had Eiju, he had far more patience for such things than I did… He was marvellous for her progress, too. Though that Ami girl helps a lot, too."

"Is she… A caretaker for her or something?" Rumiko asked, remembering the encounter in the park.

Nightmare looked at Minako, unsure of what to say.

Minako nodded. "You could say that."

"Thought so." Chiara nodded.

"Regardless of what she is, she's marvellous at making my sis open up and react better to others and emotions and all that stuff," Nightmare added with a shrug. "It's a relief that I don't have to do that anymore, I'm not the greatest at it myself."

"Oh? In that case, you've made quite a good progress." Miyuki said.

"I have?"

"Well, judging by how the party went, definitely!" Minako winked at her.

"How so?" Nightmare asked again, wanting them to elaborate and clarify.

"'Cause it went perfect!" Minako smiled. "You forgave everyone and had fun with your friends, and that's a lot for you, no?"

Nightmare looked thoughtful. "I guess so," she admitted slowly.

"Indeed, Kira-chan. We had a lot of fun with you." Miyuki smiled.

"Death Note…" Rumiko said.

"Gossiping…" Takako winked.

"Pillow fight!" Minako added.

"And the little payback." Chiara teased, causing Rumiko to blush and everybody else to laugh softly. Nightmare felt a bit uneasy under all that praise and blushed as well.

"All in all, we had a great party." Miyuki concluded.

"I think so, too…" the disguised Saurian girl muttered. "Though of course I have no previous experience to compare it to…"

"Well, that' great! That you liked it too, I mean." Minako said and smiled.

"I've never known kindness like this before…" the Senshi's little sister continued quietly, her head bowed. And it was true. She had known the kindness of her family, or of her adopted sister, but friendship and spending a good time with your friends was an entirely new experience. One that was hard to get used to or let in when one had her past.

"Hey, it's okay." Chiara smiled. "Ask us anytime, we'll show it even more!"

"Really? Why?" Nightmare wondered, feeling strangely emotional.

"'Cause we are friends!" Rumiko said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"We are?" Nightmare asked uncertainly.

"If you don't mind, of course." Miyuki added.

"Mind…? Why would I mind…?" the Saurian girl wondered aloud.

"Heh, well, no reason, I guess." Rumiko smiled. "So, friends?" She looked at Nightmare, eagerly waiting for her answer. The answer wasn't exactly what she had expected. The Saurian girl got tears in her eyes, started to sniff and then flung herself at Rumiko, hugging and squeezing the life out of her tightly.

The other girls looked at that wide-eyed, and Rumiko just stared at her, completely shocked. "K… Kira-chan?" She said uncertainly.

"N… nobody ever… said that to me before…" the Saurian girl whispered sobbingly.

"Ah." Rumiko smiled and hugged her back. The other girls 'awww'ed at this sight.

"I'm not cute!" Nightmare snivelled from within the embrace. But she didn't look up or sound very convincing. "But… I am your friend…" She tightened her grip on Rumiko, pressing herself firmly against the other girl.

"Yay!" Minako squeaked before quickly placing a hand over her mouth. "Umm… I didn't say anything." She said sheepishly. Nightmare rolled her eyes, reached out with her hand and dragged her sister into the hug. "Heh… Imouto-chan…" Minako hugged her sister.

"Onee-chan…" the Saurian of Fear whispered softly. "Tell those others to hug us, too, onee-chan!"

"Group hug, everyone!" Minako declared cheerfully. "Kira-chan likes group hugs, no?" She winked at the Saurian. The three girls chuckled, but nevertheless came over to them and joined the hug.

"I do, onee-chan…" the Saurian girl admitted, ashamed. She wiped her tears away, but new ones replaced them. "I'm sorry…" she whispered. "I know it's weak to cry, but I… I can't help it…"

"It's not weak, Kira-chan." Miyuki assured the younger girl.

"It is! Why wouldn't it be?"

"Crying from happiness is nothing wrong." Rumiko said, smiling.

"Yeah!" Chiara confirmed.

"Why not?"

"Sometimes, tears show happiness much better than laughter can." Miyuki said. "It shows how deeply you're touched, and is deeply touching, too."

"I'm sorry…" Nightmare sniffed again.

"There's nothing to be sorry for, Kira-chan." Takako assured her softly. The Saurian girl, not knowing what to say, just hugged tighter in response.

The girls sat hugging each other for a while, until Rumiko yawned loudly.

"Sorry…" She smiled sheepishly. "I guess I'm a bit tired…"

Miyuki looked at the clock on the wall. "Well, no wonder. It's 3 AM."

"Let's go to bed then," Nightmare suggested, pointing out the obvious.

"Let's." Everybody nodded, got out of the group hug and into their sleeping bags.

Miyuki blew the candle out and said: "Good night, everyone!"

"Good night!" Came the collective reply.

Nightmare was laying right next to Minako, and managed to snuggle closely to her sister. As she was there in the dark, in her sleeping bag, she reflected on the evening that had passed. She had come here clueless, had been angry at the volleyball girls, forgave them after some persuading, then had a 'par tee' with them, which was weird, unusual, strange, crazy but fun nonetheless. But more importantly, she had made peace with those she thought had 'betrayed' her, and in return had gotten four new friends.

Friends… The word was alien and unfamiliar. Nightmare didn't have friends. Not usually. And in her past life, certainly not. But this was another life, a life as Kira Genkai. And Kira Genkai could make friends, as had been proven this evening. And that made Nightmare, to her own surprise, very happy, feeling warm inside. She smiled slightly.

"Thank you…" she whispered quietly, barely audible.

* * *

**Next chapter: Rei's homecoming!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: I'm glad you liked the chapter. Thanks for the review!


	101. Rei's homecoming

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**101. Rei's homecoming**

"Makoto, are you nearly done?" Chameleon asked as he stood at the door of the apartment, his arms crossed and foot tapping impatiently. Why did women always have to take so much time getting ready, he wondered. Today was the day Rei would come home after her long recovery in Angonce's care, and the Senshi had decided to gather at the Shrine while the Saurians went to fetch her.

"Almost!" Makoto shouted from her room. A few moments later, she came dashing to the entrance. "Sorry to keep you waiting!" She apologized and quickly put on her shoes. Ignika's brother was about to say something in reply, but closed his mouth again without a word when his eyes fell on the bouquet of lilies in the Senshi's arms.

"Could you hold these for a moment?" She asked, shoving the bouquet in Chameleon's arms and picking up her purse. But then she noticed the thoughtful look on his face. "Hmm?"

"Lilies," he said quietly.

Makoto lowered her eyes. "I'm sorry… But… I bought them for Rei, didn't I?"

"It's okay," the Saurian boy assured her. "They're nice flowers and will make a good gift."

"True…" Makoto smiled. "But, well, still…"

"What?" Chameleon inquired curiously.

"Giving away these flowers seems to make you feel uneasy. Maybe I'm wrong of course, but…" Makoto shrugged.

"Well, I did say you would look pretty with one of them in your hair, didn't I?"

"Heh, that's true, but, humans seldom wear real flowers in their hair." The Senshi of Lightning smiled. "I'll definitely buy myself a hairpin that looks like one, though."

"Oh really? Why?" Chameleon wanted to know, smiling teasingly.

"I want to see if it will indeed look good on me." Makoto winked at him.

Chameleon pretended to look offended. "My word's not good enough to convince you?" he growled in mock-anger.

"Well, I kinda can't imagine how a big orange flower can look well with a ponytail." Makoto elaborated. "I might have to let my hair down to wear it." Chameleon shook his head in disapproval.

"It looks fine as it is," he assured her.

"I know. But I have to see for myself how it would look with a flower." The Senshi explained. "Well, let's go now. We don't want to be late, do we?"

"Sure thing, lead the way" the Saurian of Chameleon shrugged.

Makoto nodded, and the two left the apartment.

* * *

The Saurian family stood in the living room of Angonce's mansion, forming a semi-circle around the raven-haired Senshi who stood, with her head bowed respectfully, before the Great Being that had cared for her and nursed her back to full health. Crast stood in a shadowy corner of the room, his blood red eyes keenly observing the events, ready to reprimand the visitors whenever he felt they weren't respectful enough. The Saurians said nothing, merely smiled and observed as Rei expressed her thanks to the divinity.

"Please remember, Sailor Mars," Angonce said warmly, his glorious hand lifting up Rei's chin so she would look up at him. "You have recovered enough for me to release you from my care. But I implore you to take it easy, rest a lot, and try to refrain from heavy physical labour. Likewise, do not burden yourself with worry over your guardians, I will do whatever lies within my power to heal them. They are in good hands, I assure you."

Rei nodded slowly. On her way out of the medical wing, she had seen her crows, floating in the crystal tank and covered with wires that connected them with the machines. It was a painful sight. But somehow, Rei still hoped there was a way to save them. "Thank you, Master Angonce, for everything." The Senshi bowed.

"You are always welcome," the Great Being replied with a smile, placing his hands on her head and soothing her fatigue and worries. Then he looked at Ignika, who stood behind Rei waiting patiently until the Senshi was ready to leave. "Ignika, I trust you to check up on Sailor Mars' condition daily, you are knowledgeable enough to do so."

The Child of Life bowed his head respectfully. "It will be an honour to do so, Master Angonce."

Rei smiled. For some reason, the way the Saurian of Life talked to the Great Being sounded strange to her. Of course there was respect to the Great Being in his voice, but there also was a deep feeling of love behind the Child's words. A love that any child feels for their parents. And with that feeling, the official words of respect sounded alien.

"That is," Ignika added, unaware of Rei's thoughts. "If Rei-san doesn't mind me doing so."

"Of course I don't mind, Ignika." Rei said, smiling slightly. "After all, I don't want to come down with anything anytime soon. New battles are ahead, and I want to be ready for them."

"Shall we go home then, Rei-san?" Traveller asked gently, stepping forward. "The others are waiting eagerly for your return."

Rei smiled and nodded at her. "Let's go."

Angonce did a step back and said his final goodbye to the Senshi. "It was a pleasure to have you as my guest, Sailor Mars," he said kindly. "Your company shall be missed. Also, Vulcan requested me to give you his best wishes."

"Thank you. It was a great honour to be treated by you, Master Angonce." Rei bowed. "Give Vulcan my best regards as well."

The Great Being nodded, said farewell to his 'son' and his family, and then Traveller requested her brothers and sisters to link their hands to hers. She extended one hand to Rei for the Senshi to take. "Ready?" the Saurian of Teleportation asked.

"Yes." Rei took her hand, smiling. Finally, she was going home. Ignika's oldest sister then triggered her power, taking the entire group away from Angonce's godly presence, back to the Hikawa shrine where the others were waiting for their fellow Senshi to return.

* * *

The group arrived just outside Hikawa Shrine. Rei let go of Traveller's hand and looked around, happily taking in the familiar sight of the Shrine grounds and breathing the familiar air. Everything was just the way she knew and loved, except for the red arc, which looked lonely without her beloved crows. Out of the shrine came Rei's grandfather, gasping as soon as he saw his granddaughter.

"Rei-chan!" The old man cried, running up to her. "Oh, thank goodness you are here!"

"Umm, hello, grandpa…" Rei said shyly. It just hit her that she still didn't know what her fellow Senshi had been telling her grandpa all this time.

"Why, Rei, why didn't you tell me?" Grandpa shook his head.

"Umm, sorry…" Rei said, not knowing what to apologize for.

"You know I wouldn't have blamed you for going on an exchange program with the country's best boarding school!" Grandpa rambled on.

"What?" Rei exclaimed. That sounded crazy, considering she didn't even go to school anymore. "I mean, you wouldn't?"

"Of course! Your friends told me everything. They told me they secretly set you up for a two-week course of… eh… eh… I forgot again." The old priest scratched his bald head. "And, yeah, and you didn't know until the very last moment. But you could have at least phoned me!"

"Uhm, sorry, grandpa…" Rei said.

"Well, let us go inside, the others are waiting." The priest urged his granddaughter to head for the entrance, and only then noticed the Saurian family. "Oh, hello." He greeted them. "You must be Rei's new friends, right?"

The Saurians nodded, uncertain of what to say. They hadn't ever met any of the Senshi's family before, aside from Traveller and Ignika.

"Well, come inside, don't be shy!" The hospitable grandfather smiled. "You may call me Hino-jiisan, everybody here calls me that." With those words, he disappeared inside the shrine, not waiting for anybody.

"Ehm, I'm not sure what to do or say, Rei-san," Ignika admitted shyly to the Senshi of Mars.

Rei smiled. "Don't mind grandpa. He's a straightforward, weird but kind old man. Let's just go inside and meet the others." The Child of Life and his family silently nodded, and followed the Senshi, not knowing their way around the shrine that well.

Rei entered the Shrine and went into the back room. There, she was overwhelmed by everybody saying:

"WELCOME BACK, REI!" The Senshi shouted in unison.

"Wow… Thanks, everybody!" The Miko smiled, flattered.

"Well, you didn't think we'd let you go without planning to make a welcome back party, did you?" Usagi winked at her. The Senshi were standing in front of the table, set with a beautiful tablecloth and Rei's best tea set. In the middle proudly stood two cakes baked by Makoto: a chocolate one and a strawberry one.

Rei overlooked the Senshi and noticed something. "Where's Chibiusa?" she asked curiously.

"She had something to take care of together with Helios," Usagi apologised. "She went to Elysium, though she did want to be here, and she asked me to apologise for her."

Ignika glanced at Setsuna and Hotaru. "Is this why you went to her on the day that Haruka-san and me went to the racetrack, Setsuna-san?" The Senshi of Time turned to him and smiled, nodding in confirmation.

"She wants to tie the sword you gave her to her Senshi powers, something that can be done in Elysium," Setsuna explained. Ignika nodded in understanding.

"Well, that's a very valid reason," Rei said with an understanding smile. "Senshi business has priority over a party."

"And speaking of parties, there's cake to be had, Rei-chan!" Minako grinned cheerfully.

The Saurians perked up at the prospect of the cake, their mouths watering, but they controlled themselves. This wasn't a celebration for cake, it was one for Rei's homecoming. Ignika took the lead, walking up to Rei and throwing his arms around her, hugging her, despite feeling slightly nervous as he did so, since he didn't know Rei that well. Nevertheless, he said:

"I'm glad you got better, Rei-san. It's good you're home." And he meant it. Even if he didn't know her as well as he'd like, he still considered her a friend, one he didn't want to miss anymore. She was a part of his life now, as much as his family or Hotaru was.

Rei hugged him back. "I'm glad, too." Luckily, her grandpa wasn't in the room, deciding to leave the youngsters to their own devises, so he didn't hear Ignika's words.

"So are we." Haruka said, and everybody else nodded and smiled. The Inner Senshi ran up to Rei and hugged her as well, nearly squeezing Ignika. The Child of life gasped, making Traveller scream:

"Don't choke my little brother!"

"On the contrary," Chameleon grinned teasingly. "Enjoy, little brother! Few get so many females pressed against them."

"Chameleon!" Makoto blushed and got out of the embrace to give Ignika a chance to get out.

"I have to admit they're all soft," the white-haired boy said innocently, untangling himself from between the mashed together bodies, arms and legs. He looked up curiously at Makoto. "Is it too hot here, Makoto-san? Your face is all red."

Haruka sighed. "When will you Saurians finally remember that humans blush from embarrassment?" She said in a bored tone.

"It's just a strange concept for us, Haruka-san," Traveller said calmly, looking uncertainly at the Senshi of the Winds. "As it is, I fail to see why Makoto-san would be embarrassed by Chameleon's stupid joke."

"Agreed," Nightmare chimed in, crossing her arms. "Offended and angry by dimwit's retarded attempts at humour, sure. Embarrassed, why?"

"Ehh… Hehe… Nevermind." Ami blushed as well.

Minako sighed. "Yes, otherwise we'd get into argue about mating again."

"And NO asking why it'd be so!" Haruka warned.

The Senshi and Saurians, aside from Rei, Ami and Ignika, suddenly found themselves crushed to the ground by a sudden increase in gravity. All eyes went directly to the only possible culprit, but Gravitas merely shrugged in her usual aloof way. "We are loosing focus," she said monotonously. "We are here for Rei."

"Thank you, Gravitas, but crushing them into the ground was a bit over the top." Rei said, coming over to her and putting a hand on her shoulder. She then whispered: "Lift them up next time."

The Saurian's corners of her mouth lifted up slightly, forming a miniscule smile. "I shall remember that," she said quietly.

"Uhh, Gravitas?" Minako said, still crushed to the ground with gravity. "Could you please let us go?"

"Cake is waiting!" Makoto reminded.

"I know that," the silver-haired girl said to Makoto. "Rest assured, my little brother, Ami, me and Rei will enjoy the cake greatly." Her smile widened some more, in a rare display of humour.

Ami chuckled, appreciating the joke. "Nevertheless, could you please let them go? We can't possibly eat that much cake."

"Yep, and it's no fun with them crushed on the ground like that." Rei added.

"I find it art," Gravitas defended herself. "I have seen in a book what you humans call art, and this would be it. I call it 'crushed by a sister'." She placed a hand on her little brother's shoulder. "And you must not underestimate a Saurian's appetite for cake, my friend."

Ami sweatdropped. "Gravitas, the art in that book are paintings, sculptures and photography. You don't do that with real people."

"We could make photos, though…" Rei said thoughtfully.

"Nevermind that, let us go!" Chameleon complained from on the ground. "You've already proven you can be funny Gravitas. Haha and all that stuff, now let me get my cake, _please_!"

The Saurian of Gravity looked thoughtful, rubbing her chin and tilting her head sideways. "Hmmm…" she muttered aloofly. "To release or not to release, that's the question." Next to her, Ignika was doing his best to stifle his laughter and look solemn.

Rei, however, couldn't help it and laughed at that. "That's a good joke, Gravitas." She smiled. "Now could you please let them go?" Ignika's middle sister finally gave in and released her gravitational hold on the others.

The Senshi got up, dusting themselves and grumbling quietly. "Now then, tea time!" Usagi declared before anybody said anything wrong again. The Saurians agreed, and everybody moved over for the cake and tea. Gravitas, however, subtly tugged on Ami's sleeve.

"Did I… do good?" she whispered quietly, uncertainly.

Ami nodded. "You did. It was actually pretty funny, just, not for them." She whispered back, smiling.

"I don't care," the Saurian whispered back silently. She smiled a strangely touched, lively smile at Ami. "As long as you found it funny."

Ami smiled back. "I did." Gravitas quietly placed a hand on Ami's cheek, finding no words to express what exactly she was feeling at that moment. Expressing feelings and opening up more still felt alien to the disguised reptile. Only Ami could understand, she thought, through their bond. Ami smiled happily at them. Her little Saurian began to hatch…

"Come on, what are you waiting for?" Minako called them over to the party table. Gravitas glared briefly at her 'sister', not liking having her private moment interrupted. But then she smiled apologetically.

"We are coming, 'sister'," the Saurian assured the blonde. Ami nodded and led her symbiosis partner to the table.

"What cake do you want, chocolate or strawberry?" Ami asked her.

"Chocolate," came the instantaneous reply. Gravitas looked at Nightmare, her sister by blood. "What of you, my sister?" she asked, seeing the Saurian of Fear did not yet have a piece of cake on her plate yet.

"Strawberry for a change," Nightmare replied. "Just like onee-chan!" she added happily.

Minako looked at the strawberry cake. Her own piece was given to her by Makoto, but now that cake was too far from her. "Um, Gravitas, could you please...?" She asked her 'sister'. Said 'sister' nodded, triggered her powers and used it to bring the cake over to the blonde Senshi of Love.

"There you go, 'sister'," Gravitas said monotonously.

"Thanks!" Minako smiled cheerfully. She cut a piece for Nightmare and put in on her little sister's plate. "You can put it back now." She smiled. Gravitas nodded, and did as requested.

Meanwhile, the Senshi flooded Rei with all kinds of questions about her stay at the Great Being's mansion. Rei couldn't say much, though, as her days were quite boring. She was glad to be home. Suddenly, Hotaru asked:

"How is Vulcan?"

"He's well." Rei said. "He recovered faster than me, and was already on his feet while I was still just allowed to move on my bed." She smiled as she recalled that day.

* * *

_Vulcan was sitting on the side of his bed, hesitatingly testing out his limbs, which were now finally free from any cables or machinery. The Master had come and released him of those, saying he was recovered to the point where monitoring was no longer necessary. A few more days of good rest and he could leave this place. After sharing that news, the divine being had left again, leaving Vulcan to his thoughts. The Saurian of Magma was happy. Machinery was not his thing, after all._

_His arms and legs seemed to respond well, if a bit stiff after so many days, weeks even, of being immobile on his 'bed'. He was still wearing the long white robe which he had been instructed not to take off. That was fine, the robe was soft. Only its length was new and strange somewhat, but it didn't truly hinder him, the Master had been so wise as to leave room for his tail. _

_The grey-scaled Saurian decided to stretch his legs a bit, and slowly got up from his bed. His joints cracked when they finally had to carry his weight again, and it took a few seconds to regain his balance. But soon enough he stood firmly on his clawed feet again, his tail swaying slightly behind him, keeping him stable. He did a few paces, pleased to find his body whole and responsive again. Machines were everywhere, only a few days ago he had been connected to them. Now they were lifeless, but nonetheless frightening. Still, he braved his fear and walked a bit more. _

_That's when he remembered he had a roommate, and that he now could visit her. Why he wanted to, he didn't know, but his mind urged him to go see this 'Sailor Mars' person. Following his nose, he went over to the recovering Senshi's bed hesitatingly._

_Rei saw him approaching and smiled hesitatingly, observing him. A Saurian in a wide robe looked so peculiar it was almost funny. Ash trickling from his mouth was also strange, but at least that explained where the ashes she saw flying up once in a while came from. Aside from that, she was glad to see her roommate in person. "Hello, Vulcan." She greeted him._

_The Saurian of Magma looked a bit shocked for some reason when she spoke to him in person, but he recovered quickly and slowly nodded, indicating he had heard her and returned it. She was dressed in a white robe like him, but not restricted in movement like he had been before. Though he had heard the Master mention that she had been in the past, too. Now that he could see a human from up close outside of battle, he couldn't help but think how strange they looked. Like hairy, scaleless, pale Saurians with flat faces and no tails. Different, but somewhat similar all the same._

"_Sailor Mars…" he said finally, his tone neutral._

_Rei nodded. "Yes. You may call me Rei, though." She shifted on her bed so she could see him better. "Glad to see you up and about. I'm not allowed even to sit up yet." She said, smiling._

"_You were injured that badly?" he inquired, a bit lamely, not knowing what else to say._

_Rei nodded. "Spent four days unconscious before I woke up." She sighed._

"_I seem to remember so, yes," Vulcan agreed. "What happened?"_

"_Felnas disrupted my powers…" Rei said slowly. "The very core of my powers…"_

"_The Disruptor…" Vulcan said slowly, cursing lowly under his breath. "It is a miracle you survived, then. I know none who lived after an encounter with the Disruptor. And yet…at the same time you were lucky."_

"_I was?" Rei asked, not sure what he meant. Surely nothing could be worse than an explosion of power?_

"_They could have sent Mohtrek the Duplicant to kill you," Vulcan said darkly, his eyes narrowed and his face bearing an expression of utter disgust. "Then you would have begged for an explosion of power."_

_Rei could only gasp. "…He's that bad?" She asked, not believing her ears._

"_That, and worse," the Saurian of Magma replied calmly, but his face was still twisted with disgust. "Felnas the Disruptor is a warrior. I won't deny he is cruel and shows sadistic tendencies, but he does have a sense of honour, and in battle he is fair if merciless. He gives the choice of surrender, and will honour his word if he says he will slay you painlessly. Mohtrek…" Vulcan gagged again as if speaking the name made him ill. _

"_He's a monster, in every sense of the word. Even the other Phantoka despise him. I once overheard Jutlin the Corrupt saying he would corrupt Mohtrek to a pile of gory filth if he had to work together with him one more time. Upon which Felnas the Disruptor replied that Mohtrek could not become what he already was," the Saurian explained. "He is insane and despicable, but extremely powerful, which is no doubt why Master Zyglak keeps him around. And yet, it's not his power or his dirty fighting that makes him so horrid. The true terror goes much deeper, and is far more filthy and sickening than even Jutlin's corruption."_

_Rei shivered. "What is it then?" She asked uncertainly._

"_All Saurians fear the Time Duplicant… All Phantoka despise him, because he has the disgusting tendency to…" Vulcan didn't finish his sentence and shivered. "He…" But again he couldn't finish._

_Rei sighed. "Let's change the subject." Talking about dark things like this certainly wouldn't help her recovery, and also seemed to make them both feel uneasy._

"_He forcibly mates whatever female creature he can get his claws on," Vulcan finally blurted out, feeling the need to inform the Senshi of this despite the fact that it was not pleasant to talk about. At all. The Saurian shivered in disgust. "It's an obsession of his, a sick, filthy obsession in which he takes great pleasure… Your fate would have been far worse than what you suffered had you encountered him. Alone." _

_Rei gasped. "Oh goodness…" She closed her eyes. "Indeed, I was lucky… Need to warn other girls." Rei shivered._

"_His power of Time Duplication allows him to summon forth past and future selves of himself. In battle, it allows him to summon and command an entire army out of nothing, for him to use as he pleases," Vulcan added. "But he has found… uses for it outside of battle, if you catch my drift." He shivered again. "Please do not make me explain it in words."_

"_God…" Rei put her hand over her eyes, trying to block out the mental image. "I understand what you mean, though I wish I didn't…" She muttered._

"_There is no greater crime for the Saurian race," the Saurian of Magma explained quietly. "How it is with your Senshi race, I know not. But an act like this must be punished by death, we accept nothing else. Even the Phantoka have enough honour left in them to abide by and agree with this unspoken rule. It sickens even them that Mohtrek lives on, protected by Zyglak, and us normal Saurians fear him. He is a disgrace to our race."_

"_For us the greatest crime is murder… But rapture is also a heavy crime." Rei muttered, shivering. _

"_Rapture…?" Vulcan repeated slowly, not knowing the word. "Is that what you call…?"_

"_If forced to it against will." Rei clarified._

"_I see," he said quietly, seemingly musing over that piece of information in silence. Then he added: "We Saurians believe such a filthy deed is not worth its own special word. And unless in warning, we refuse to speak of it. Mohtrek made us all break those rules."_

"_I see…" Rei sighed. "Thank you for warning me."_

"_No female deserves _that_ to happen to her," Vulcan said simply, shrugging._

"_I agree..." Rei said._

"_That girl, Sailor Saturn," Vulcan suddenly said, changing subject after a few moments of absolute, heavy silence. "How is she now?"_

"_She's well." Rei said. "She visited me the same day when Ignika and Traveller visited you."_

"_I'm aware," the Saurian replied quietly. "But I didn't want to talk to her. And I'm still not sure what to think of her. Or of you, for that matter. You're all… confusing me, and I do not like being confused. My life used to be so simple, now I'm involved in things that go beyond my understanding."_

"_She didn't want to talk to you as well… More like was ashamed of her behaviour." Rei said._

"_How so?" he asked, surprised. "Did she overstep her bounds by offering her friendship?"_

"_No, she did something else – she disregarded your laws and traditions by trying to force her friendship on you." Rei explained. "She acted selfish, and didn't consider how you'd feel. So she's ashamed of that."_

"_I didn't experience it like that…" the Saurian whispered quietly, not looking at Rei as he said it._

"_Then how?" Rei asked, looking at him curiously._

"_I don't know," he replied honestly. "I was too busy trying to wrap my mind around what she was saying. Even now, I still don't understand very well, even after the Master explained it to me."_

"_Well, what is so hard to understand?" Rei asked him._

"_It's an unnatural concept, to me," came the answer. "It goes against my instincts, and as of such, is hard to comprehend. A creature like you can't understand this."_

"_I suppose…"Rei said, sighing. "It's natural for us, though."_

"_But not for me, and you refuse to accept this." It was an accusation more than anything else._

_Rei nodded. "And that's exactly why Hotaru was ashamed. That she didn't think about it and couldn't accept your reasoning."_

"_I see," he muttered quietly, before shrugging. "Tell her not to let it bother her too much." The Saurian of Magma slowly lifted a clawed hand to his face and studied it carefully. "She withstood my magma," Vulcan noted softly. He gently triggered his powers, the scales and claws of his hand slowly becoming magma._

_Rei nodded. "She's the strongest of us Senshi. She's much like Ignika, once considered a curse… By the very same people who are her parents now…" She sighed._

_A drop of Magma hit the floor, but did no damage to the Great Being's construction. The heat was rising from Vulcan's arm-turned-magma, now reaching Rei as well. "Nobody withstood my magma before. The might of the volcano is in a league of its own, equal to the earthquake, gravity or perhaps even life itself. The might that is my element makes the continents move, creates new land, and burns in the core of every world." _

"_My element is Fire." Rei said for no reason, looking at her own hand. "Hotaru's element is Death and Rebirth. Her power is destruction incarnate. She can end the world by bringing down her glaive… Leaving nothing but Silence."_

"_Magma is in a grade superior to Fire," Vulcan said coolly. He clenched his magma fist. "I could extinguish your life easily, while your Fire would not be able to hurt my elemental body."_

_Rei nodded. "It is so. I am glad you're not my enemy."_

"_You're not frightened?" he asked curiously. "You lie here defencelessly, in the same room as a being who has the power to easily end your life. Why are you so calm?"_

_Rei smiled. "Because I know you won't harm me. Because you are not my enemy." She said softly. Then chuckled. "And the fact we're both in Master Angonce's mansion. He won't let that happen. But the first reason is more important."_

_The Saurian of Magma returned his hand to normal and sighed. "I suppose you're right. The days where my name alone was enough to fill my foes with fear are over, I fear…" He sighed again and shook his head sadly. "No longer will my magma 'burn even fire'."_

"_Because of the much greater evil that threatens us all?" Rei tried to guess._

"_Because I have been defeated," he corrected her sadly. "News of that will have spread, rest assured. A Saurian of Magma defeated, such a disgrace. It will encourage my foes, for they know I am not invincible. My name alone will no longer be enough to protect my family."_

"_It's no disgrace." Rei said. "You have been defeated by a being almost equal in power to the Child of Life. You are still more powerful than all of your foes."_

"_Do you think my enemies care about that?" he snapped._

"_You can gain your reputation back." Rei continued. "I'm sorry, I may not understand, but I don't really see a problem as long as you can defeat them all…"_

"_It's a matter of honour," Vulcan explained impatiently. "One defeat is all it takes to end your reputation. It proves you can be defeated, and no matter if you win all fights after that, the foes will not loose heart, because they know I can be defeated."_

"_I see…" Rei sighed. "But both of you had no other way."_

"_The circumstances do not matter," the Saurian said with a growl. "Only the outcome. If I were to regain my reputation, there is only one way to do so."_

"_And that is…?" Rei looked at him, thinking she could guess the answer._

"_Kill the one who disgraced me."_

_Rei closed her eyes. "I knew it." She said quietly and sighed. "So what will you do?"_

"_Live disgraced," came the immediate answer, upon which Vulcan turned around and walked back to his bed, leaving Sailor Mars to her own thoughts and devices. He had talked enough._

* * *

Rei sighed, smiling. "Yes, Vulcan is well. He's with his family now, in the pocket dimension."

Hotaru smiled. "I'm glad." The girl then returned to her cake. Ignika and Traveller observed the Senshi or Ruin carefully, as if wanting to guess her thoughts. They had both met Vulcan as well, and they remembered how he was, personality wise, quite well.

"Why do you care so much, Hotaru-chan?" Ignika wanted to know, sounding curious.

"Heh, it's hard to explain…" Hotaru smiled. "I know he nearly killed me and all, but I still want to be his friend… Or at least make sure he has no negative feelings towards me."

"But why?" Traveller insisted, laying down her utensils she was using for eating her cake for a moment. "You have no obligation to him, nor does he to you. And frankly, he's made it quite clear he'd rather not have anything to do with you."

"I know…" Hotaru sighed. "But still, he seems like a good person… I'd like to have a friend like that." She said, returning to her cake. The Child of Life and his sister exchanged glances, but decided to let the subject drop, and returned to their cake as well.

The group ate in silence for a while, until said silence was broken by the Saurian of Fear of the reptilian family. "Say, useless, what's up with those pesky white flowers your mate brought, anyhow? They look like lilies."

Makoto blushed. "I'm not his mate!"

"And these are my favourite flowers." Rei smiled, looking approvingly at the bouquet in the middle of the table.

"Perhaps," Nightmare said to Rei. "But did you know they were the favourite flowers of Chameleon's late mate, too?" She looked unimpressed at her older brother. "I thought after Rain's death, he never wanted to see them again. Now his new mate's buying them, even if they are as a gift. What's up with that, useless?"

That caught everybody's interest, and the Saurian of Camouflage found himself under all the Senshi's curious glances. Except for Makoto's, of course. Said Saurian of Chameleon merely gave his younger sister an annoyed look. "Big mouth," he grumbled.

Minako grinned. "Well, now that your secret is out, come on, spill up!" She then leaned down to Nightmare and whispered: "Why didn't you tell me that before?"

"Because she was murdered," Chameleon growled angrily. "By a male who didn't know what 'no' meant and tried to forcibly mate her. When she resisted, he killed her. And yes, I loved her, but that was two hundred years ago, so pardon me for not shouting it out for the world to hear!" He slammed his fist down on the table so hard a crack appeared in the wood, and the young Saurian male glared absolutely livid at his younger sister.

The Senshi all gave a start, and looked at Chameleon, shocked. It was the first time they saw the Saurian of Camouflage so angry. He had a good reason for that, though. Having a beloved one die was painful, especially in such a way.

"Wait." Said Usagi, blinking. "If you have been in love before, why did you call it useless when we had that collective argue about mating?"

"Chameleon and Rain wanted to be each others mates first, though, before Chameleon realized he loved her," Ignika whispered quietly. "Rain had invited him to be her mate. Mating came first, then the love. That's logical, and unlike your human love, which does not always serve the mating process or the assurance for offspring…"

"I was fully prepared to be a father…" Chameleon snarled silently. "But I never got the chance. I never got to tell Rain I loved her either. She was taken from me before all of that."

"It was rather sad, and I enjoyed watching Chameleon rip Voltage's guts out," Nightmare noted, for once using her brother's real name instead of her nickname for him. "Still, he did say after that he'd never take a mate in his life, and yet for some reason tomboy there gets lilies and useless doesn't mind. Now _that_ is suspicious."

Makoto was silent and didn't know what to say. She could have told the girls they had already discussed it at home, but couldn't. She'd have to tell the reason why Chameleon was fine with it, that weird phrase she still wasn't sure how to take. A confession or not a confession?

The Senshi were quiet as well, thinking of all the new facts they learned. It was a whole new side of Chameleon's life, and not even Haruka could stop herself from thinking about it, manly and uninterested in gossip as she was. And what made things even more spicy was Nightmare's question. Really, what was up with those lilies?

Chameleon, feeling their gazes and guessing their thoughts, snarled loudly and slammed his fist on the table again, breaking right through it. He jumped up and looked furious. "SO WHAT?" he shouted. "So what if I think Makoto would look nice with lilies?" He glared at Nightmare. "And even if Makoto was my mate, SO WHAT? If you can drag in Senshi into our family, give me one reason why I can't do the same! Even if I loved Makoto, what were you going to do about it, huh? If I love Makoto, or if I want Makoto as my mate because she reminds me of Rain, and even surpasses her, then you can't do a damn thing about that, 'sister'!"

Makoto's eyes widened, her heart beat fast and a blush crept up her cheeks. She stared at him, not daring to believe her ears. Chameleon loved her? Chameleon wanted her as a mate? She surpassed even Rain? "Chameleon…" She whispered, at loss of words.

The Senshi stared at the Saurian of Camouflage as well, shocked. This was the most sudden, most emotional, most extraordinary and most straightforward love confession they've ever seen. Minako squealed inwardly in delight, and Rei mentally clutched her head at the sight of the broken table.

Nightmare raised an eyebrow, her eyes a bit widened by Chameleon's unexpected outburst. The only time she had seen her brother truly angry was that day when he confronted Voltage, eons ago. But she recovered quickly and challenged: "Well, I won't be able to stop you, true, but do you have it in you to ask her, huh, useless?"

Chameleon snarled at her again, but didn't attack. He turned away from her and growled: "Just you watch." The Saurian of Chameleon walked over to Makoto and kneeled at the side of her chair. "Makoto, will you mate me?" He looked up at her, his face expressionless, his eyes dark, betraying a shadow of sadness he still felt over Rain's death. But his tone and voice were sincere.

The Senshi all held their breath, looking intently at the scene. Will she say yes or will she say no? This was like a soap opera, except a thousand times better because it was happening right before their eyes! However, it never occurred to them that Chameleon was actually merely asking Makoto to have sex with him, because it looked and sounded too much like a marriage proposal.

Makoto did realize that, however. Blushing, she averted her eyes from Chameleon, then jumped from her seat and ran out of the room. Chameleon noticed it, tried to catch her wrist, but Makoto was too fast. Hurt and sad, the Saurian boy rose to his feet and looked wistfully at the place the woman he had come to love like he had loved Rain had sat.

"Makoto…" he whispered quietly.

The Senshi slowly exhaled and exchanged puzzled glances. What was that all about? It had been a perfect confession… Haruka was the first to realize the problem. Everybody looked at her as she slapped her forehead. "Mating…" She groaned.

Ami slowly nodded. "You just don't openly ask to do it in human society. It's rude and improper."

Chameleon looked at her briefly with empty eyes. "And what makes you think I'd mate a woman I have no feelings for?" He clenched his fists. "My feelings were sincere. I know it may seem sudden, but I've been developing a respect and liking for Makoto ever since I met her. These lilies… Just completed the image for me." Ignika's only brother shook his head. "I won't loose another woman I love, be it at the hands of an enemy or at her own hands of refusal. I refuse to!"

And with those words, he stormed out of the room and chased after the Senshi of Lightning.

* * *

**Next chapter: From the heart!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: I suppose it was indeed a bit awkward, but fun to write. =p Thanks for the review!

Lucia Sennen: I don't really accept characters for this story, but I don't like letting the efforts of reviewers go to waste... So keep an eye out for the cameo appearance of your character. ;) Thanks for the review, glad you liked the chapter!


	102. From the heart

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**102. From the heart**

The Senshi stared in silence at the door to the room where Chameleon had just ran off. The scene that happened just now had been quite spectacular.

"Wow…" Rei voiced everybody's thoughts. "Who could have thought…"

Minako smiled. "Chameleon turned out to be such a romantic guy!" She said dreamily.

"Well, no wonder." Haruka shrugged. "Makoto is a great girl. I'd hit on her myself if… Ow!" She rubbed her side where she was elbowed by Michiru. "If my heart wasn't taken by Michiru…"

Michiru smiled, satisfied, and kissed her lover briefly on the cheek. Nightmare saw it, and gagged, while Traveller and Ignika merely exchanged knowing glances and sighed, and Gravitas did nothing, merely looked aloof and disinterested.

"Poor Chameleon, though," Ignika said quietly. "Such a perfect Saurian confession and sincere request, and Makoto-san just ran off and rejected him like that. It must hurt."

"It was be perfect even by human standards, if not for that one word…" Setsuna sighed.

Usagi nodded. "She would definitely say yes if he said 'Will you marry me?'" She said confidently.

"Except that a Saurian would never think of saying that, it's not in their tradition." Ami said.

"Exactly," the Child of Life agreed with a nod. "He asked her to mate him, which is the logical thing to do. Mating comes first, even if love's involved. From mating, love can grow, in rare cases. Or in Chameleon's case, he loves her already, so then the logical step for a Saurian like him is to mate to seal the bond. It's logical and natural."

"The paradox is…" Setsuna said. "Is that it's logical and natural for humans as well. The only problem is the social aspect. Chameleon asked her in public to have sex with him. That's unacceptable. If it had been but a different word, it'd be perfect."

Traveller frowned. "But my friend, if you see two mates together, don't you know they have mated as well? If I look at Haruka-san and Michiru-san, I know they've mated, it's no secret." With a sigh, she added: "I've even had the 'pleasure' to hear it."

Michiru sighed. "Sorry for that. But mating is a very private thing for humans. So private it mustn't be discussed in public, and definitely not offered in public. As for what you said, you can see a happy couple in love, but that doesn't mean they have had sex yet."

"We can smell it," Nightmare growled, tapping her nose. "Your scent's all over your mate. And before you say it's because you cling to her a lot, I doubt you cling to the spot between her legs in public."

All the Senshi sweatdropped. "We weren't going to say that…" Hotaru said, blushing.

Haruka shrugged. "And we don't have such a good sense of smell. Also, it might just be a Saurian thing."

"No, no," Ignika objected. "That's definitely Michiru-san's scent between…" He stopped himself and looked around uncertainly. "I'm not supposed to say this out loud, am I?" he asked innocently, naively.

Haruka hid her face in her hands and groaned. Michiru put her hand on her lover's shoulder grimly.

Rei nodded and said: "Indeed."

Ignika smiled happily. "I knew it! I'm getting better at this, am I not?" He looked around the remainders of the group at the table questioningly.

"You are." Haruka said, her voice muffled from her face still being hidden in her hands. The Child of Life's innocent smile only widened, and his face was positively beaming, convinced he had done the right thing this time.

"Thank you, Haruka-san!"

"You're welcome." Michiru answered in her steed.

Rei sighed as she remembered something completely different. "Umm, Ignika? Could you restore my table, please?" She asked. The Saurian of Life's smile dropped and his expression returned back to normal. He knocked on the table, testing its material.

"It's organic, so I can, Rei-san," he announced with a nod. A small portion of Life energy later, and the table was back to normal.

"Thanks." Rei smiled, which Ignika returned with one of his own.

"I wonder where Makoto-san and Chameleon are right now," Traveller interrupted, sounding slightly worried. "Shouldn't we go look for them?"

Minako shook her head. "No. They must sort this love problem out on themselves. Trust me, I know!" She winked.

"I'm not worried about their love problems," the Saurian of Teleportation explained. "I'm worried about the fact that Makoto-san ran off all on her own and has nobody with her now, as far as we know. I seem to remember a certain Senshi here in the room who also was on her own and because of that got to spend more than a week in a Great Being's care."

"But Chameleon will find her!" Chibiusa exclaimed.

Rei shook her head. "Traveller is right. We have to find her."

"Before it's too late," Ignika's oldest sister added. "Better safe than sorry."

Rei bowed her head. "I'll stay here. Grandpa will find it suspicious if I run off now."

"So it's decided then." Setsuna said. "Let's go."

* * *

Makoto was running blindly through some small narrow alleyway of Tokyo, not knowing nor caring where she was going. She was so embarrassed and so shocked by what had transpired that she didn't give one damn for her current whereabouts. She just had to get away from that place where Chameleon was, as far as possible.

"How could he… How could he…" She kept saying to herself. "Why… Why did he ask that of me…"

Makoto ran and ran. The reason she ran off wasn't even Chameleon himself. He was being sincere, she knew it. No, the reason was different.

She was scared. She remembered her old sempai and was scared. She didn't want someone to love her again, she didn't want to be hurt again. She didn't want to break Chameleon's heart, but couldn't help it. He was still so much younger than her… She couldn't possibly be with him. And so she ran, pained, as far away as possible.

She was so focussed on running that she didn't notice the dark, winged shadow homing in on her until it was too late. She was so focussed on running that she didn't see the bisento swinging her was until it was too late. The bladed weapon struck her in the back, creating a humongous bleeding slash on her back, knocking Makoto to the ground.

Makoto cried and turned around, her wand in hand. "Jupiter Crystal Power, Make Up!" She shouted before any more damage was done to her. Makoto Kino vanished, to be replaced by Sailor Jupiter, and hovering above her, casting a dark shadow over the wounded Senshi, was Felnas the Disruptor.

"And here I thought I'd get no chance today," the Immoral One said. "When I felt Sailor Mars return to this plane of existence, I thought the day had come to finish my job. But alas, too well guarded. Try another day, Felnas, I thought. But then you happened to run away all on your own, and I just couldn't resist. You have my gratitude, Sailor Senshi."

"Felnas…" Makoto said through clenched teeth. This was bad. By Rei's experience, he could disrupt any power, so attacking him was useless. Engaging him in close combat was an even more reckless thing to do, he was way out of her league when it came to that. Makoto didn't know what to do.

"Time to make a choice, Senshi," the Disruptor said. "Surrender and die painlessly, or resist and die the painful way. Your fellow Senshi choose the latter, to her own regret. I trust you will make a wiser choice?"

Makoto bowed her head. She could surrender and just die… But she couldn't allow herself that. If she resists and wins herself time, perhaps help will come. If she doesn't, death will come right now. Having made her decision, she looked into Felnas' eyes daringly.

"Sparkling Wide Pressure!" She fired her attack in his face, but it was swept aside by a fierce swing of the Immoral One's bisento.

"Fool," he snarled. "So you have chosen for the way of pain? Well then, have at you!" Felnas flapped his wings and rose higher in the air, than swung his heavy halberd once more, cutting into the walls of the houses on both side of the narrow street. The blade of his weapon was charged with his disruptive powers, and disruption spread from the gaps he had slashed in the stone. The power that held the stone together began to grow to massive proportions, running wild and no longer being contained or controlled. The walls crumbled, and a rain of debris crashed down towards Sailor Jupiter.

"Jupiter Oak Evolution!" Makoto fired, sending the leaf-shaped lightning beams all over the place non-stop. They collided with the debris, crushing it in much smaller pieces that couldn't harm her. But suddenly Felnas was there, bursting through the debris, his claws lashing out and digging into Makoto's chest.

Makoto screamed in pain, but managed to reach her hand out towards him and fire a Sparkling Wide Pressure. Felnas quickly dislodged himself and flew back, reaching out with his disruption to destroy the attack before it could hit him. Then he swung his muscled tail, knocking the Senshi of Lightning in the stomach, sending her flying and knocking the wind out of her.

Makoto collided painfully with a wall, but kept fighting. "Supreme Thunder Dragon!" She sent a grand Dragon of Lightning after the Immoral one. But no matter how powerful her attacks were, they all met the same fate, Felnas disrupted them before they could do any harm. He tore a block of stone from another wall and tossed it casually at Jupiter, ready to disrupt any attack she fired to destroy his projectile. Makoto knew it, but had to try.

"Sparkling Wide Pressure!"

As expected, Felnas disrupted it, but it gave Makoto just enough time to drag herself out of the way of a head-on collision with the block of stone. She dove out of the way and landed on all-fours on the floor, her back burning with pain from the wound she had received before. The Senshi coughed painfully, and spat out some blood. A shadow fell over her, and she knew Felnas was standing behind her.

"Turn around, Senshi," he said calmly. "Be brave and look pain and death in the eye."

Makoto growled and turned around, Supreme Thunder flying from her hands, but Felnas merely swatted it away with his bisento. Another strike followed, slashing open her chest. As blood stained her fuku, the Senshi of Lightning groaned and felt her strength slip away slowly. She was so focused on her pain that she failed to see Felnas' hand homing in until it was too late. The Immoral One closed his clawed hand around her throat, ready to trigger his immoral power and make Makoto suffer the same fate as Rei.

Makoto tried to struggle even in this position. Seemed that nobody would come after all. "At least I tried…" She thought. Sailor Jupiter felt Felnas' hand tighten its grip, and she prepared for the excruciating pain Rei had described.

Only it never came.

At the moment Felnas had triggered his power, something had slammed into his side, knocking him away from the wounded Senshi before his power could begin to work. The Immoral One snarled loudly as he crashed into the ground with a weight on top of him, and when he looked it was to see Chameleon lividly stabbing his daggers into Felnas' chest. The Immoral One howled in pain, but recovered instantly, knocking Chameleon off and away from him. The Saurian of Camouflage landed on his feet, breathing hard.

Makoto watched him with wide eyes. "Chameleon…" She whispered. He had come to her rescue.

"Makoto, are you alright?" he asked with a growl, not taking his eyes of the Immoral One, who still had his Camouflage Daggers embedded in him, leaving Ignika's older brother unarmed.

"I'm alive." She said quietly, groaning in pain from her wounds. "Thanks to you."

Angered by being interrupted during his killing of Makoto, Felnas snarled, climbed back to his feet and ripped Chameleon's daggers from his chest, tossing them away carelessly, out of reach for their owner. "Why can't a person just kill his prey in peace around here?" he growled, setting a menacing step towards the Senshi and her Saurian guard.

"Because the prey's too strong in a pack." Makoto smirked.

Felnas laughed loud. "Two people, a pack?" He laughed again and tightened the grip on his weapon. His murderous gaze tore right through Makoto, and she shivered. "You have this little, unarmed, weakened Saurian show up, and suddenly you think you're leaving here alive? Or perhaps even more ridiculous, think you'll defeat me."

Makoto smiled. "If he's here, others will soon come, too."

"By that time, you'll be dead," Felnas said casually, as if stating a fact. He smiled at Chameleon and tauntingly mentioned with his finger for the boy to come closer, to attack him. The Saurian of Camouflage wasn't so stupid as to attack an Immoral One unarmed, however, he wasn't Nightmare. His eyes darted around, looking for his daggers.

"Don't taunt him any further, Makoto," Chameleon warned. "I was the only one to run after you." As he said this, Ignika's brother tried to find the best and quickest way to retrieve his weapons before Felnas could stop him.

"Were you…?" Makoto said quietly. She closed her eyes. "Why…?"

"I wanted your answer in words…" he muttered quietly, never taking his eyes off Felnas.

"Chameleon…" She whispered with her eyes closed. She just didn't know what to answer. But her thoughts were interrupted by Felnas making his move. He sped towards Makoto, knowing for certain that Chameleon would stand in his way.

And indeed the Saurian of Camouflage moved to intercept the Immoral One. Chameleon threw himself at Felnas, but the Immoral One changed directions suddenly, now storming towards Ignika's brother instead of the Senshi of Lightning. He swung his bisento, and Chameleon barely had the time to duck. This left him open for a strike of Felnas' tail, which knocked Chameleon face-first in the dirt. The Immoral One raised his bisento, ready to behead the disguised Saurian at his feet.

"Sparkling Wide Pressure!" Makoto knocked the bisento out of the Immoral One's hand with her attack. Felnas snarled as his hand was singed, and as he did so Chameleon pulled his legs out from under him, making the Disruptor fall over on his back. Chameleon threw himself at Felnas, but the corrupt Saurian caught Ignika's brother with his feet and tossed him away, sending him crashing head-first in a nearby wall. Felnas climbed to his feet and retrieved his bisento, cutting out another block from a wall and tossed it at the Senshi who had attacked him.

Makoto fired a Jupiter Oak Evolution, breaking the wall chunk in pieces. At the same time she looked around the battlefield for Chameleon to see if he was safe. She looked in his direction just in time to see Chameleon, who had been struggling to get back to his feet, get hit by another chunk of debris square in the chest. It knocked the wind out of the Saurian boy, crushed him against the wall and ripped his skin open all over his body. Chameleon, who had already been wounded at the head, his vision blurry and spinning, collapsed, despite his best efforts to get up. He coughed and spat out blood. Despite being a Saurian in disguise and having stronger bones than a normal human, having a ton of solid brick wall crush him against more brick wall was extremely painful, even for him.

"Chameleon…" Makoto's eyes widened. She struggled to get up herself, despite being wounded and cut all over her body. She wanted to get over to him…

"Stay down and where you are, boy," Felnas warned with glee. "And watch as I end the life of this miserable Senshi!" And with those words he sped towards Makoto with swift beats of his wings. The Senshi gasped and tried to defend herself by throwing a Sparkling Wide Pressure at the Immoral One, but Felnas swung his bisento and knocked the attack right back, hitting Makoto with her own attack. Makoto screamed as electricity coursed through her body, making it thrash in convulsions. Felnas was still at her, and her life was about to end from his strike. The Senshi of Lightning saw the bisento raise, and then be brought down, aimed to stab right through her heart. So shocked, or perhaps even scared, by her own impending doom, Makoto couldn't even close her eyes.

And thus, her eyes were wide open and she watched as Chameleon threw himself between the Senshi and Immoral One, taking the bisento's blade through his back and having it stick out through his chest.

"Ma… koto…" he hissed between clenched teeth, blood leaking out of the corners of his mouth. He stood bowed over her, using his own body as a shield for the woman he truly loved from the bottom of his heart.

"Chameleon…" Makoto could only whisper and stare. "Why…?"

Felnas pulled his weapon out of the disguised Saurian before him and Chameleon, his legs no longer able to support him, fell forward, to be caught by Makoto in her arms. The Immoral One reared back his weapon for another strike.

"Foolish," he sneered at the dying Saurian of Camouflage. "You've bought your precious Senshi a few more seconds of life! Now you will both die!" He swung his bisento, but Makoto reacted by nothing but pure instinct and emotion.

"Jupiter Stasis Field!"

A stream of electricity erupted from her outstretched gloved hand, while her other arm cradled the bleeding Chameleon closely to her chest. The electricity winded itself around the two wounded combatants, forming a dome of sparkling, charged energy. Felnas' bisento hit it, and instead of him cutting through it, a high voltage of lightning bolts ran through the weapon into the Immoral One's body, shocking him to the core and blowing him back. The dome remained, and they were safe for the moment being.

"Ma… ko… to…" Chameleon hissed again, with great difficulty, as his blood flew from the hole in his chest over his clothes and on the Senshi of Lightning. He tried to lift a hand up to touch Makoto's cheek, but did not have the strength to do so.

"Chameleon…" Makoto whispered. "Don't die on me, Chameleon…" She stroked her beloved boy's hair.

"I know… I may have messed up… But… From the day I met you… I've begun to develop… feelings… for you…" Ignika's only brother said, his voice slow and strained. "First… respect… gratitude… Then… friendship… You helped me adapt… Comforted me… when this world… scared me… Fed me very well…"

"Chameleon…" Makoto said quietly. The last comment brought a small smile to her lips. The path to a man's heart indeed lies through his stomach, as silly as it was to think of it now that he was dying in her hands.

"But then… those lilies…" he whispered, smiling. "It meant… it changed… No, it didn't… it merely made me… realize… what I… had been feeling for a… while…" He finally succeeded in placing his hand on her cheek, enjoying the softness of her skin. "So much… like Rain… and yet… so different and so… better… And all… because of… those lilies… I finally knew that… my heart… which I thought would forever… belong to Rain… Now belongs to… you…"

Makoto bit her lip as tears formed in her eyes. Chameleon's words made her inner barriers break. She knew he was sincere – and even if he was – or looked – younger than her, she knew she felt more for him than for just any guy. "Chameleon…" She said quietly and brought her face down to his. She kissed him on the lips, tenderly and warmly.

Chameleon's eyes widened in shock, but he didn't have time to muse over it, as a new feeling flared up inside both of them. Makoto began to glow a brilliant green light and Chameleon a gentle, soft sand-coloured light. The kiss, the acceptance of each other's feelings brought their symbiosis to life.

Chameleon felt Makoto's happiness in the early years of her life. He felt her pain when her parents died. He felt her ever-lasting loneliness ever since, until she met the other Senshi. He felt her happiness and joy of being with them. He felt… He felt the first time she met him. He felt her eagerness to teach, her modesty, her embarrassment at times. He felt the way he made her smile, her caring for him, her desire to help him, protect him, comfort him. He felt that…

_I love you…_

Makoto felt and saw Chameleon's feelings at his birth, his eagerness and happiness at being alive, the joy of a normal life in the great jungles of Voya. The love and admiration for Rain, the longing for her, the pain of loosing her. The love for and dedication to Ignika and the rest of the family, the sadness at having to fight former friends. The confusion and fear at all the new things his arrival on earth brought, the gratitude he had for Makoto for taking care of him, help him, protect him and comfort him. But above all, she felt the burning feeling coming from his heart, a feeling that was unmistakably love.

_I love you, too…_

The force field had died out, but it didn't matter. Healed to full health, Chameleon and Makoto got up and faced the Immoral One. In perfect synchronicity, they thrust their hands towards him.

"Voya Thunder Minefield!" They cried in unison.

Moments passed, but nothing seemed to happen. Chameleon and Makoto lowered their hands, and the Immoral One growled.

"Are you fooling with me?" He cried and took two steps towards them when suddenly he was hit by an explosion of electricity. He stumbled back, and another explosion hit him. Not understanding where the blow came from, he turned around and took another step, but another invisible ball of lightning exploded on him. Makoto and Chameleon thrust their hands towards him again, and the entire vast mine started closing in, hitting the Immoral One regardless of where and when he moved. This continued for quite a while, until the outer circle of mines came to close to him and all its bombs exploded at the same time. A barrage of invisible lightning shocked the Immoral One to his core, and it was only his great physical resistance and burning willpower that kept him alive.

If barely.

With smoke rising off his body, Felnas the Disruptor stared shocked at the couple of lovers that had defeated him so unexpectedly. He reached out a shaking, blackened and smoking hand, as if still trying to wound them somehow, but then his knees buckled under his weight and he collapsed to the ground, defeated.

At that moment, the Senshi company came rushing in, followed closely by the Saurian family, all looking ready for battle. However, they found that the battle had already been taken care of. Ignika immediately pushed forward and ran at Chameleon.

"Chameleon, are you alright? I could smell your blood… We all could… But you look fine!"

"I am fine, little brother," the Saurian of Camouflage replied, ruffling the Child of Life's white hair. He looked at Makoto, and their still intertwined hands, and smiled. "Couldn't be any finer."

Makoto giggled and smiled mischievously at him. "Confession, take two?" She winked at him.

Chameleon grinned. "If you want to." He said, let go of his little brother and led Makoto a few paces away. The Senshi's jaws dropped as they watched Chameleon kneeling again.

"Makoto, will you be my mate?" Chameleon asked, looking at her lovingly.

"Yes." Makoto smiled at him with shining eyes. "I will."

In all the commotion and happiness afterwards, everybody forgot about the Disruptor. Felnas was slowly fading, his disabled, charred and wounded body becoming transparent as he left this dimension slowly. But even as he vanished, his cold, dark eyes were fixed on the Senshi, and his terrifying jaws formed an evil smirk.

"Celebrate while you can, poor fools…" he thought. "Even as I face disgrace now… The Master is coming, and when he does, you will have no more reason to laugh, ever again…"

* * *

**Next chapter: Different kinds of love!**

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**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Yep, it was awkward, and very fun to write. Glad you liked the chapter though, thanks. =)

Rizwan Fariz: This fanfic is mainly family and adventure, yes. But it doesn't mean I can't add a little romance into it, but aside from canon pairings (Michiru x Haruka) and Makoto x Chameleon, there will be none, except for friendship pairings, of course. Hope you don't mind, thanks for the review!

Ariel Night: Yep, Chameleon should have explained it for Makoto to understand it correctly. But he's a Saurian, and he sometimes forgets Makoto is not and that she has different social norms and ways of doing things. Had she been a Saurian, she would have understood, but she's not so she didn't, and Chameleon kind of forgot that. ;) Thanks for reviewing!


	103. Different kinds of love

Warning: Chapter contains references to adult content, and has some smut in the latter half. **Nothing explicit.** Still, if kissing makes you go 'yuck!', it may be better to skip the latter half of this chapter. So with that out of the way, on with the chapter itself._  
_

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**103. Different kinds of love**

Once Makoto had accepted his feelings and returned them, Chameleon got off his knees, his hands still holding those of the woman he loved. He smiled happily at her, love evident in his eyes. "Well then, Makoto," he said warmly as he held her hands tightly, as if afraid to let go. "Shall we go home now and do that mating to seal our bond?"

Makoto blushed. "Umm… well… um… ehhh…" She looked at her friends for help.

Minako jumped and punched the air with her fist. "Go for it, Mako-chan!" She shouted giddily. Which in turn earned her a whack on the head by her adopted sister, who glared at her heatedly.

"Don't encourage them, love dove!" Nightmare snapped. She made a face at Chameleon and Makoto's love. "My brother's in love! It's so sappy and sugary and sweet it makes me sick! Yuck!"

"Nightmare, behave," Traveller chided. "If Chameleon loves Makoto-san, we must be happy for them, not insult them. We'd do the same for you, and we didn't make fun of you for snuggling up to Minako-san either."

"Though I do agree that it won't be good if it just stays at love," Ignika muttered. "Love needs to stand in service of something. Namely, mate. It's time they get to it now and produce offspring, so my element won't be offended. I won't have one of my own family do that, no way!"

"I'm certain they won't do that," Gravitas said monotonously, in a strange attempt to sooth Ignika. "I am sure our new sister won't object to it any longer once she lays eyes on our brother's tool. From what I seem to remember, it's quite big, and I read in a book that a human female can experience a lot of pleasurable feelings if her mate's well endowed. Which Chameleon is."

All the Senshi blushed and sweatdropped, and Ami shrieked: "Gravitas!" in embarrassment.

The Saurian of Gravity turned around and looked at Ami, her face bearing an expression of confusion. "What did I say wrong?" she asked, so naïve and innocent. "I am just trying to help them get to it by providing reasons for Makoto-san to let herself be mated by my brother." She paused for a moment, frowned, then asked: "Or was the book wrong?"

"To quote myself…" Haruka glared at the Saurian of Gravity. "NO talking about mating in public."

"That, and Makoto doesn't need reasons." Minako said. "She loves him, he loves him, why should there be a problem?"

"There is no problem!" Chameleon interrupted, finally loosing his patience. He pulled Makoto close, but then winked at Gravitas. "But thanks for the compliment, sister."

"I was stating a fact, not complimenting you," Gravitas droned monotonously while crushing Haruka in the ground with gravity as revenge for glaring at her. Then she looked questioningly at Makoto. "Did I convince you?"

"I didn't need convincing. But yes." Makoto smiled gently, looking at Chameleon lovingly. Gravitas looked at Ami triumphantly.

"See? I can help out my family if needed." She increased her gravitational pull on Haruka as the Senshi of Wind uttered a few curses and death-threats at the silver-haired girl's address.

"They didn't need any help…" Ami said. "And could you please let Haruka go? She said the right thing."

"She threatened to kill me just now," Gravitas objected tonelessly, doing a step aside to avoid Haruka's snatching hand.

"She's just saying that." Michiru said. Then looked at her lover sternly. "Haruka, apologize right now."

"But…"

"Do you want to be let go or not?" Michiru put her hands on her hips.

Haruka sighed. "I'm sorry, Gravitas." She droned out. The Saurian of Gravity nodded and released her gravitational pull on the Senshi of Winds.

"I was only trying to help…" Ignika's middle sister whispered, her face looking somewhat sad. "But every time I try, you all always shout at me to shut up. I'm not going to help anymore in the future… It is never wanted…" And to everyone's surprise, Gravitas sighed and bowed her head.

Ami smiled and put her hand on her shoulder. "No-no, don't stop trying." Ami said gently. "You'll get better at it if you try. You do help when asked to, no?" Gravitas shrugged, didn't care, shook her head and didn't reply, trying to shrug Ami off.

"Gravitas…" Makoto said. "It's not that your help was not wanted. It's that I would have mated your brother even without it. And it's just that we humans are shy and easily embarrassed when it comes to discussing it." She came over to her and put her hand on Gravitas' shoulder as well. "I appreciate the effort, really."

"You… do?" Gravitas repeated lamely, looking up uncertainly at the brown-haired Senshi.

Makoto smiled sincerely. "I do."

Ignika came over and gently tugged on Makoto's sleeve. "Does this mean you'll be my sister from now on, too, Makoto-san?" he asked innocently, hope shining in his eyes.

"Hmm?" Makoto looked at him in wonder. "Me?"

Chameleon grinned at the love of his life. "If you're going to be my mate, Makoto, that means you'll be part of the family." The other Saurians, aside from Nightmare who groaned and clutched her head, nodded.

Makoto smiled. "Then I will, if that's the custom." She said simply.

"The family just keeps expanding huh?" Nightmare asked with a groan.

"Says the Saurian who expanded our family in the first place," Chameleon retorted dryly.

"A big family is no bad thing." Makoto smiled. "I often wished I had siblings, I wouldn't be so lonely then before I met my friends."

"I see all of you a bit as my family," Ignika announced innocently, turned around to smile at the rest of the assembled Senshi.

The Senshi smiled back. "So do we, Ignika!" Hotaru ran up to him. "So do we!"

"You do?"

"We do." Usagi nodded cheerfully. "Friends are all like a bit of family."

"That's great, I've always wanted a big family," the white-haired boy replied. "It meant less people hating me."

Hotaru chuckled. "Well, nobody hates you here. Or in this world, for that matter."

"Except Haruka-san and Michiru-san whenever I say something wrong," Ignika objected. He glanced shyly at the mentioned lesbian couple. "Especially Haruka-san, though."

Haruka put her hand to her forehead and sighed. "I don't hate you." She said. "At most, I am annoyed. But I don't hate you."

"Well, you still don't like me that much, which is my own fault, I guess, for turning you into a male, embarrassing you and Michiru-san, embarrassing you again, and again, oh, and again," he counted it all off on his fingers as he summed it up. Once he was done, the boy looked positively sad. "Thinking about it, I really have been a bad person to you and Michiru-san, Haruka-san… I'm sorry… I… I only tried to do what I thought was best."

Michiru smiled. "It's okay, we know you meant well, right, Haruka?" She looked at her lover.

"Yes, that's right." The Senshi of Wind agreed.

"We're not angry at you." Michiru smiled at the Child again.

He looked at them shyly, almost begging with his eyes. "Can I get a hug then?"

"Sure thing." Haruka said and Michiru spread her arms invitingly. The immortal child eagerly accepted the invitation and ran towards the welcoming arms, nearly throwing himself into them. Michiru hugged the kid back and Haruka joined her. The Senshi collectively 'aww'ed at the scene.

"I think," Ignika muttered as he closed his eyes and clung to the Senshi hugging him. "I think I know what it's like to be embraced by your parents now…"

"Just don't make us parents to everybody…" Haruka muttered.

"I won't," Ignika promised, and he clung to them even tighter. "Just let me enjoy this moment a bit longer. I've never had a mother…" And Michiru let him do just that, stroking his hair. The Child of Life purred softly.

Makoto put her head on Chameleon's shoulder. "Aaah, so cute…" She said, smiling. Her Saurian lover nodded, fully agreeing. He put an arm around Makoto's waist and pulled her closer.

"I agree," he whispered, turning his head so he could look her in the eyes. "But with all this, we've lost focus a bit. Truth to be told, I'd rather go somewhere quiet now and be alone with you, Makoto…"

Makoto smiled. "Traveller, could you take us home?" She asked her new sister. The Saurian of Teleportation tore her gaze off the cute sight of her brother receiving a motherly hug and turned to the two lovers. She smiled and nodded.

"That will be no problem," she said, extending her hand for them to take.

Makoto smiled and took it. "Thanks, sister."

Traveller's smile widened. "That will take some getting used to," she admitted. Then she motioned with her head at the rest of the group. "Do you want to say goodbye to the rest?"

"Nah, let them be." Makoto rolled her eyes. "This is our day." She smiled lovingly at Chameleon. The Saurian of Camouflage returned the smile, then grabbed his mate's hand as well as the one of his sister. Traveller, after casting one more look on her hugging little brother, grinned and teleported Makoto and Chameleon away to their apartment.

* * *

A few moments later, Makoto and Chameleon were sitting on the couch together, hugging each other and musing over everything that had happened with them today. They sat together and felt each other's love through the bond, and it made them all the happier. Regardless, Chameleon still felt a bit weird and unfamiliar with this whole feeling of love in his chest. Even as he sat so close to Makoto, hugging her, he wasn't sure of what to do. His instincts told him that the logical next step was to 'mate' her, but he had the feeling that that wasn't what a human boy in love with a human girl was supposed to do at this moment.

That's when he remembered something important from their symbiosis. "Makoto, our symbiosis started as soon as you pressed your lips on mine. What exactly were you trying to do back then?"

"Ah." Makoto smiled. "It's called a kiss. It's an intimate gesture for humans in love to kiss each other on the lips." She explained eagerly.

"A… kiss?" he repeated slowly, testing out the world. "I've never heard of such a thing."

"Well, no wonder, you Saurians don't have lips like we have." Makoto smiled.

"I suppose that's true," the disguised reptile admitted, hugging the woman he loved tightly for a moment, before looking up at her with big expectant eyes. "So, it's normal for human lovers to do so, right? Can you teach me then?"

"Of course." Makoto said, smiling, and put her lips against his again. Chameleon's eyes widened slightly as she did so, but he quickly closed them again and enjoyed the intimacy, even if it felt weird and unusual beyond belief and made his stomach all fluttery and ticklish. Makoto moved her lips slightly, brushing her tongue against his closed lips. Startled, Chameleon broke away, looking questioningly at her with his widened eyes.

"What were you trying to do?"

"Well, pressing lips together is not all there is to a kiss." Makoto explained. "I'd show you if you parted you opened your mouth a bit."

"Ehm, sure, but why?" the immortal yet rather naïve teenager in her arms wondered aloud.

Makoto smiled. "It's strange but pleasant. And also is important to human mating."

"It is?" He was surprised yet again. So far, falling in love and confessing seemed to actually have been the _easiest_ thing to do. There was so much now that he didn't know but was supposed to do, it kind of threatened to overwhelm him.

Makoto felt that through the bond and said: "Don't worry. We can go slowly if you want. Sure, there are things for you to learn, but they're not as hard as you think." She assured her lover.

"I'm just kinda new to all of this," he admitted sheepishly. "Sure, I loved Rain, but it never really got further than that. Same now, I love you, but I've got no real clue as to what to do. And all this talk of mating is all fine and dandy, but aside of what instinct tells me, I've got no clue as to how to do that, either." He looked away with embarrassed red cheeks. "I'm sorry, you must find me disappointing, especially after all that tough talk and asking you to mate me from before."

Makoto smiled and put her hand on his cheek, turning him back to look at her. "It's alright, really. Nobody is born with that knowledge. I'll teach you how to do it." She said warmly.

"Oh, that's right, you've done it all before, huh?" he said with a small smile, remembering all her talking about her 'old sempai'.

Makoto nodded slowly. "Yeah…"

"Well, that makes me feel better," he admitted. "If I mess up, at least you can correct me then. So what do humans mates do together when not mating actually, Makoto?"

"Well, we just spend time together." Makoto answered. "Go out, visit places, have fun, give each other presents… That's the romantic part of it, anyway." She smiled. The – body-wise – younger boy smiled as well and snuggled closer to the woman he loved, enjoying the warmth and close contact.

"What about hugging?" he wondered aloud softly.

"Definitely!" Makoto smiled and kissed her lover briefly on the forehead. Chameleon grinned and put his arm around her, resting his head on her chest and listening to the gentle beating of her heart. Her heart that loved him.

"Makoto…" he began, sounding uncertain. "Do you… do you think my love's sincere? I mean, we haven't known each other for that long, so I guess I can understand it if you think it all went too fast to be natural… But I do love you, even if it sounds sudden or unnatural."

"I feel it is sincere, Chameleon." Makoto smiled. "At first I wasn't sure, and I ran away because of that, but… I do love you, too, Chameleon." She gently caressed her lover's shoulder.

"Why?" he wondered curiously. Not because he doubted her, but because he wanted to hear her say why with her own words.

"Well, I liked you ever since I saw you in human form…" Makoto began. "And I rather enjoyed having you around in my apartment. You were nice, ready to help and interesting to talk to. But at the same time you were so cutely dependant on me – it made me feel sort of like a mother." She chuckled. "But then… My feelings grew, and when you told of Rain and I felt jealous, I realized you mean a lot to me. I love you." She smiled.

"I love you too," he admitted, and awkwardly pressed his lips on hers, trying to kiss her and not fully succeeding, but his intentions were sincere. Makoto returned the kiss gently, teaching him how to do it. Chameleon, being an eager student, tried his best to copy her correctly. After a while, Makoto broke the kiss.

"See? You're getting better." She said, smiling proudly.

"I am?"

"You are." Makoto confirmed with a nod. Chameleon smiled proudly and hugged her tightly to him. Makoto hugged him back and caressed his back. He pulled her closer, then started to gently kiss her exposed neck, hoping he was doing the right thing. Makoto breathed in delight. It was pleasant to feel. Chameleon growled softly, caressing her back, enjoying the warmth of her body. He was happy he could hold her close like this now without her being embarrassed. Makoto got her hands under Chameleon's t-shirt and caressed his bare back with her hands.

This again shocked the teenage Saurian somewhat, and he pulled back a bit. "Makoto are you… Are you trying to get me to… Well, you know?" he asked, his voice a mix between a bit of fear and eagerness.

Makoto smiled. "Well, why not?"

"Ehm, are you sure you're ready for that?" he asked sheepishly, trying to hide somewhat his own insecurities about it.

"As long as you are." Makoto answered in a warm quiet voice.

"I am, if you don't mind my inexperience," he answered sincerely, looking at her with shining eyes.

"I don't." Makoto leaned in to kiss him, a kiss which her inexperienced lover eagerly returned, even if he wasn't that good at or fluent in the art of kissing yet. He gently pushed her down on her back as their kiss became more and more passionate, like many more kisses that night.

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**Next chapter: Nightmare's final secret!**

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**Review replies:**

Ariel Night: I'm glad you liked the chapter, and flattered by your compliments about the story. ^^ Thanks for the review.

Kuroui: Yes, it was rather careless of them, no? But as it always goes with such situations, it works out for the best in the end. Hope this chapter didn't dissapoint. Thanks for reviewing.

Lucia Sennen: I hope you now know what the other Senshi think. ;) Thanks for the review!**  
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	104. Nightmare's Final Secret

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**104. Nightmare's final secret**

After Chameleon and Makoto had been taken home by Traveller, the rest of the Saurian family and the Senshi departed as well. They went back to Rei's shrine to inform the Senshi of Mars of what had happened, then group by group headed home, until only Nightmare and Minako were still with the raven-haired Senshi, having decided to not let the young miko remain alone, even if Felnas was defeated for now.

"You should be happy not to be with us when it all happened, girl," Nightmare said bluntly to Rei, who was sitting on the other side of the low, small table, cross-legged on the floor. "It was such a sappy hug and snug fest it made me ill. Even my little brother got into it, hugging that manwoman and her mate and all! Double yuck!"

Rei chuckled. "I would like to see it, actually."

"Why do you find that disgusting, anyway?" Minako asked. "Don't you like to be hugged by me?"

"Of course I do, onee-chan!" the Saurian of Fear said immediately. "But when you think useless is being all snuggle with our new 'sister' because he wants to sink his privates into her, that makes that hug loose all its appeal. And Ignika was being hugged by a manwoman and her mate. Also not appealing." She smiled at the blonde Senshi of Love. "Unlike you, onee-chan! You're just my trusting, beloved sister who is normal, kind of at least, is not a manwoman nor is trying to get into my pants, as you humans say."

Rei raised her eyebrow. "Why does it lose the appeal?"

Minako sighed. "Nightmare believes that sex only hurts. And I can't blame her for thinking so, but have no idea how to correct it." Her Saurian sister nodded fiercely. After the party with the volleyball girls, Nightmare and Minako had talked about some things that had confused the Saurian girl during the party, one of which was the other girls' eagerness to find a boy. Nightmare couldn't understand that, and it was then she revealed to the blonde girl that she called sister, that that was in part because she believed sex was painful.

"Well, of course I do," Ignika's youngest sister said to Rei, on a matter-of-factly tone. "And of course it does! Just imagine: your entire life everybody shuns and hates you, snarling at you that you're an immoral one, and then all of the sudden, during a certain period of time every year, those same males that usually chase you away, now are all over you, relentlessly trying to pin you down and shove their privates up my privates. Tell me again that that doesn't hurt! That Makoto is either very brave or very stupid, to endure such torture like love."

Rei shook her head. "Nightmare, you're wrong. It doesn't hurt. For humans, it only hurts the very first time it's done to a woman, due to us having a thing called a 'hymen'. But afterwards it brings nothing but pleasure." She explained patiently.

"Don't make me laugh!" the Saurian girl snapped, crossing her arms. "What's so pleasant about the males you despise pinning you down and trying to shove their treebranch in me? Besides, from what I've heard, you're not exactly one to talk, since you hate men, too."

"I hate men for a different reason." Rei said sternly. "I hate men because of my father."

"All the same," Nightmare shrugged. "I hate men because they hate me, and I won't fall for their silly mating season hypocrisy. 'Love' of the mating kind hurts, and that's all there is to it."

"But, Nightmare…" Minako said, almost pleading. "Think! Why would anybody want to do it if it was so very painful?"

"Because 'love' scrambles the brain, onee-chan!" the Saurian of Fear replied effortlessly. She smiled and gestured at the red ribbon-wearing blonde. "Just look at you, love dove!"

"Hey!" Minako said, playfully offended.

"You don't need to be in love to feel pleasure. You don't even need anybody else." Rei said.

Nightmare raised an eyebrow at that. "What's that supposed to mean: 'you don't even need anybody else'?" She didn't understand, and the confused expression on her face and in her eyes was proof of that.

Rei shrugged. "Just try it once. Go to Minako's room, alone, close the door, undress, lie on the bed, and touch yourself… _there_." She said in an advising tone she usually used to speak to people who came to the shrine asking for advice. The response she got may not have been exactly what she had been expecting.

The Saurian girl's eyes bulged out of their sockets, her jaw dropped to the floor and an expression of pure terror formed itself on her face. Nightmare let out a shriek of fear and ducked behind Minako, using the blonde Senshi as some sort of living shield or barrier between herself and the miko. "Save me Onee-chan!" she pleaded. "She's mad! Master Angonce didn't manage to heal her enough!"

"Calm down, Nightmare, she's perfectly normal." Minako said in a matter-of-factly tone.

"No she's not!" Nightmare insisted, still hiding. "She wants me to hurt myself!"

"She wants you to try it and see that it doesn't hurt." Minako said, sighing.

"Or would you rather have someone else do it?" Rei said mercilessly. Nightmare shrieked again and fired a blast of fear from behind Minako at the Senshi of Fire, her patience running short quickly.

Rei had an Ofuda ready, however. "Akuryo Taisan!" She cried and threw the enchanted paper at the blast. To Nightmare's surprise, her blast was dispelled. But the Saurian wasn't so easily stopped, and with a growl summoned her Terror Katana to her waiting hand.

"Nightmare, what are you doing!" Minako exclaimed.

"Trying to teach that bitch you call friend some manners! She wants me to be hurt, be it at my own hand or at the hand of the males I despise so much!" Nightmare screamed, furiously trying to hack away at the miko despite Minako holding her back with all her might. "She's made it clear now that she's my enemy, and I won't stand for it!"

"Calm down, I meant no such thing." Rei said calmly and sternly. "If you don't want it, don't. But then you'll never find out that it doesn't hurt."

"That still doesn't change the fact that it was a sickening suggestion and that you lied to me, because mating always hurts!" Nightmare snarled, still swatting futilely at Rei with her katana.

"I lied to you?" Rei raised her eyebrows. Then smiled. "Prove it."

"WELL FINE!" Nightmare snarled, absolutely livid. "Should I drop my pants and show you the scars I have on my privates, something even onee-chan hasn't seen yet? WOULD THAT PROVE IT?"

Minako and Rei both gave a start as if they had been slapped. "What scars…?" Minako said, bewildered. Nightmare swallowed hard and avoided Minako's gaze, her cheeks aflame with shame and embarrassment.

"You never saw those even when we bathed together because I would never let you wash me down there, partly because I didn't want you to see it…" the Saurian girl admitted with great difficulty. She clenched her fist and started to tremble. "A souvenir from one of those overenthusiastic males during the season." She growled, snarled and shook her head, trembling, trying to remain angry and furious and stop the tears from welling up, but in the end failed to do so and the salty liquid ran down her cheeks.

The girls both gasped and looked at each other, and at Nightmare again. It was one thing trying to deal with a mental problem – and having to deal with something that had a real reason behind it was a completely different thing. Minako pulled her sister in an embrace. "I'm sorry, imouto-chan… We didn't know…" She said quietly.

"I didn't want you to know!" Nightmare screamed, trying to pull free from the embrace, the shame being too great, but Minako held her tightly. "I was only eighty-four, barely mature enough… What could a young Saurian girl like me do against a fully grown adult? After fighting off all competition, he tracked me down and…" Ignika's youngest sister screamed again, a scream of rage and hurt. "He ruined my best tunic, he nearly choked me as he pinned me down… He managed to… get inside me and it FRIGGING HURT!" She punched the floor angrily, almost creating a crack in the wood of the shrine. She didn't care that she hurt her hand that way. "I resisted, managed to get my hands on my katana and cut his filthy thing off! The reward I got for that was him slashing me open down there with his claws, which I still have the scars from. Then he fled and I… I had to…" She shivered again. "Had to pull that sickening thing out of me!"

Minako and Rei stared at her in utter terror, Minako having both hands over her mouth.

"My god…" Rei whispered, staring at her wide-eyed.

"After that… after that I cut down or filled every male that came near me with terror, wanting them to never come near me ever again! Just the thought of a male, or anybody aside from my family touching my body makes me sick! It drives me crazy with fear!" She banged her fists on the floor again, snarling, growling and wailing as she remembered that day in her life so vividly, and tasted the blood and filth on her lips once more. Then she glanced over her shoulder at the miko and her sister, and gave them a murderous glare.

"So sorry for not exactly believing you when you just go on and on and on about it feeling good! It's a lie! A filthy, disgusting lie, and I know, because I experienced it first hand!" She snarled again, hitting the floor again. "But if you still don't believe me, shall I drop my pants and show you? Huh? SHALL I?"

"No… No." Rei breathed, looking away.

Minako hugged her sister tightly to her chest. "Poor Nightmare…" Her beloved little sister had been brutally raped. That thought was very hard and painful to take in. Nightmare let Minako hugged her, angrily wiping her tears away every time new ones formed in her eyes.

"Now you know, onee-chan," the disguised reptile whispered. "Now you know everything about me. I have no more secrets for you now…" She hiccupped and sobbed again, her body still trembling with rage, anger and fear. Minako tried to sooth and comfort her, holding her close and stroking her hair. Rei stared at the floor of her shrine for a long time, and then she said quietly:

"Thing is… We haven't been lying. We also experienced it firsthand as pleasurable." She said slowly. "What that male had done to you is unforgivable… But he was just one male. He was brutish and disgusting, and didn't care for you, only for his own satisfaction. But not all are like that."

"They're all the same!" Nightmare snarled again. "All except family, which doesn't count."

"They are not. And Chameleon will be more than gentle to Makoto, I assure you." Rei said.

Nightmare howled in anger, and snuggled closer to Minako, hugging her tightly, tugging at her sleeve and looking up at the blonde pleadingly. "Make her stop lying, onee-chan, I beg you! I can't stand to hear it anymore!"

"She's not lying, but I'll make her stop." She kissed her sister on her forehead gently. Nightmare muttered a quiet "she is", but nodded, keeping close to her sister.

"Poor girl…" Both Rei and Minako thought at the same time. Such a brutal thing, so early in her childhood, so utterly scarring her psychic…

"I feel so pathetic…" Nightmare whispered. "It's as if… as if I'm the stupid 'stereotypical' hurt girl with a sad past from those 'moo vees' Onee-chan likes to watch… I feel so… so dirty, so unlikable…" She buried her face in Minako's arms.

"It's not so, imouto-chan…" Minako said in a quiet voice. "You're very likeable to me…"

"I'm a walking 'stereotype', whatever that means!" the Saurian of Fear cried, beating her fist on Minako's arm while at the same time desperately clinging to her. "And I'm a pathetic heap of misery. Lately I've been doing nothing but self-pity and snivelling and crying and clinging to you, Onee-chan! Damn it all, even now I'm self-pitying, it's sickening!"

"I don't mind you clinging to me." Minako said. "And that's not all you've been doing. Remember all the progress you made! You opened up to me, you opened up to your family, you made friends with girls at volleyball – come on, that's definitely more than snivelling and crying!"

"I'm sure she doesn't agree!" Nightmare screeched, pointing at Rei. "Admit it, you think me pathetic, you think me weak and snivelling and sad!"

"I do not." Rei said quietly. "I feel sorry for all the things that happened to you in the past and I apologize for my behaviour earlier. But you are by no means pathetic or weak."

"You're just saying that," Ignika's youngest sister growled. "So you don't offend Onee-chan."

"Why are you so distrustful? I am telling the truth." The Miko said.

"Prove it," Nightmare snarled, echoing Rei's earlier taunt that had led to her whole breakdown right now.

"How?" Rei asked. Minako then saved the day and whispered quietly to Rei, despite Nightmare hearing it with her superior hearing:

"Hug her, that always helps!" The blonde Senshi winked and would have made her typical V-sign of she hadn't been embracing her shaken little sister at that moment. Rei smiled and gladly came over to the two sisters, and hugged them both. To the miko's surprise, Nightmare purred.

Rei chuckled. "Is this proof enough?" She asked. Nightmare nodded, sighed contently and let herself meld deeper in the embrace, purring again, her face relaxed, though still red and stained with tears.

Rei mused over Nightmare's behaviour. She knew that Nightmare housed a lot of inner hurt, but today it was proven the pain was much deeper than she ever thought. She wondered if anybody could ever heal her from it – at least, from the mental pain. The Saurian in girl in question snuggled closer to the miko, now also clinging to her while she clung to her adopted blonde sister. The said miko eagerly tightened her embrace.

"Does anybody else know, imouto-chan?" Minako asked gently, caressing through Nightmare's dark hair soothingly. The Saurian girl nodded slowly.

"Gravitas… knew it, somehow, but didn't do anything about it…" the Saurian of Fear replied. "Ignika… Read my mind once and found out… Offered to heal my scars, but I… I refused, nearly bit his head off and told him to mind his own business… It was too shameful…"

"Gravitas probably didn't know she should do anything, or how." Rei said.

"How does she behave during the season, anyway?" Minako asked suddenly.

"Crushes all that comes near her," came the answer, as Nightmare continued to cling to the two Senshi as if her life depended on it.

"You told her to do that?" Rei asked. Nightmare shook her head, she hadn't. "Means she did take action, then." The Saurian girl in her embrace nodded, but sighed. Gravitas had taken action, but only for herself.

"Speaking of Gravitas." Minako said. "I've recently heard something unbelievable from Ami." Nightmare looked up, surprised, at her adopted sister, and gave her a questioning glance. Something unbelievable concerning Gravitas? What could it be?

"Mind you, it's not to be told other girls." Minako warned them both. Then took a deep breath and said: "Gravitas _cried_."

Nightmare looked at the Senshi of Love with an empty expression on her face. "That's not a funny joke, Onee-chan," she said monotonously, disbelief clearly in her voice.

"I'm telling the truth." The Senshi of Love said, kind of offended by her disbelief. "Ami said so herself, saw it with her own eyes." Nightmare still shook her head in disbelief. After eons of seeing her silver-haired sister display no emotions or feelings, it was hard to believe Minako when she said her sister did something so emotional as crying.

"She also told Ami why she is so. Why she is emotionless." Minako continued.

Nightmare looked at the Senshi of Love with a gaze that said she barely dared to believe her. "She… she did?" the disguised Saurian asked with a strained voice. "Why? And… and why did she never tell me, or the rest of the family?"

"Same as why you told me all your pain first, or why you never told your secrets. It was private and quite painful." Minako said quietly.

"What is it?" Asked Rei. Minako just looked at her sister, not wanting to talk until she had her permission. The disguised Saurian nodded, wanting to know as well.

Minako sighed and said: "Gravitas hatched in the rain season… She was wet and cold and hurt all the time. She was all alone, confused and crying. She didn't like it, she didn't want to feel the cold and sadness and loneliness… So she decided she doesn't need feelings. So, somehow… She just stopped feeling."

A silence fell that lasted for quite a while, during which Nightmare mused over what she had just learned. "I understand now," she then said quietly. "And if I had been in her place, I would have done the same… It… it makes sense, from a logical viewpoint… And Gravitas… She… She likes logic."

"But when you came along…" Minako continued. "That view shattered, her world turned upside down. You wanted her to feel, and she tried, but just couldn't. She knew she was a bad sister, she knew you needed help, but just couldn't do anything about it. And… It's out of guilt for that that she cried to Ami."

Nightmare felt as if a stone had been dropped in her stomach. "I… made her feel bad?"

Minako shook her head. "No. It was her inability to understand and to act on it that did."

"On the contrary." Rei interfered. "You wanting her to feel set her on the path to recovery. You mustn't feel bad about that."

"But I made her confused…" the Saurian girl whispered, uncertainly. "She… she doesn't like being confused, it makes her feel bad…"

"It's a good thing." Rei assured her. "If you haven't made her confused, she'd never want to change. She'd forever remain an emotionless glacier."

"If you say so…" Nightmare muttered. "I… I never knew she cared that much about me… Sure, I knew she felt the bond of sisters, but never knew that she… wanted to change, for me…"

"Well, it's also logical." Rei said. "If the current way of things didn't suit her any longer, of course she had to change. And she has you to thank for it."

"True, but she does care for you." Minako added. "She did start acting sisterly to you after Ami explained how to do it, didn't she?"

"Yes, but… Now it makes me feel guilty for not explaining it myself…" she whispered.

"Well, what can I say…" Minako shrugged. "I think you had too much to explain about basic things to focus on something like this…"

"I… I suppose that is true…" the Saurian of Fear stammered.

* * *

Later that evening, when Nightmare was already asleep, along with Rei's grandpa, the two Senshi sat by the Holy Fire and talked quietly.

"So strange… I never would have guessed Nightmare has such deep wounds in her soul." Rei said.

Minako nodded. "I couldn't believe it either until symbiosis happened." She sighed.

"Poor girl." Rei sighed.

"True, but she's getting better." Minako objected. "She told me of her troubles, she told her family, and made friends with the girls at the volleyball."

Rei nodded. "All that happened thanks to you…" She looked thoughtfully into the Fire. "And Gravitas is progressing rapidly thanks to Ami… She even joked today."

"Indeed." Minako nodded.

"Chameleon found Makoto, Traveller found her music, Ignika found a big family of friends…" Rei continued quietly. "I wonder if it's Destiny that's been kind to us…"

"Well, it hasn't only been kind." Minako said. "After all, there's Zyglak and the Immoral Ones, and Saurians invading…"

"True." Rei nodded. "However… Somehow, I think everything will turn out for the best. All the bad things so far did."

"You sure about it?" Minako asked.

"I feel it." Rei said.

Minako smiled and stretched herself. "Well, I guess there's nothing to worry about then." She said, yawning. "I'm going to sleep. And you?"

"I'll stay here for a while longer." Rei answered. "I have a lot to think about."

"Okay. Good night then." Minako smiled and went to the guest room where Nightmare was, leaving the Miko by the Holy Fire.

Rei closed her eyes and began meditating. It was going to be a long night…

* * *

**Next chapter: Social norms and feelings!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Ariel Night: I'm glad I succeeded in making it adorable, it was kind of the point. Thanks for the review! =)

Kuroui: I'm glad you liked the romance and how it was written. I'm not used to writing such things either, so it was a tryout for me, too. Makoto goes to a cooking school to become a professional chef, I mentioned that waaay back in chapter 1. As for Nightmare and Minako, it's true that they can share emotions and memories, but while emotions are easily picked up, for memories the symbiosis partners are only allowed to see what they allow each other to see. Obviously, Nightmare was not going to share such a painful memory so casually. Thanks for reviewing!

The One and Only Geek: Seeing as this is a semi-crossover with Bionicle, it's only logical that there will be references to it.

Rizwan Fariz: It is implied that they did indeed make love to each other, and it'll be clarified later on. ;) As for Nephrite, well, I don't think even if he were alive now he'd have much to say about it, since it's Makoto's choice who she falls in love with in her current life, regardless of her previous one. Thanks for the review.


	105. Social norms and feelings

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**105. Social norms and feelings**

At Ami's apartment, Gravitas was thinking. Not because of a mathematical problem or division for a change, no, but because of something else entirely. In fact, she had been at this thinking ever since they'd come home after Rei's welcome home party and the whole happening between her brother and Makoto. She dug into Ami's private library, flipped through all the books, but the answer she sought could not be found there. She flipped through the books she had brought from the library, but that yielded the same results. Seeing as there was no other choice, Gravitas finally decided to take her problem to Ami.

So the Saurian of Gravity walked to the kitchen, where Ami could be found putting away the last of the dishes. "I need your help," Gravitas said in her usual aloof way.

"Oh?" Ami said, closing the cupboard and turning to her. "With what?"

"I looked for a list of things that can and cannot be said in public to learn from the head, but found none," Gravitas answered. "Can you provide me with this, somehow?"

Ami raised both eyebrows. That question caught her off guard. "Well… Such things aren't usually written down… People learn social norms by just living in the culture, growing up in it and all… That's why people of different cultures can be easily offended by what seems normal to others."

"But I did not grow up in this 'so cy it ee'," Gravitas said. "Yet people yell at me if I say something wrong, so I want a list to see what I can say and what I cannot say."

"Mmm… Well, we could try making it…" Ami said, a bit uncertain. "I may not be able to answer why things are so, though."

"Unless it doesn't matter what I say, and I can just be myself?" Ignika's middle sister offered monotonously.

Ami shrugged. "Well, you said you don't like people shouting at you for saying something unacceptable, so… You can still be yourself if only you avoid certain subjects."

"I was only trying to help," the Saurian of Gravity said again.

"I know." Ami smiled. "And they know, too. But nobody likes to be embarrassed."

"Chameleon wasn't embarrassed, he found it a compliment that I said he was well endowed," Gravitas reminded her human friend and symbiosis partner.

"True, but all the humans were." Ami nodded.

"Why can't they adapt for a change, then?" the Saurian girl asked.

"Because there's more of us, it's our world and our land. If we ended up on Voya, wouldn't we have to adapt to your world?"

"I've done enough adapting already," came the reply. And it was true, Gravitas thought. Ever since she got here, she had done nothing but adapting to and abiding by the new surroundings and rules that were now part of her daily life. For some reason, she felt herself inwardly longing for a change of this pattern.

"Well, it's your choice, Gravitas." Ami said gently. "You asked me for a list of what you mustn't talk about in public, so…"

"Because I thought it would make you happy," the silver-haired girl admitted.

Ami smiled. "It does. Just like any other sign of willing to change that you show."

"Have I… changed a lot?" Gravitas wanted to know.

"You have." Ami said, smiling proudly. "Don't you feel it yourself?"

Gravitas shrugged and shook her silver-haired head. "I… I don't know… I suppose I have but… The more I follow your advice, the more I 'change', the less secure I feel, the more things don't make sense…" She sighed again, reflecting on everything that changed within her, and how that had turned her life upside down.

Ami came over to her and put her hand on her shoulder. "It's alright, Gravitas. It's alright to feel insecure at first. But as you get used to feeling, insecurity will slowly vanish, and you'll feel more confident."

"I don't know…" Gravitas muttered.

"I'm sure of it." Ami said. "You've just hatched, so to say, so of course the way you feel confuses you."

"What should I do now, then?"

"Well, why don't we make that list?" Ami smiled. "The only way to find anything out is try it yourself or ask somebody. Same with feelings."

"That sounds… good," Gravitas replied slowly.

"Okay." Ami smiled. "Now, let's go to the living room and write it down." Finally smiling, too, Gravitas nodded and followed her blue-haired Senshi friend to the living room.

Ami sat Gravitas at the writing table and gave her a sheet of paper and a pen. "Now then. Write down…" Ami thought for a little while. "Rule number one. No talking about mating in public. Especially not around children." Gravitas scribbled it down, though she looked thoughtful as she did so.

"Why is it so?" she asked as she wrote. "You said it's embarrassing, and a cultural development, but why…? Shouldn't you _talk_ about it before you get to it?"

"You should." Ami agreed. "But not in public. Only in private. Mating is the couple's own private thing, it shouldn't be out for strangers to know."

"Then how can you find out what are good and bad qualities in mates if you don't talk about it with others who are more experienced?" the other girl wondered.

Ami shrugged. "Simple, you don't. How good a mate your partner is doesn't matter for humans, because humans mate for love. And if you love your partner, why should it matter?"

"That book I read about the human mating rituals mentioned nothing about love," Gravitas retorted.

Ami sweatdropped. "What book?"

"The one on the second shelf, fifth from the right," came the reply. "What are the other things to be added to the list, Ami?"

Ami didn't remember all her books by heart, so she didn't guess what book Gravitas meant. "Mmm…" She mused over the question. "Well, you don't do that, but let's still write it down. No talking about waste-related activities of the human body in public. Those words are said in public only as insults and euphemisms."

Gravitas wrote it down, then, feeling Ami didn't know what book she meant, she clarified: "It was the book called 'sex u o lo gee'."

Ami sighed. "Gravitas, that book only wrote about the technical side of thing. And namely, the problems of it. Love is something different." Her Saurian friend frowned and looked thoughtful.

"How can you tell when you love someone and when you do not? Chameleon said he loved Makoto, but I do not know how he is able to tell, or what the difference is with just loving my sister and family, or you," she then said.

"Well, intimate love for another person is more vivid and passionate." Ami explained dreamily. "Just looking at them makes you happy, moments of being together are blissful. And, no matter how hard you argue or how much shortcomings the one you love has, you always come back to each other, you always stay together. That's how I see it." She smiled.

"That sounds illogical," Gravitas noted with some distaste.

"Who says love is?" Ami asked, smiling. "That's one of the good things about it, lack of logic."

"That's not a good thing at all," Gravitas said harshly.

Ami stroked her hair gently. "Well, is your love for, say, Ignika logical?"

"Yes," came the confident reply. "He is my little brother, so I love him. That's logical."

"Why did you decide he'll be your little brother in the first place, by the way?" Ami wondered. It was a thing she wanted to know for a long time now.

"Nightmare…" Gravitas began. "She said older Saurians had to take care of younger ones, especially sisters, but… I took it wrong and thought it counted for all Saurians, so I helped Ignika when I saw him attacked… And before Nightmare explained to me what she really meant, Ignika already saw us as his sisters…"

"Well, and why didn't you leave when you discovered that misunderstanding?" She asked.

"Travelling in a larger group meant more safety, it was a logical thing to do," came the answer.

"I see…" Ami said thoughtfully.

Gravitas glanced at the list she was writing, and then at Ami again. "What else can I not say?" she asked, not believing that this list consisted of only two things.

"Let's see… There's also a thing about not telling people about their obvious flaws, especially if it's not someone you know. Not to insult them." Ami said after thinking for a while. "Insults and swear words are also inappropriate things." Gravitas penned it down, but once again frowned.

"Not telling people about their obvious flaws?" she echoed, not understanding.

"Well, it comes from not laughing at people. Like saying: you're fat, you're ugly, your kids are brats, etc., well, for lack of better examples." Ami explained. Gravitas nodded in understanding and continued writing it down. She hoped that with this list, she would behave more like a real human girl.

"What else?" she droned monotonously.

"Hmm… Random, impolite behaviour is usually frowned upon…" Ami said thoughtfully. "Attracting too much attention with your actions is not something you want to do, unless you're a performer or something." Gravitas wrote it down, but asked Ami to give an example of the latter. Ami shrugged. "Well, anything. Like starting a fight in public, for example, or shouting songs for all to hear, or any other kind of uncouth behaviour."

"No acting like my sister then, I get it," Gravitas noted calmly, and she wrote that down between brackets.

Ami chuckled. "Yes, that's true. Minako will probably teach her not to do it, though."

Gravitas frowned. "I do not want to act like my 'sister' in public either. That would be embarrassing."

"Oh? Why so?" Ami raised her eyebrow.

"Too bubbly and sunny is not good in public either, I would think," the Saurian of Gravity explained. She looked at Ami calculatingly. "A saying among us Saurians is that 'too' is always bad, be it too good or too negative, both aren't good."

Ami nodded. "I quite agree. Of course there are exceptions to every rule, but in general, that's true."

"Thus, being like Minako in public would not be good either," Gravitas added.

"True." Ami smiled and nodded again. "Minako can do that because it's her personality, but trying to act like her would look ridiculous."

Seeing the opportunity, Ami's symbiosis partner said slyly: "Likewise, Nightmare acting nice would look ridiculous as well. Just like me acting as if I understand human norms and emotions would look ridiculous, too."

Ami raised her eyebrow. "Well, judging by the party Minako told me about, Nightmare is actually good at acting nice, and it doesn't look ridiculous… Except when she tries to make a 'puppy dog eyes' face expression. So you will adapt, too." She smiled at her partner. Gravitas shrugged.

"If you say so, my friend." Gravitas then bowed herself over her list again, and she and Ami continued to lengthen the list, so the aloof Saurian of Gravity could study it and have a better grasp of how to behave herself in public so she would no longer say improper things and embarrass her guardian, namely Ami. Because Gravitas herself could not see the problem.

* * *

That night, only a little bit before midnight, everything was quiet in the apartment. Gravitas was fast asleep on the couch, her face surprisingly relaxed and peaceful. She laid neatly on her back, hands folded together on top of the blanket, head half sunken in the soft pillow Ami had provided. She always slept like this, unless sleeping with her sisters, and the Saurian of Gravity was a very still sleeper to boot. She rarely moved at all during the night. Nor did she sleep very deep usually, waking up at the slightest sign of a change in her surroundings. But not tonight, apparently, for when a small light was flicked on and the door to Ami's bedroom opened, Gravitas did not react.

Ami Mizuno shuffled into the room sleepily, her light-blue nightgown and her hair slightly a mess because of sleeping. Her eyelids were still a bit closed, betraying that she was still half asleep. The Senshi of Water was usually a deep sleeper, but tonight she had woken up all of the sudden, for no apparent reason. She had tried to go back to sleep, but after ten minutes of writhing in her bed, found herself thirsty and decided to get up and go fetch a glass of water in the kitchen. The blue-haired girl glanced briefly at Gravitas sleeping form on the couch and smiled as she saw her peaceful expression. She moved as silently towards the kitchen as possible, not wishing to wake up her dear friend. Gravitas herself was not aware of Ami's presence, and peacefully continued snoozing.

Gravitas' host hurried to the kitchen and drank a small glass of water, then prepared to go back to bed. In the living room, she passed the table and noticed a few books, papers and a notebook laying on top of it. Apparently Gravitas had worked a bit even after Ami went to sleep, and simply forgotten to clean it all up for a change. The Senshi smiled as she recognized the list they had made that day. Her eyes fell on the notebook. She recognized it as the one she had given to the Saurian to practice her writing in, but it also served as a book to scribble and make notes in while fixing mathematical sums. Feeling a sudden urge of curiosity, Ami opened it up. A great deal of the pages had been filled with writing practice and scribbles and footnotes, just as expected. Then Ami reached the blank pages, yet to be filled. She frowned, however, when she discovered Gravitas had begun writing something, quite neatly and delicately, starting from the last page of the notebook. She picked a random line and read it.

_When anybody cries, I am supposed to feel 'sad' and 'compassionate'. I should ask what is wrong and say sentences like 'it's going to be fine' even when it isn't going to be fine. If it is someone close to me, like family, I should hug them and offer them 'comfort'._

Ami smiled. "Gravitas really tries hard…" She thought, looking at another line.

_When I do something good, I am supposed to feel 'happy' and I should fill myself with joy. (Note: I have not yet been told where one can find joy to fill oneself with it.) If somebody else does something good, I should feel happy for them as well, and I should congratulate them, saying words like 'well done'. Even if it is someone I do not know, I should feel happy for them. (Note: I do not know why, but I suppose if Ami says so, it is true.)_

Ami almost chuckled at that. "Too bad… It's hard to explain." She thought. "Need to try to do so, though…" She looked at another entry.

_When something bad happens, to myself or my friends, I am supposed to feel 'sad'. When I feel sad, I am supposed to look sad as well. One 'looks sad' by turning the corners of his or her mouth down, sometimes frowning and most of the times crying. (Note: I have not yet discovered how to activate crying, aside from smelling what Ami calls an 'onion', but carrying around such a smelly thing all the time seems a chore.) This goes especially if others are crying as well. When I feel sad, I am also supposed to seek or accept comfort, letting myself be hugged or hug somebody else who is also crying, as long as that someone is a friend or family. This rule does not go if something bad happens to someone I do not know. In such a case, I need to feel a little bit of 'sadness', but without crying._

Ami smiled, shook her head and closed the notebook, looking at her symbiosis partner instead. "She's so peaceful now… She is trying so hard to act like a normal person…" Ami thought. It made her feel proud… Yet sad, somehow. She looked at the note again. Will this ever work?

Ami sighed. Emotions come from within and get expressed into the outside, whether into words or actions… Will doing the outside help awaken them within? She felt worried and hurt as she thought about it. That is when she read the intro that Gravitas had begun her list with:

_I'm not sure if this will work. I am not used to writing things down, having only learned how to recently, but I do see the convenience in it. Ami does not know I make this list, I think. I do not think she would approve, saying acting won't do anything if you cannot _feel_ it. I suppose she has a point. I have only recently allowed myself to feel again, however. My family, they have helped me greatly, getting me to at least express the most basic feelings such as pain or discomfort. _

_But ever since I arrived here, I have been surrounded by 'feelings' and have been told time and time again to act on them. It is confusing, and often feels more like an inconvenience than a help or something enriching. The bond with Ami changed everything, and her sadness at my emotional state managed to 'move' even me. (Note: I remained where I was, however. Humans have a peculiar way of speech.) So now I let myself feel and it is the most troubling experience of my life. That is why I write this down. With this, I hope to order what seems to have no logic. If I write down descriptions of feelings, describe how to react on them, then maybe I can put the names of those feelings on the raw cluster of feelings inside of me. _

_I suppose that should make me 'happy', right?_

Ami smiled. Gravitas answered her question. "So that's why she's writing it down." She looked at her guest with pride. "I shouldn't worry then."

The Senshi of Water closed the notebook, making sure it was in the same position as when she found it, and went back to her room.

* * *

**Next chapter: Parental issues! **

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Apologies for the awkwardness, but that was the last of the awkward chapters for a while, I think. Thanks for the review! =)

Ariel Night: I'm glad I can make my readers emotional, means I'm doing something right. ;) Thanks for reviewing.

Lucia Sennen: Yes, Ignika can read minds, he has great mental capabilities, which has been established since the beginning. He figured out the Senshi's powers before seeing them by reading their minds. However, there are limits to what he can do, he's no Great Being, after all. As for reassembling stuff, like repairing Rei's table, it doesn't quite work like that. As a wielder of the element of Life, Ignika can influence any organic matter. Rei's table was made of wood, which is a living substance, so his powers work on it. What he did wasn't so much repair the table as _transforming_ it into a new, fixed table. The same way he can transform Saurians into lizards, or turn Haruka into a man. He can shape and bind raw organic matter in whatever form he wishes, too, and bring inanimate objects to life. But when it comes to polution by, for example, plastic, Ignika's powerless. Plastic isn't a natural organic material (as far as I know), so his powers don't work on it. Hope that explains some stuff. ^^" Thanks for the review.


	106. Parental issues

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**106. Parental issues**

Movies were a peculiar thing, Traveller thought. Then again, so was television, and she still didn't truly grasp its workings, but she supposed that didn't matter. You didn't need to understand it to enjoy it… or know that it was harmless. Just a box that showed memories other humans had put into it. But from the explanation Setsuna had given her, 'moo vees' were not really memories. They were made up stories, kind of like myths and legends, made by other humans, and then either acted out by people called 'actors' or made of moving drawings. Kind of like the 'moo vee' they were watching now. What had Setsuna called it again? She thought for a moment and then it hit her.

'Spirited Away', yes, that was what it was called. A fairytale of some sorts, and Traveller found herself quite enthralled by the adventures of the young girl in the inn for Great Beings – rather ugly ones at that – in order to save her parents. It was a moving story, for sure. And so the Saurian of Teleportation sat on the small two-person couch together with her symbiosis partner and friend, the Senshi of Time, Setsuna Meioh, watching the moo vee. On the other couch, Haruka and Michiru were huddled together, the blonde having her arm draped over Michiru's shoulder as they watched the glowing screen. Ignika had gone to the kitchen for a moment to fetch a glass of water. He'd been playing chess with Hotaru mere moments before, but the girl now wanted to see the movie too. She looked around, then came over to her parents:

"Haruka-papa, may I sit on your lap?" Hotaru looked at her 'father' cutely. "I wanna leave the armchair for Ignika…"

Haruka chuckled. "Of course you may." The blonde Senshi let go of her lover and reached towards Hotaru invitingly. "Come here, hime."

Hotaru gladly accepted the invitation and was soon lifted and settled in her papa's lap. Michiru smiled at the sight, as did Setsuna. Traveller looked, and sighed dreamily. She placed her elbow on the arm of the couch and rested her chin on her hand's palm. The Saurian of Teleportation smiled at the young Senshi of Death and Rebirth.

"It must be wonderful to have parents, no, Hotaru-chan?" she said kindly, smiling warmly.

"It sure is!" Hotaru smiled. "Most of the time, at least." She winked at the Saurian. Traveller chuckled softly, sighed dreamily again, and then leaned against Setsuna, her friend and symbiosis partner, the one person aside from her little brother who understood her the best of all.

"It must be wonderful to be a parent, too, right, my friend?" she asked Setsuna. "Right, Haruka-san, Michiru-san?" She looked at the loving couple with a smile.

Michiru nodded. "Oh yes. So many cute, loving family moments…" She said, looking at her little treasure lovingly.

"Many problems, too." Haruka added. "And great responsibility."

"But it's all worth it." Setsuna concluded. Traveller laughed softly, loving the answers she received from her friends. She gave them all a loving smile again, and in truth, Traveller was a bit envious of them. She had never had parents, or knew what a parental hug was like, and she told them so.

"You are very lucky, Hotaru-chan," she concluded.

Hotaru giggled and snuggled closer to her papa. "I know…" Traveller smiled again and was about to say something, when Ignika returned in the room, looking at the TV with a frown, then at the Senshi watching.

"Have the 'co mers yals' ended yet?" he asked innocently.

"Should end any moment now." Haruka answered. "Come on, get a seat." Ignika nodded and looked around. There was no more room next to Traveller and Setsuna, or next to Haruka, Hotaru and Michiru. The armchair was free, but he didn't want to sit alone while all others snuggled up to someone. Then he saw Hotaru on Haruka's lap, and he got a bold idea. Shyly and with a blush on his cheek, he shuffled towards Michiru, hands clasped nervously behind his back and his head bowed.

"Ehm… eh… Ehm… M… ehm… Michiru-san… may I… ehm… eh…" he swallowed hard to try and get rid of his nerves. "May I sit… on your lap?" He didn't dare look at her, or at Haruka for that matter. He hoped she wouldn't be mad at him that he asked something of her only family members did together…

"Why…" Michiru exchanged glances with Haruka at this sudden request, but then smiled at the child. "Of course you may, Ignika." She said warmly. The boy looked up, startled and surprised.

"I can?" he asked, a bit shocked. He hadn't truly expected her to say yes. "Y… you don't mind? H… Haruka-san… doesn't mind?"

"No, not at all." Haruka smiled. "You're a friend, and friends' children can sit on anybody's lap." She explained. Ignika blushed a bit, but nodded gratefully at the Senshi of Uranus, before looking at Michiru expectantly, wanting to know if she really didn't mind and why.

"Come on, come here, Ignika!" Michiru smiled and spread her arms invitingly as a reply. The Child of Life nodded eagerly, and climbed into Michiru's lap and welcoming arms. He wanted to snuggle close against her, but was too shy and afraid to do so. He didn't know how far she'd let him go. Michiru just put her arms around him lightly, just as the commercials ended. The white-haired boy purred softly, and shyly dared to snuggle against the Senshi of the Depths. Michiru just smiled and stroked his hair once. Ignika purred again, closing his eyes and sighing contently.

Haruka chuckled and looked at her 'wife'. Ever-so-kind and motherly, that's just what she loved about her. "Feeling comfy?" She asked the Saurian of Life.

"You're so cute, Ignika!" Hotaru smiled at her Saurian counterpart. Even Setsuna looked at the scene approvingly, loving the cuteness. Michiru just enjoyed the comfort and love she gave to the Saurian child.

"Very comfy, Haruka-san," Ignika answered the Senshi's previous question, snuggling closer to Michiru and purring again. He blushed a bit when Hotaru called him cute, but couldn't deny that she probably was right. Traveller looked at her brother, so happy and comfortable, then at the Senshi that held him, and at the other Senshi in the room.

"Thank you…" she whispered quietly, her voice filled with emotion.

"You're welcome, Traveller." Michiru answered, kind and smiling. The Saurian of Teleportation returned the smile, and her eyes shone a bit with unshed tears. Ignika's sister found herself so very touched and made happy by Michiru's kind gesture to her little brother. Ignika had never had anything like what he was receiving now… The Child of Life himself realised that as well, and he looked at Michiru shyly.

"Thank you, Michiru-san," he said, repeating his sister's words.

"You're welcome, too." Michiru smiled. "It's the least I can do."

"Oh?" the boy looked a tiny bit surprised by that. "Why so?" Then he snuggled close again, enjoying the motherly warmth he was receiving from sitting in her lap and having her arms around himself.

Michiru chuckled. "Well, letting a child sit on your lap and comfort him is really such a little thing…" Ignika smiled, understanding what she meant. From where he was sitting in Michiru's lap, he looked at Hotaru, in Haruka's lap.

"It's very warm to be held by Michiru-san like this… I see why you like your parents so much now, Hotaru," he whispered happily.

Hotaru smiled. "I like them for a lot more than that… But you're right!" Hotaru said as she snuggled to her papa. Ignika giggled, then positioned himself so he could see the TV from where he was sitting in Michiru's embrace. The movie was starting again, and the boy wanted to try and watch it. If he succeeded, then he'd do a 'normal human evening' correctly, he thought. Sitting in the lap of a motherly figure on the couch watching a movie with the rest of the family was such a normal human evening, he thought. Traveller guessed his thoughts, and smiled.

"I think he really needed this," she whispered to Setsuna. "These moments of a happy, peaceful life… Moments just like those we agreed not to lose, not even in the future…"

"Agreed." Setsuna smiled. But that reminded her of something else: "When will we tell them about it, Traveller?"

"Once… once all of this, with Zyglak… once it is over," the Saurian woman whispered slowly. "When everybody can think straight again without being buried with or worried by Zyglak's looming threat…"

Setsuna slowly nodded. "A wise choice, my friend." Traveller smiled slightly, and took Setsuna's hand in hers, squeezing it lightly. A look of understanding passed between them, and then Traveller nodded at the TV.

"Let's enjoy this moment too, for now," she decided.

"Let's." Setsuna echoed and focused on the TV as well. Hotaru leaned on her papa and sighed contently, paying attention to what happened on the screen. Haruka smiled and stroked her daughter's hair lovingly. Ignika saw it and felt his heart melt at the sight, and he snuggled warmly against Michiru again, purring as he watched the TV once more. Together, the Outer Senshi family and their guests watched the anime movie.

Ignika and Traveller paid close attention, getting engrossed more and more in the tale the further the movie went on. Particularly the bit where the boy main character turned into a dragon they liked, with Ignika looked innocently up at Michiru and asking where he could see a creature like that for real so he could study it.

Michiru chuckled. "Dragons don't exist, and probably never did. They're just creatures of myths and legends."

"Ooh… that's unfortunate…" the boy muttered, disappointed, and he resumed watching the movie.

"Wish they did, though." Hotaru smiled. "Flying on a dragon would be so wonderful!"

Ignika put a finger on his chin for a moment as he thought deeply about something. "I think I could make one…" he muttered softly. He beamed at his young Senshi friend. "Then I'll give it to you and you can keep it as a pet!"

"A little one?" Hotaru said with stars in her eyes, imagining a mini-Haku flying around the room.

"Wait-wait, what?" Haruka said wide-eyed. "A pet dragon? Where's it gonna live? What will we feed it with? Who's gonna take care of it?"

"Hotaru?" Ignika suggested innocently. "And I was thinking of a big one, Hotaru, one you could fly on, like you wanted!" He beamed at her again, completely unaware of the magnitude of what he was suggesting.

Haruka facepalmed. "Ignika!" She groaned. "How in the world do you think we can house such a dragon? How can we feed a creature of such size? And worst of all, if Hotaru goes flying around on it, someone is sure to spot them, and then we'd be in big trouble!" Realization dawned on Ignika and he let out an 'oh'.

"I… ehm… I… eh… I mean… Ehm…" the boy stammered. He blushed, embarrassed. "I'm sorry, Haruka-san… I… I suppose that's true…" He squeaked in fright and buried his face in Michiru's chest to try and hide from the Senshi of Winds.

"Can he still make me a mini-Haku then?" Hotaru asked innocently, looking in her papa's eyes.

The blonde Senshi sighed, looking at the other adults in the room. "We'll discuss it later." Setsuna chuckled and leaned back on the couch, returning to the movie. Michiru stroked Ignika's hair and said:

"Don't worry, Haruka didn't want to scare you, did you, darling?" She looked at her lover.

"Yes, yes, I didn't… I was just trying to provide reason." The Senshi of Winds nodded, sighing.

"I'm sorry…" Ignika muttered quietly.

"It's okay!" Michiru smiled. "It'd be a nice idea if we had a lot of space and an endless amount of food…"

"And a complete lack of other people…" Haruka sighed.

"I'm sorry, Haruka-papa," Ignika repeated, bowing his head apologetically. "I really don't mean to, but I always end up making you sigh and annoyed with me. I'm very, very sorry." If the boy was at all aware of the peculiar suffix he had added to Haruka's name, he gave no indication of it.

"Haruka-papa?" Michiru did notice it, and that caused everybody to look at Ignika.

"Did I say that, Michiru-mama?" the boy asked innocently, making his cutest face and expression at the Senshi of the Depths.

"You did…" Haruka said slowly. "And called Michiru 'mama' just now, too."

"Really?" Ignika asked, as sweetly innocent as ever. He blinked cutely at them.

"Yes, really." Setsuna confirmed. The boy tipped his head sideways, then shrugged, smiled shyly at the Senshi and went back to watching the television and the movie. They were on the train now, together with that black, masked-being…

"I'm sorry if I did…" the Child of Life whispered, and silent, lonely tears ran down his cheeks even if he kept smiling while watching the television. Truth was, he knew very well what he had called them, of course, to try and test the waters… But it was quite clear, he thought, that he had best shut up now before he made his own hole even deeper.

"Ignika… Why did you call them that?" Hotaru tilted her head, looking at him. Ignika didn't reply, trying to focus on the movie, even with those tears running down his cheeks. His innocent, ignorant smile remained, and he gave no indication that he had heard Hotaru, nor that he was crying. "Ignika…?" Hotaru pressed on, worried. Traveller by now realised her brother would not reply, and she shook her head, silently indicating to Hotaru that she had to leave it be. Hotaru frowned, but obeyed her.

"Keeping silent won't help, you know." Setsuna said, not looking at the child. "Tell us what is wrong."

"I fail to remember where I said anything was wrong," Ignika replied, his voice raw with emotion while he looked at the television still.

"Exactly, you didn't." Haruka said sternly. "But it's obvious something does bother you."

"What is it, Ignika?" Michiru asked kindly warmly.

"Nothing," the Child of Life answered smoothly. "Now do you mind? I'm trying to watch the movie."

"But… Ignika…" Hotaru frowned and looked at him confused and worried.

"I'm sorry, okay?" he finally snapped. "I shouldn't have said that, now will you leave it be? I was being stupid and messing up, like I always do, that's all there is to it!"

"But you haven't messed up in any way!" Hotaru exclaimed.

"That's why we happen to be arguing right now, eh, because I did not mess up?" Ignika retorted sharply.

"Who's arguing?" Hotaru blinked at him. "I'm not…" The white-haired boy sighed, wiped away his tears and crawled out of Michiru's lap, dragging himself to the door without looking back.

"I'm going to my room…" he announced quietly.

"B-but…" Hotaru looked at her parents, who were confused as well, and then at Traveller, begging for help. The Saurian of Teleportation, less than impressed with her brother's behaviour, crossed her arms and looked at him sharply.

"You're coming back right _now_ and get back in Michiru-san's lap, little brother," Traveller said, on a tone none of the Senshi had ever heard her talk to Ignika before. She sounded stern, cold and almost angry even, and she spoke her words with a hiss. It was a command, not a request.

"Traveller…?" Michiru looked at her in wonder. Her wonder increased as Ignika sighed, but obeyed, coming back to the couches, staring at his feet. Traveller nodded approvingly.

"You knew what you were saying, didn't you?" she whispered kindly. "When you called them that?" Ignika nodded tearfully. "You felt it, then…" Traveller smiled warmly and mentioned her brother over, embracing him once he was close enough. She placed a hand on his chest, above his heart. "You felt it…"

The Senshi couple looked at each other, feeling that they have just made a grave mistake, have not understood something they were supposed to know and understand…

"Ignika…" Michiru said quietly.

"I did…" Ignika whispered quietly to his sister, hugging her back. "I… felt… the warmth in my chest… When Michiru-san held me… As if… my mama held me…" He sniffed. "Parental warmth…" Traveller nodded encouragingly, kissed his brow and patted his head.

The Senshi looked at him in disbelief. Realization dawned on them. Obeying the sudden impulse, Michiru got up from her place, came over to Ignika and knelt before him.

"I'm sorry…" Michiru said and hugged Ignika warmly. The boy shook his head, and tried to get away.

"You have nothing to be sorry for…" he whispered meekly. "I shouldn't have been so impudent and said mama when I had no right to, without asking for permission first. Especially since I have done so many bad things to Haruka-san and you before…" Ignika swallowed hard and managed to get out of Michiru's arms. "I'm sorry…" he said, echoing Michiru from before, before he tried to leave once more.

"No. Don't leave, Ignika…" Haruka said quietly, and put Hotaru down from her lap. "You haven't done anything wrong." She smiled at him, came over and put her hand on his shoulder.

"That's not true," the boy muttered. "You don't have to try and make me feel better, Haruka-san… It's kind, but…"

"It is true." Haruka said firmly. "And we are sorry we didn't understand it at first."

"After all…" Michiru said, coming over as well. "If a child we know well and love needs some parental warmth… Who are we to deny it?" She smiled at the white-haired child.

"Because I gave you nothing but trouble so far…" Ignika muttered. He looked helplessly at Hotaru and Setsuna, hoping for some weird reason that they'd say he was right.

"That's not true!" Hotaru immediately exclaimed and smiled at him. "You gave me a lot of happy moments, and you really understand me…"

Setsuna nodded. "True. And your presence here has not brought only trouble, as you seem to think. After all…" She looked at her symbiosis partner. "How else would we have met Traveller and all the others if it weren't for you?"

"That may be true, but I was talking about Michiru-san and Haruka-san…" the shy boy explained. "I called their relationship wrong, I turned Haruka-san in a man, I've embarrassed them again and again by mentioning their mating in public… and did I mention I've embarrassed them again and again?"

"That's not as bad as you think it is, Ignika." Haruka smiled. "Kids are full of trouble…"

"But that doesn't make them any less precious." Michiru added.

"But I'm not _your_ child, so I had no right to give you all that trouble!" Ignika objected.

Hotaru lowered her eyes. "If we look at the facts here, neither am I…"

"But you were raised by them!" the Child of Life rebutted effortlessly. "I wasn't. I've barely have known them for a month, and I've made their life hellish, and now I'm so stupid as to think I can call them mama and papa… Which makes no sense since they're both mamas anyway."

Haruka sighed. "Stop saying that. Just so you know, in human society people can adopt children who were left without parents or whose parents didn't want them. So there is no trouble about that."

"But… but I…" Ignika protested, but finding no words to say. Michiru just hugged him, preventing any further arguments. The boy finally gave in and hugged her back, sobbing lightly as he felt the warmth again. "M… Michiru… mama?" he tried, frightened.

"Yes, Ignika." Michiru said warmly. "Michiru-mama…" She confirmed. The boy replied by throwing his arms around her neck and clinging to her, never wanting to let go. For the eternal, immortal child, incapable of aging and with no true parents aside from Angonce the Kind, feeling the warmth from a motherly embrace was a gift of heaven. And Ignika saw his biggest wish, to have a large family, being fulfilled a little bit more. Haruka smiled and joined the hug, her embrace strong and safe, ready to protect them from everything.

Ignika let go of Michiru and managed to twist around so he was facing Haruka. He looked at her apologetically, sorry for everything he had done to her, before swallowing the lump in his throat and saying: "H… Haruka… papa?"

Haruka nodded, smiling. "That's right." In response, Ignika threw his arms around her neck and hugged Michiru's lover tightly, tears staining her shirt. Tears of happiness and gratitude. Ignika had parents… sort of.

"That means you're my brother!" Hotaru ran over and joined the hug. Ignika blushed, but nodded.

"Hotaru-onee-chan?" he tried, remembering what Nightmare called Minako.

"Yep! Ignika-otouto." Hotaru smiled.

Traveller was happy for her brother as well, but she let out a played sigh of desperation and placed her brow on her hand. "Fantastic. Now Haruka-san and Michiru-san are my parents too, while I'm about as old as them. And Setsuna-san's my mother now too, while we're more like sisters because of our bond, making me my own brother's mother. Go figure."

Setsuna smiled. "Let's keep it simple and make only Ignika our adopted child." She suggested. "After all, Nightmare did want Minako to be only her and Gravitas' sister, no?"

"I was just going to request that," Traveller said, sighing relieved. She bowed apologetically before her friend and Ignika's new 'parents'. "No offence meant, though, Haruka-san, Michiru-san, Setsuna-san, I really do appreciate the gesture. Ignika… needed it, I suppose."

"No offence taken." Haruka smiled.

"Though I do hope this is not a subtle hint that I've been failing as a family figure for you, little brother," Traveller noted, a bit more stern.

Setsuna chuckled. "You're thinking too much, Traveller."

"I am?" the Saurian of Teleportation said, aghast.

"I think Ignika meant exactly what he meant and didn't make any subtle hints. Right, Ignika?" Setsuna smiled at him.

"Nobody could ever replace you, Traveller," Ignika assured his one and only sister by blood, smiling shyly but encouragingly at her. "I'll never forget what you did for me in my life, and I'll never let you go, sister."

"Told you so." Setsuna smiled. Traveller nodded, returning said smile. She put an arm around Setsuna and pulled her close, resting her head on Setsuna's shoulder. Seeing her example, Ignika quickly did the same to his new adoptive 'family'. The said family hugged him back, bathing him in love and warmth. The little Saurian boy purred in enjoyment.

"Looks like we finally have a man in our family." Michiru teased, happy about finally having a little boy, her son.

"Hey!" Haruka said in mock-hurt. Actually, she was also glad that Ignika was her child now. Being a parent meant parental authority, so Haruka was safe from any kind of life-bending mischief. Or so she hoped.

Hotaru was just happy. A 'brother' was just a word to her, but it made her and Ignika closer, and she liked that. Setsuna was glad that she could now share Traveller's duty of taking care of Ignika, as his 'mama'. If he wished to call her that, that is. As if reading her thoughts, Ignika got out of the embrace and walked over to the guardian of the Time Gates, looking up at her shyly.

"Set… Setsuna… mama?" he tried, blushing a bit.

Setsuna smiled gratefully. "Yes." She reached his hands towards him, to put him on her lap. The boy accepted her invitation and crawled into her lap, still being a bit hesitant and shy. Setsuna wasn't like the other Outer Senshi after all. More distant, older, wiser… He didn't know if he could hug her, though he wanted to. Badly. Setsuna hugged him herself, her hands cool, but the embrace warm and heartily still. The little Saurian boy disguised as a human purred and leaned into her, placing his head on her chest, closing his eyes, listening to the beat of her heart. Setsuna smiled and stroked his hair gently.

"I'm sorry," the boy muttered, clenching his eyes shut tightly to prevent tears from spilling. He grabbed fistfuls of her shirt and held it tightly.

"Whatever for, Ignika?" Setsuna asked him, holding him comfortingly against herself.

"Burdening you with me," he replied with a small voice. "You already have such a great burden and now… in my selfishness, I put myself on top of that…"

"Don't be silly. Children are a blessing, not a burden." Setsuna smiled.

"But I'm the Child of Life… You already had to look after time, then the Senshi of Death and Rebirth, and now Life incarnated… it should be too much, even for you!" Ignika explained, despite his words still clinging to Setsuna.

Setsuna chuckled. "Well, what do you know, the greatest forces of the Universe gathered here, in one room, in one family."

"Sounds like a fairytale." Hotaru suddenly said. "Or a myth. Time, its children Life and Death…"

"I suddenly feel so insignificant," Traveller noted dryly, crossing her arms. "We have Guardians of Time and planets, a child that is Life itself and a child that can level a planet. And what do I have? Plain old boring teleportation."

"Ah, come on…" Setsuna smiled. "Our symbiosis restored the fabric of reality itself… You shouldn't feel insignificant."

"I'm not, I was merely joking," the other woman assured her friend. "But you cannot deny there's some truth in my words. My own power, compared to those in this room, is really kind of plain and not at all very powerful."

"But we still love you!" Hotaru winked at her and glomped the Saurian of Teleportation. Ignika's sister was startled for a moment, but quickly got a warm, happy smile on her face and she embraced the little Senshi warmly.

"And I love you, too, Hotaru-chan," she said happily. "You've helped my little brother so much, and you understood his burden, something even I never was capable of fully doing. For that, I thank and love you."

"Ah… Everyone is so happy!" Michiru snuggled up to Haruka. Haruka hugged her back, very happy as well.

"We're really adopting family left and right," Ignika giggled from where he sat in Setsuna's lap. "First Nightmare adopting Minako. Then Chameleon mating Makoto into the family. And now me getting two mamas, a papa and another sister. What a family tree."

"Yep!" Hotaru giggled. "But hey, a lot of relatives means you'll get a lot of help should need be."

"And that's exactly what he's always wanted…" Traveller said calmly, caressing Hotaru's back while she held the girl. "A big family… Parental figures that he could always turn to, not like Master Angonce, who cannot perform such tasks due to his divine attention being needed for more important matters… He wanted brothers and sisters to play and live with, parents to love him and friends to support him… Now he has. Now _we_ have. And it is such a peculiar thing that we found it all by leaving our own world."

"All that happens, happens for the better." Setsuna said warmly. The two Saurians nodded quietly. A few moments passed in silence, with the new family simply enjoying the moment of tranquillity, peace and love, until Traveller looked up, glanced at the TV and sighed:

"We missed the end of the 'moo vee', didn't we?"

* * *

**Next chapter: Rise and shine!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Yup, Gravitas is giving it her all! Now I'm curious, did you guess correctly what happened in this chapter? :p Thanks for reviewing!

Ariel Night: Glad you love it. Thanks for the review!

Lucia Sennen: I was all too happy to explain, so it was no problem at all! :) I'm afraid Usagi and Chibiusa won't be appearing for a while. Usagi mentioned in chapter 101 that Chibiusa's in Elysium for the moment, to take care of some Senshi business involving the sword Ignika gave her. She won't be back for a while. As for Gravitas, you'll see her reaction in the next chapter! And about the Volleyball team, Minako and Nightmare, I can promise you that there'll be some challenging moments in keeping the secret in the future. ;) Thanks for reviewing!


	107. Rise and shine

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**107. Rise and shine**

Gravitas slowly rose from her slumber when the sunlight fell through a small gap between the curtains of the windows, straight in her eyes. She had actually done that on purpose, so that she would always wake up at a decent Saurian hour in this strange place that held no natural life rhythm. Humans had artificial suns and lights that allowed them to stay up long after the sun had set, or sleep until hours in the morning, sometimes even till noon! While that might be normal for humans, she was a Saurian, and would have none of such a life rhythm. It was neither natural nor healthy, and most importantly, not logical. And Gravitas disliked illogical things.

She opened her eyes, seemingly so sudden to anyone who would observe her, for though she had been awake before she opened her eyes, she had shown no sign of actually being so. The Saurian of Gravity sat up in the couch, the blanket sliding off her, and stretched her arms above her head a bit. She had slept surprisingly well, though the feeling hit her she had missed something that night. Gravitas looked around and sniffed the air, catching the sweet scent of freshly made coffee. Unfortunately, that was all that was sweet about coffee. Gravitas had tried it, and had _not_ liked it. At all. Milk, or something called herbal 'tee' with honey was much better and tasty.

However, that there was coffee did mean that Ami was up already. Even though the college she, Minako and Usagi studied in suffered from one of the attacks and all classes were, naturally, cancelled, Ami still decided to get up early and study. Nothing must get in the way of her studies, not even Saurian invasions! And so now Ami was preparing herself for a nice, long day of peace and studies. Gravitas rose from the couch and folded the blanket neatly, and prepared to join her friend in the kitchen, when she passed the table with her notebook on it. It had been moved two centimetres and thirty-nine millimetres from where she had placed it in the evening. Had Ami opened it? Thinking about this, she entered the small kitchen.

Ami was drinking coffee and reading the morning newspaper. Or more like solving puzzles at the last page. "Oh, good morning, Gravitas." She smiled cheerfully. "Fried eggs with bacon for breakfast today. Want some?"

"Good morning," Gravitas returned the greeting, having learned since day one that it was a greeting and not a mentioning of the weather. "That sounds good, I will not say no." Ami nodded and went over to the cooker to put her some. The eggs were still warm, since Ami got up not that long ago, and didn't need heating.

"There you go." She smiled, putting the plate on the table. "Would you care for some juice or I should put on some tea?"

Gravitas thought for a moment. "Tea with honey sounds good," she then replied, having reached a decision.

"Okay." Ami smiled, turning the electric kettle on again. The water was still warm from the time she made herself coffee, but needed to be reheated for tea. Gravitas, meanwhile, took place at the table and once again fiddled idly with the strange utensils.

"My notebook was moved two centimetres and nine millimetres, by estimation, from where I left it yesterday evening," she said calmly, pricking at a bit of egg with her fork.

"Oh?" Ami asked innocently. She knew she was caught, but couldn't help but marvel at Gravitas' amazingly accurate perception of distance. She knew for certain Gravitas didn't need a ruler to measure things' size, yet it continued to repeatedly mesmerise her.

"Did you… read anything?" the Saurian asked, not unkindly. She was merely curious.

"… I did." Ami admitted. She didn't want to lie to Gravitas, especially since she would find out one way or another.

"And?"

"And what?" Ami asked, confused a bit, then clarified: "What exactly are you asking me?"

"What did you read?" Gravitas explained, munching on some egg after she had finished doing so.

Ami sighed. "The last few pages…" She admitted. "Sorry, I probably shouldn't have… but couldn't help it."

"I see," her symbiosis partner said, unperturbed, and she continued eating. The kettle clicked, indicating the water was boiled, and Ami used making tea as an excuse to break the uncomfortable tension she felt.

"I'm not angry," Gravitas said calmly, a bit surprised, when she felt Ami's nervousness through their bond.

"You aren't?" Ami said, surprised, letting the tea brew in the teapot for a while.

"Why should I be?" Ignika's middle sister wondered, confused.

"Well, I did read something very personal to you…" Ami explained. "Most people don't like others finding their private secrets out."

"Then I should have put the notebook away," Gravitas shrugged. "But I didn't, so it is fine. There are no secrets between us."

"Oh." Ami sighed, relieved. "Alright then." She smiled and poured her friend a cup of tea. Gravitas smiled a tiny smile in appreciation, and asked for some honey for her tea, too. Ami put the required product on the table and let Gravitas help herself to some. The Saurian all too eagerly poured quite a bit of the sugary substance in her tea. She liked it like that.

"What did you think?" Gravitas asked casually before she took a sip of her drink.

Ami smiled. "Well, I'm proud of you, actually. That you're feeling, and trying to understand those feelings." The Saurian of Gravity felt herself, to her own surprise, smile a bit at that, feeling, again to her own surprise, somewhat proud.

"It is difficult, though," she said.

"I know it must be." Ami nodded. "Feelings are sometimes hard to understand even for normal people. Nevertheless, I'm very glad you're doing it."

"I am _trying_," Gravitas corrected her softly. "Not always succeeding. Actually, I do not often succeed." She took another sip from her tea before eating some more of her breakfast. Though no Makoto, Ami still made for a wonderful host, even in the kitchen.

Ami smiled at her. "But still you're getting better at it, no?" She asked softly. Gravitas tilted her head sideways and looked at Ami, as if deeply lost in thought, before saying:

"If you say so, my friend."

"I know you are!" Ami winked at her, smiling warmly and proudly.

"I suppose that should make me…" Gravitas pondered for a second again. "Happy, correct?"

"Yep!" Ami nodded, smiling. "You should be happy you're succeeding more. That's a positive trend." Gravitas nodded, and looked within herself, trying to find this feeling in the cluttered mess of her emotions and bring it out and _feel_ it… But she succeeded only partly, for emotions couldn't be controlled like that. Ami smiled as she felt her attempts through the bond. "Don't worry, it will come." She told her softly, taking her hand. "You have an eternity ahead to learn them."

"I suppose so…" Gravitas admitted. "Though this sluggish pace is truly frustrating… Especially since you seem to expect so much from me, and want to share just as much that I simply cannot understand now."

"Do I…?" Ami frowned. "I'm sorry… I can't help it. And… Having high expectations placed on me always urged me to be the best in my studies… I suppose it can't be compared, but…" She sighed. "I guess I'm just copying my mother."

"I didn't say it was bad," her friend reminded her. "It's not you who I am frustrated with, it is myself. I want to make progress, I really do, for you, Ami, and it saddens me that progress is so slow, while all other things you teach me are so easy to pick up."

"Well, that's because other things are based on rational thinking, while emotions are irrational." Ami explained. "Did you know that our brain is divided in two halves? Left one is responsible for rational thoughts, right one is responsible for feelings and creativity."

"But my brain is different from yours," Gravitas noted, with interest.

Ami nodded. "I suppose, but that's not the point. Point is, the brain needs exercise as much as any other muscle in our body. And I don't mean physical exercise, of course." She explained. "Your emotional side of brain got next to no exercise at all for most of your life, and all that energy went into rational. That's why you're so talented and your mind is so developed." Ami paused. "However, now that you are learning emotions, your emotional side is finally beginning to develop, and it is only expected that it's going slow. It's like learning to walk."

"I could walk as soon as I came out of my egg, though," Gravitas muttered.

"Oh, right." Ami mentally slapped herself. "Human babies do need to…" She thought for a while. "Well… It's not as good an example, but… Suppose you've lost your right arm, and there's no Ignika around to re-grow it. You're right-handed, you're used to doing things with your right hand, but now that you don't have it, you'll have to adapt to doing things with your left one, which is far less developed than right. It'd take a lot of time and exercise to make it as skilful as the one you lost." Ami explained. "Same here. Your rational side is powerless when it comes to emotions, so you're training your brain's emotional side. Is it clear now why it takes so slow?"

"Yes…" the silver-haired Saurian replied, nodding slowly. "It's logical."

"So don't be frustrated with yourself, Gravitas." Ami smiled. "It's the same as being frustrated with your hand for being not skilful enough."

"I'll try," Gravitas sighed. "If you have that much patience, I will not object."

Ami smiled and nodded. "I do. And see? You've sighed, that's a normal emotional reaction to something like this."

"I did…?" Gravitas muttered. Then she smiled a bit. "I did."

"See? And now you're smiling, happy and proud of yourself." Ami smiled. "Like you should be." Gravitas nodded in understanding.

"It is all thanks to you, my friend," she then said gratefully. "You are a great teacher."

"You're always welcome, Gravitas." Ami smiled. She was about to say something else when she was interrupted by the doorbell ringing. The Senshi excused herself and went to open the door. When she did so, however, her eyes widened in shock and if she hadn't been such a polite, well-mannered girl, her jaw would have dropped to the floor.

Ami stared at the person in the doorway, and could only mutter, shocked: "Mom?"

Saeko Mizuno was home.

* * *

Nightmare woke up in surroundings she didn't immediately recognize, and it alarmed her and made her wide awake immediately, until she realized she had stayed the night at Hino Shrine together with her dear Imouto-chan. She had gone to sleep alone, but now that she woke up, she found Minako at her side and, to her surprise, Rei on her other. Apparently the miko had really felt for her and decided to comfort her together with Minako even in her sleep. That, and apparently she had been quite tired, too, for miko discipline or not, she was still fast asleep.

And it was almost eight o'clock.

Nightmare then heard some humming at the door, and turned to see 'Grandpa' entering the room.

"Oh hi there!" He smiled. "Up and about already?"

One of Nightmare's eyebrows was raised. "Already?" she echoed, with her usual snappiness and wariness since 'Grandpa' Hino was still a stranger to her. "The sun must have been up for more than an hour already. I overslept."

"Oooh, a morning bird, are we?" Grandpa smiled. "That's good. A rare trait in youngsters these days." He said, being in a good-natured mood. Walking over to the window to open the curtains, he said: "Most can only be woken up early if there's no way to avoid it." He laughed softly.

Casting a glance at Minako, Nightmare snorted, amused. "Tell me about it, old guy."

"Tsk tsk tsk." Grandpa shook his head, but his smile told he wasn't angry. "Respect your elders. You may call me Hino-jiisan or just Grandpa, but no other names."

"I call people what I want," Nightmare snapped, not really interested in the conversation, and she laid down and snuggled against Minako again, purring softly at the warmth.

"Feisty one, aren't you?" Grandpa said, unfazed, then smiled dreamily. "Aaaah, that so reminds me of Rei when she was still little!" That made Nightmare raise an eyebrow again, and she sat up and looked at Rei.

"She's nothing like me!" the Saurian of Fear protested.

"She's nothing like you _now_, but you should've seen her when she had just been given into my care." Rei's Grandpa smiled nostalgic. "Aaah, those were hard, but fun days."

"Why was she given to you, anyway? Don't parents do that sort of stuff?" Nightmare asked gruffly, looking from the old man to his granddaughter and back again. That did make the old man's face twist into a bitter grimace for a moment.

"Parents…" He shook his head. "Her father abandoned her when her mother died."

"Why the fuck did he do that? Great Beings, she's his _daughter_!" Nightmare protested.

Rei's grandpa frowned. "Don't swear in this holy place!" He berated her. "As for him…" The old man shook his head. "Takashi preferred to escape the pain of looking at Rei and be reminded so much of Risa who he loved so much. He preferred to send her to me and throw himself into his political career. Not that he did much else for most of their life together."

"Feh, well, he _is_ a parent, so what could you expect," the Saurian girl shrugged. "Name me one parent who does look after their brood. It doesn't happen, or rarely."

"… Is that so?" Rei's grandpa said slowly. "I see… You're an orphan, am I correct?" He smiled compassionately at her.

"And what if I am, my entire 'family'," she made quotation marks in the air with her fingers as she said the word 'family'. "Consists of orphans, not counting people like Onee-chan or her friends who get adopted in left and right."

Grandpa blinked. "Ooh? Highly unusual." He nodded a few times. "Well, it is good that you do have some sort of a family, even if not by blood. However, your perception that parents never care for their children is wrong." Rei's grandpa lowered her eyes. "I did, for one, and am ashamed to be related to someone who abandoned his child like this."

"Meh, I suppose so," Nightmare shrugged, not caring either way. She did know that this was a human world, and humans were mammals, and mammals cared for their young, so she was always told. Then she looked at the two sleeping Senshi at her side and smiled softly, touched. "And they just keep on sleeping."

Grandpa smiled also. "They are." He nodded, smiling. "It'll be a shame to wake Rei up from such a peaceful sleep." Nightmare nodded, agreeing with that, and knowing Rei needed sleep after having just recovered from so much serious injuries. "However, she has her chores to do around the Shrine before the visitors start coming." He then looked at Nightmare with a twinkle in his eye. "Unless you want to help out."

Nightmare looked taken aback. "ME?"

"Why not?" Rei's grandpa asked innocently, smiling unfazed. "You don't need to go anywhere right now, do you?" Nightmare scratched her head.

"Well, no, but I don't know anything about 'shrines', let alone about chores!" the Saurian girl objected. "And besides, am I not a 'guest' or something? How can you ask this of me?"

Rei's grandpa laughed softly. "Oh, that sounds so like little Rei! 'Aren't you the grown-up here? How can you make me do housework? I'm a child!'" He mimicked and laughed softly, then shook her head. "Risa really spoiled her little girl. Took so much time to get that out of her."

"But I'm _not_ your relative," Nightmare pointed out. "You don't even know me! And you didn't answer my question! What chores are you talking about?"

"Why, not that much for you to do." Rei's grandpa smiled. "Just sweep and wash the floors, dust everything and sweep the path leading to the shrine. I'll take care of the garden and the rest of the chores myself." He nodded.

Again Nightmare raised an eyebrow. "Not much? Hello, old guy, do you even listen to yourself?"

"Okay, I'll do the dusting then, too." He shrugged, still smiling. "And don't call me that."

"What do I get if I sweep the path?" she asked suspiciously in return, eying him carefully.

"Fortune telling cookies?" Rei's grandpa looked at her innocently, smiling sweetly.

"No chocolate, no deal, you old bag of bones," Nightmare snorted, crossing her arms. "And wait a minute, does this mean I have to wear one of those meek robes?"

"Naturally you have to, and chocolate is only for diligent girls." Rei's grandpa nodded. "Finish all the chores, and you'll get a big one."

"You clearly don't know how to negotiate with a Saurian," Nightmare grumbled. "But fine! I'll show you. And _fine_, gimme one of those robes, I actually wanted to try them out. But don't tell onee-chan, she'd never let me hear the end of it!"

"Sure thing." Grandpa smiled. "Let's go."

Grandpa did give Nightmare a robe, and actually taught her how to sweep and wash floors correctly. He never told Minako or Rei about it…

But did show them the photo he sneakily took when Nightmare was sweeping the shrine.

"KAWAIIIIII!"

* * *

**Next chapter: Truths and lies!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Well I'm glad if I can still catch my readers off guard. What fun is there in being predictable? ;) I'm happy you liked the idea of Ignika's adoption, I was a bit nervous about readers' reaction to it. Thanks for the review!

Ariel Night: Still happy you love it. Thanks for reviewing. =)

Fatal Mars: I'm happy to see that I'm still drawing in new readers who aren't scared by a fic of more than hundred chapters. XD I'm glad you like my new characters, and that you find my characterization of the Senshi satisfying. Thanks a ton for reading and for the review!


	108. Truths and lies

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**108. Truths and lies**

"Stupid old bag of bones…" Nightmare grumbled, sweeping the pathway to the shrine. She looked down at herself, dressed in that funny robe that she couldn't believe she had said she wanted to try on _willingly_! But it looked such loose clothing, compared to clingy T-shirts or shorts she had to wear… It looked more comfortable. But now she just found herself looking stupid, both because of her miko robe and because she was doing this in the first place. Why was she sweeping the path anyway? Why was she helping that old wrinkly human with his chores anyway? For chocolate? Nightmare scoffed. Yeah right, she could get that from her onee-chan for free. So why? Why? She almost hit herself on the head with her own broom.

"So that stupid Rei could get her sleep, apparently…" Nightmare sighed. She was becoming way too soft… And that definitely was a bad thing, in Nightmare's opinion. Being soft and kind to her dear onee-chan, or her family, was one thing. But there was no reason, no reason at all, for her to extend that kindness to outsiders of the family, too! Then again, Senshi were like family, and she did have friends at the volleyball…

"Stupid human life." Nightmare concluded. She sighed. "And stupid pathway…" She was almost finished with sweeping it, though, so she continued doing the chore, grumbling quietly all the while.

* * *

Rei yawned loudly and stretched herself. "Morning…" She greeted herself and sat up on her bed. Rubbing her eyes, she looked at the clock…

Her eyes widened and her mouth fell agape. "9:30?" She exclaimed, and practically flew out of her bed, jumping out of her pyjamas and putting on her robes. How, just how could she oversleep like that? She had chores to do, damn it! Yes, she had to be careful like Master Angonce said, and had to rest a lot since she was let out of his mansion before the complete recovery, but that still wasn't a reason…

At that moment Grandpa entered the room. Rei was already in her robes and ready to go.

"Oh, morning, Rei-chan!" The old man smiled.

"Grandpa! Why didn't you wake me up on time?" Rei glared at him. Inwardly, she frowned, he had a kind of mischievous, amused glint in his eyes…

Grandpa chuckled. "Relax, Rei-chan, and sit down. I'm about to show you the wonder of wonders."

Rei raised her eyebrow. "What?"

Grandpa just laughed softly. "I promised not to tell." He winked. "However…" He fell silent and held the dramatic pause. "Wake Minako up, please, she has to see it." The young miko raised an eyebrow. This was getting stranger by the minute! Nevertheless, she did as requested.

"Minako-chan, wake up!"

"Five more minutes, mom…" Minako groaned.

"Minako, I'm not your mother, and I have no time! I've got chores to do, and Grandpa wants to show us something!" Rei chided.

Minako yawned and sat up. "What is it?" She asked, blinking groggily.

"Well, Rei-chan, you don't have to do the chores anymore." The old man said, grinning, and winked at her. "Behold!" He declared and took his small photo camera from his sleeve.

A click to show the latest photo… and there was Nightmare in all her miko-glory, the robe a bit too large for her but she managed, and she was sweeping the shrine floor with a serious, determined and slightly annoyed look on her face, quite obviously unaware that there was a picture being taken of her.

Rei's jaw dropped to the floor. "Wha…? H-h-how?" was the only thing she could utter. Nightmare? Doing her chores? In miko clothes? In her own old uniform she's outgrown six years ago? Grandpa was right, it was a wonder of wonders, and more than that.

Minako, having recovered from her initial shock, could only do one thing:

"KAWAIIIIII!" She screamed with hearts in her eyes.

"She is, isn't she?" Grandpa smiled.

Rei gulped. "I have a bad feeling about this…"

Just then, there was a lot of loud knocking on the door of the guestroom, and Nightmare's unmistakable voice came through: "Hey, old bag of bones, are you in there? I'm finished with the stairs, so come help me out! And what are you doing in there with Onee-chan? It had better NOT be the reason why she just screamed the whole neighbourhood together!"

"Yes, yes, I am here." Grandpa said, hiding the camera back in his sleeve, winked at the girls, then walked over to the door and opened it wide. "You may come in."

"Nuh uh! No way! You come out here!" came the snapped back reply, for Nightmare had expected such a move and had moved behind the wall instead. Grandpa laughed softly.

"Okay, okay, Kira-chan, I'm coming." He said, rolled his eyes at the girls, exited the room and closed the door. "Rei-chan and Minako-chan are up and about, by the way." He informed the Saurian girl.

Nightmare yelped and started tugging at her robe. "I gotta get out of this before they see me!"

"Imouto-chaaaan…" Minako called out. Nightmare gulped and made to run away, but at that very moment, the door opened and the two Senshi came out of the room. The Saurian of Fear shrieked and tried to run away and hide somewhere.

"My, Grandpa, have we got a new disciple?" Rei asked, playfully amused.

"DON'T LOOK!" Nightmare screeched.

"Don't look at what?" Minako asked, blinking innocently at her. "At what a kawaii cutie you are?" Her little sister made a hissing sound and snarled at her.

"I am not cute!" She pointed a finger accusingly at Rei's grandfather. "It's his fault! He said I had to do this to get chocolate!"

"Ah, but you chose yourself to accept my offer, no?" Grandpa chuckled.

Rei raised her eyebrow. "You did all this just to get chocolate?"

Nightmare bowed her head and grumbled quietly: "I didn't want you to have to get up… You looked so peaceful, and I know you need your rest…"

"That's my imouto-chan!" Minako said proudly and hugged her little sister. Ignika's youngest sister squirmed uncomfortably in her symbiosis partner's embrace. She had just admitted she had done something out of kindness. There went her reputation. A sigh of defeat escaped her lips.

"Aww, don't sigh so sadly." Grandpa said. "Let's go to the kitchen and get you your well-earned reward." That did cheer the Saurian up a bit, and she perked up hopefully.

"Really?"

"Yes, really." Grandpa smiled. "I think you've earned not only a chocolate bar, but a box of chocolates as well. A present from Rei's secret admirer." Grandpa winked.

"Pfff… He's not secret at all." Rei rolled her eyes. "I'm not interested in Yuichiro." A growl from Nightmare interrupted her. Obviously she didn't want the talking to be about boys and their interests in girls.

"Yes, exactly, she's not interested at all." Minako smiled.

"Well, you guys go have tea, and I'll be in the prayer room waiting for visitors." Grandpa said. "Rei will give you the chocolate." Nightmare nodded, and looked expectantly at Rei.

"Yes, let's do so. I'll join you soon, Grandpa." Rei smiled and led her friends to the kitchen.

As the tea was preparing, Nightmare was happily munching on her chocolate while Minako was fixing them breakfast, as she insisted to do instead of Rei. The Saurian of Fear was happy she had her chocolate, though it annoyed her a bit she had had to work for it so hard while Minako gave it to her for free. On the other hand, she had helped Rei this way, and Nightmare wasn't sure what to think of that either. Sure, she may be a bit _nicer_ now, but that didn't mean she was _kind_… What was going on with her, she wondered.

"I really appreciate it, you know." Rei suddenly said.

"What?" Nightmare asked, startled, looking up from her chocolate. "What do you appreciate?"

"That you let me sleep and did the chores for me." Rei smiled. "I honestly didn't expect something like this… Well, not this time, at least."

"Think nothing of it," Nightmare shrugged. "It wasn't because I'm _nice_ or anything. But you helped me yesterday, and I hate having debts."

"I see." Rei smiled. "Well, thank you a lot still."

"Don't listen to her, she's a nice girl." Minako chimed in. "At heart, at least."

"Onee-chan…" Nightmare whined. "Don't ruin my reputation, or my image!"

"Why not? You don't need it anyway." Minako smiled cheerfully.

"It's part of who I am!" the Saurian insisted.

"But you are changing now, no? It needs to change too then!" Minako insisted. Her younger friend sighed and put her chocolate bar down, and she looked positively torn and unsure, as if she didn't know what to do with herself. Nightmare sighed again.

"Are you afraid of something, Nightmare?" Rei asked.

"Of course not! I'm a Saurian of Fear," Nightmare insisted, the intense stare of the Senshi of Mars making her kind of uncomfortable. She fiddled with her hands and growled warningly at the miko.

"Then why not accept your change?" Rei asked again. Nightmare didn't reply and looked stubbornly at her chocolate. Rei didn't insist, just poured herself a cup of tea which was just about ready. The Saurian girl simply munched on another piece of her chocolate bar. Minako chuckled.

"Tension in the air!" She stated the obvious, putting breakfast on the table.

"Didn't mean to," Nightmare apologised reluctantly.

"It's alright." Rei nodded. "But I do want to know the reason."

"I don't like not knowing consequences," the youngest sister of Ignika's family finally admitted. "It's one thing being nice to people you know, but kindness to strangers is much too high a risk. I like my old ways more, it has always kept me safe up until now."

"I see…" Rei said slowly, looking in her teacup. "What exactly is the risk?"

"Others betray your trust all too easily," Nightmare whispered harshly. "Just look at Miyuki and the others."

"Nightmare, you know they didn't mean to harm you." Minako frowned. "I thought we got through this…"

"I know, and I forgave them, and I meant it," she assured her sister, taking her hand in his. "But it doesn't change what they did, and I can't always be so forgiving."

"So you're afraid to be betrayed, huh?" Rei said thoughtfully. "That's tough. However, is that a reason to be all prickly and unlikable?" Nightmare scoffed and folded her arms, looking a bit annoyed.

"It's a good defence. And besides, I have all the people I need. Onee-chan, my family, you and the others," she said.

"I guess so." Rei nodded. "However, you still feel uncomfortable when showing kindness even to us."

Nightmare was about to say something in reply when Grandpa peeked into the kitchen. "Rei-chan, visitors are coming, I need you to get to work."

Rei stood up immediately. "Of course, Grandpa." She nodded and smiled at the girls. "I'm sorry, but I have my duties."

"It's okay, Rei-chan!" Minako smiled. The miko smiled back, nodded at Nightmare and then left the room after a polite bow. Nightmare watched her go with an uncertain expression on her face and in her eyes.

"I was going to answer…" she whispered.

Minako smiled at her. "Don't worry, you will get a chance to do so."

"I guess so," Nightmare admitted. She shrugged and devoured the last of her chocolate. "Now I'd better get out of this robe. I look ridiculous."

"I think you look lovely." Minako smiled. "But okay." Nightmare smiled gratefully at her sister for not saying she was cute, and rose to her feet, ready to go back to the room where she had left her clothes to put on this robe. Minako stood up as well, and lead her little sister to that room to help her change.

* * *

Gravitas eyes had widened slightly in surprise as Ami had opened the door and said: "Mom?". That had most definitely the last thing the Saurian of Gravity had expected. She knew Ami still had a mother, of course, but because Mrs. Mizuno hadn't been home at all during all this time, Gravitas had kind of gotten used to her absence and forgotten her existence altogether. Now said forgotten person was here, and Gravitas was not sure what she had to do.

How would Ami explain her presence? That was the most important question plaguing Gravitas. But there were others, too. Such as: what did a mother look like? Gravitas had never known anything akin to parental figures, or even witnessed it. She had never really taken any interest in the social life of her species outside of her small family back on Voya. So she was quite intrigued and curious now that she would finally be seeing a 'mother'.

"Oh, Ami-chan!" Ami's mother, Saeko, dropped her bags and hugged her daughter tightly. "I was so worried about you!"

"M… mom…" Ami stuttered, still shocked. "I-I am alright, b-but… But what are you doing in Japan?" Ami asked.

"Oh, Ami, I couldn't possibly stay in Germany." Saeko frowned and let go of her daughter. "Not after I heard about all the events going on here. I would've taken the very first plane home, but they wouldn't let me go until at least the conference ended. The research and everything else would have to be finished without me."

"I… I see…" Ami stuttered again.

"Now then, will you let me in?" Her mom demanded.

"Oh, of course…" Ami caught herself and smiled. "Welcome home, mom."

Saeko smiled. "I am home." She said and entered the apartment, carrying her bags. Ami helped her with those and closed the door behind her.

Taking off her shoes, Saeko demanded: "Now then, how have you been? How are your grades?"

"Grades are the best in our class, as usual, mom." Ami reported. "The college did suffer from an attack not too long ago, but nobody was hurt, and I continued my studies on my own."

"Good. That's what you were supposed to do." Dr. Mizuno said matter-of-factly. Ami winced inwardly at the tone and choice of words. "You will show me your grades after I have my tea. I did miss your special mix a lot. Germans have no idea how to make proper tea."

"Yes, mother." Ami said obediently. "Shall I go make it now?"

"Yes, please." Saeko nodded. "I'll wash my hands and change, and then join you. We do have a lot to discuss and tell each other." Ami gulped inaudibly and nodded. It was indeed so, and even more so than her mother thought. With those thoughts, Ami went into the kitchen, leaving her mother to her own devises.

Once the Senshi of Mercury got there, Gravitas' eyes immediately met hers, and Ami saw her symbiosis partner look at her expectantly.

"I don't know yet what to tell her. It's so sudden, she wasn't supposed to come back for two months still…" Ami whispered in slight panic.

"Should I… go?" Gravitas asked.

Ami shook her head. "No, there's nowhere to. And she'll notice you, anyway."

"Ami-chan?" Saeko called from the living room. "Why are all the books on the shelves standing in completely different order?"

Ami sighed. "See?"

Gravitas tilted her head sideways. "I put them alphabetically by title, as you said…" the Saurian of Gravity muttered, confused.

"I meant alphabetically by author…" Ami muttered. Ignika's middle sister let out a soft 'oh' and then bowed her head, deeply ashamed she had done something wrong that had gotten her friend in trouble. Ami felt that and waved her hand. "It's alright." Gravitas nodded slowly, but still felt unsure of what to do.

"Ami-chan?" Saeko, worried about not getting her answer, came into the kitchen. "Why didn't you…" Then her eyes fell on Gravitas. "Oh. Hello." She said, kind of shocked. "Who might you be?"

Gravitas looked aloofly at Ami's mother and tilted her head sideways a bit, taking in the newcomer with empty, expressionless eyes. Gravitas had returned to the safe shell of her emotionless self. As for Saeko Mizuno, well, there was definitely a family resemblance, which startled Gravitas a bit, even if she didn't show it. Saeko Mizuno had the same hair colour, and the same shape of face, though the eye colour was different, and she was taller than Ami.

"Hiroko," she then said tonelessly, answering Ami's mother's question.

"Hiroko Genkai, mother." Ami chimed in quickly. "She's my close friend." Then, before her mother could say anything, Ami added in a sudden strike of inspiration: "Her house was destroyed during one of the attacks, and I invited her to stay over at my place. All the rest of her family is housed with my friends from school and college as well." Gravitas nodded once, shortly, because it sounded like a logical, good excuse.

"I… see…" Saeko said slowly. She then looked at Ami. "You haven't been using my room, have you?"

"No, mother." Ami answered. "It was kept locked all the time, just as you requested, I only opened it to clean and dust it."

"Good." Dr. Mizuno nodded. "She may still use the couch then."

"Yes, mother." Ami smiled, relieved. Her smile turned into a frown again, though, as her mother continued:

"I do need to talk to you about her, though." She nodded. "If you excuse us, Hiroko?"

"Whatever for?" Gravitas asked, confused. "You have done nothing you need to excuse yourself for… I think?"

Ami shook her head. "We just need to talk in private for some time. It's a common expression when a third person who shouldn't witness the talk is present."

"Ah," Gravitas said emotionlessly. She seemed to think for a moment, and then nodded aloofly. "Of course you may be 'excused'."

Saeko was now looking at 'Hiroko' in pure confusion and disbelief. What was with this girl?

"Um, Hiroko, could you please go to the living room while we talk?" Ami asked her friend, pleading her to agree through their bond. Gravitas nodded, rose to her feet, made a polite bow and left the room, closing the door behind her. Dr. Mizuno stared at the door for a while, then looked at Ami.

"I demand explanations." She said firmly and quietly. "What's up with her?"

"Sit down, mom, and have some tea." Ami sighed, pouring her a cup. "I'll explain everything." Saeko Mizuno nodded and took a seat, looking expectantly at her daughter while she absentmindedly stirred in her cup with a spoon. Ami poured herself some tea as well and prepared for telling her mom a believable explanation. Which she had to think up right away.

"To put things short… Hiroko is autistic. At least, that's what the diagnosis says." Ami explained. "She is aloof and seemingly emotionless, however, it's just the expression of her feelings she has the problem with. Also, she never received any proper education at the orphanage, so I am tutoring her." She said, hoping it was good enough. Saeko frowned at that, fearing that this added responsibility would interfere with Ami's studies. As if guessing her question, Ami continued: "It does not interfere with my studies, for she is extremely smart. She has a talent for anything scientific, rational and explainable, and a great thirst for knowledge, so the tutoring itself is just explaining the new material and answering whatever questions she might have. Takes less than two hours a day, the rest she studies on her own."

Her mother nodded slowly and took a sip of her tea. "Does she go to the same school? How are her grades, then?"

Ami shook her head. "She doesn't go to school." Saeko nearly dropped her cup, but Ami quickly explained: "She is autistic, and extremely awkward when it comes to social interaction, partly because she takes everything literally and is quite ignorant as to social norms, and thus can't go to a normal school. Her family has no money for a special school for her."

Again a slow nod. Asking about grade and school seemed quite casual, but it was just to start slowly and easily with her questioning of her own daughter, Saeko knew that all too well. She had the feeling Ami was hiding something. "Where is her family? With your friends, yes, but does she see them often? You mentioned something of an orphanage?"

"We do all see each other quite often, yes. Her family are my friends as well." Ami said, a bit tensed, then took a sip of her tea. "As for the orphanage… Well, you see, her family is kind of untraditional…" Saeko tightened her grip on her cup.

"How so?" Saeko asked, fearing for more people like that Haruka Tenoh or Michiru Kaioh that her dear little girl had befriended. She did not mind that, the two women only had eyes for each other. But she did not wish for someone like _them_ to be attracted to _her_ daughter.

"Ehm, not like Haruka and Michiru…" Ami said nervously. "They're not a family as in related by blood… well, some of them are, but… overall…" Ami shook her head wildly, to clear her thoughts. What she said just now made no sense, she needed to start over. "To put it short, her 'family' are kids from the orphanage, just like her, who just decided they'll be a family and live together." She finally worded it correctly. Now that was unusual, and Saeko's facial expression showed it. Ami continued her explanation: "The oldest one, Amane, is related to the youngest one, Eiju, and since she's a protégé of Haruka and Michiru, almost a musical genius, she had the money and opportunity to take them all away from the orphanage and take guardianship over them." Ami explained. "Eiju made pretty strong bonds with them in the orphanage, and they all consider each other family. There are five of them, together with Hiroko's younger sister Kira, and Masahiro, who is unrelated to any of them."

"What orphanage did they come from?" Saeko asked casually as she sipped from her tea.

Ami frowned. "I forgot its name…" She said. "I'm not sure, but think it isn't even situated in Tokyo… They don't like speaking much about it." If her mother found that at all suspicious, she didn't show it.

"You mentioned their home got destroyed by one of the attacks? Where did they live?"

"In Makoto's neighbourhood." Ami quickly lied. "A whole street got destroyed in that district. Fortunately, we were all far from there at that moment." Saeko nodded again, believing that.

"Have you been friends with this… family for long, Ami? You never mentioned them," Saeko then asked, digging deeper and deeper with every question.

Ami nodded. "More than three months." That was a lie, yet sounded convincing because Ami really felt that way. "We met at Haruka's place when me and the others came to visit them. Amane was there, taking yet another lesson from Michiru. We became friends pretty quickly."

"How old is this… family? You said Hiroko does not go to school, what of the others?" her mother demanded.

"Amane is twenty two, Masahiro is fifteen, Hiroko is fourteen, Kira is thirteen, and Eiju is ten." Ami explained. "Masahiro doesn't go to school either, he works as a delivery boy for some friend of his, and Kira does go to school. Eiju goes to the same school as Chibiusa, I think."

"I see, that's good," Saeko nodded. Another sip, and her cup was empty. Ami quickly refilled it, and her mother said a polite thanks with a small smile. "Where are the rest of her family, actually? Who of your friends took them in? And while it was very kind, Ami, why did you have to take care of the one with autism? It is a heavy task to take care of such people, and trust me, I know from experience, and you are not an adult yet yourself."

"Well, Haruka and Michiru house Amane and Eiju, since they have the biggest house, Minako-chan has Kira, and Makoto lives with Masahiro." Ami explained. "As for me and autism…" Ami looked at her mother. "Before I invited her, I actually… I discovered that her lack of emotions are not caused by autism. She was diagnosed with it, yes, but without any serious medical research." Again Saeko raised her eyebrow, demanding an explanation silently. "Well, what can I say, orphanage psychologists aren't always competent." Ami shrugged. "And lack of emotions… Hiroko told me she wasn't born like this, it was a conscious choice she made in her very early childhood, barely two or three years old. She and her sister were neglected quite often, and heavily bullied by others later in their life, and while Kira chose to become insolent, aggressive, and very prickly to fend the bullies off, Hiroko chose just… to not feel. I don't know how she succeeded in doing that, but here we are…"

"That sounds entirely impossible," her mother said, eyebrows raised.

"I know." Ami shrugged, cringing inwardly. "However, it does find factual proof. Recently, Hiroko began to take interest in emotions and social norms again, and she's actually making great progress in making them come back. Even got as far as making a diary to record her progress and observations." Ami shook her head. "Whether autistic or not, it's still a very interesting phenomena." Saeko had to agree to that point.

"For how long has she been here?"

"About three weeks." Ami said. Gravitas had of course been there longer, Ami decided to state the time that passed since Avsa's attack on the city, since that was when a street in Makoto's district got blown up.

"And you have been taking care of her all on your own during that time?"

"It wasn't much of a problem, mother." Ami said honestly. "She never caused me any trouble at all, and the thing she is interested the most in is studying and finding out new and more new information. She actually has read all the books in our house. Even the dictionaries."

"Did she now?" Saeko asked calmly.

"She did." Ami nodded. "Why do you think they're all ordered by title? She misunderstood me when I said she should put them in alphabetical order…"

A thoughtful look appeared on her mother's face. "I hope you do realise, dear, that these handlings you have just told me about are often a sign of autism, so perhaps you shouldn't shove off that diagnosis just yet."

Ami nodded. "I do not, but the extreme progress makes me think otherwise." She said. "Two months ago, she won't even smile or frown, and now I often catch her with a happy expression on her face, I see her frown and look confused, I hear her sighing at sad things, she even cried once. It's utterly unexplainable."

"I suppose it could be good experience for you, as a future doctor," Saeko added. "We often stand before surprises."

"Indeed, mom." Ami smiled. "And make no mistakes, despite her supposed autism, Hiroko is still a special and very dear friend to me."

"She does not quite strike me as a person to make dear friends, if I may be honest," came the reply.

Ami smiled. "I know. But wait until you try to teach her something. Trust me, you've never seen such a good student in your life. Ever. This is how we got close, actually – she has an extreme thirst for knowledge, and I was very happy to give it to her."

"How long is she staying?" Saeko Mizuno suddenly asked. Ami gave a start.

"I… I'm not sure…" She said slowly. "With all these attacks going on, I didn't get a chance to think about it…"

"She cannot stay forever, Ami, though by no means do I wish to seem unwelcoming. But she has a family, you said, and her place is with them," her mother further explained.

"It is true." Ami nodded, frowning.

"Though I understand they have no place to go for now, so until they have found a new house, it is fine," Saeko assured her daughter with a rare smile. "You did the right thing." Ami smiled, relieved and let out her breath she didn't realise she was holding.

"Thank you, mother." She said softly.

"You're welcome," came the standard reply. Saeko gestured briefly at the door. "How about you introduce me properly to that dear friend of yours?"

"Of course, mother." Ami smiled happily. "Shall I invite her here, or we will go to the living room?"

"You know her the best, what would put her most at ease? She seemed quite cold to me moment before when I entered," her mother said.

"Well, you are a complete stranger to her." Ami said. "Of course she'd go into her emotionless defence mode. I'll go talk to her then, then bring her here and introduce you properly." Saeko nodded, accepting that course of action. It would give her some time to order her thoughts as well. Ami smiled, bowed politely and left the kitchen, sighing deeply in relief as the door closed behind her. Suddenly, she felt herself being shaken from all the stress, and retreated to the living room before her mother could suspect anything.

* * *

Gravitas looked up from her dictionary 'latin – german' – her latest point of interest – when she heard Ami enter. Of course, with her superior hearing she had been able to follow most of the talk in the kitchen. Or rather, she could have, if she hadn't tuned it out. Ami wished to speak in private, so she would allow that, and read her book instead. But now Ami was not in the kitchen, but with her, alone. So Gravitas closed her book after putting a marker in it.

"You are…" Gravitas searched for the right word. "Feeling stressed, yes. I can sense it," she said, indeed feeling Ami's stress and nerves through their bond.

"Oh yes, I am…" Ami muttered. "Don't mention anything of the bond, though, when mom's around or can hear it."

"Very well," Gravitas said. She paused for a moment, then spread her arms and looked at Ami, confused. "Will you come here so I can hug you and comfort you, which I think I should be doing now?"

"Yes, please…" Ami muttered, came over and fell right into Gravitas' embrace. The Saurian of Gravity put her arms awkwardly around Ami's tired figure, and even more awkwardly caressed her back. But to Ami, awkwardness didn't matter, she just closed her eyes and relaxed, needing that for at least a few moments… Gravitas was content to simply give her that, and said nothing.

A few moments later, Ami said: "I think I managed to lie my way out well enough…" She sighed. "Never had to lie to mom about so much things at the same time…"

"I am sorry to make you do that," Gravitas said, and she meant it.

"It's not your fault…" Ami sighed. "And anyway, mom wants to be introduced to you properly now. And she'd like you not to act this cold to her…"

"It is hard," Gravitas admitted. "I do not know her, and you did not speak to me about her before. And I am afraid to blow my cover," she added in a whisper.

Ami waved her hand and whispered: "Just look into my memory to see what I told her, and act on that. Don't make factual mistakes and it'll be fine." Her dear friend nodded and used their bond to peer into Ami's memory, as requested. Ami just closed her eyes again and relaxed, letting her see all she wanted. Gravitas studied every word and took it in her memory with the ease and thoroughness she always had when it came to new knowledge. Once she was satisfied, she retreated from Ami's memory and smiled slightly at her friend, hoping to make her feel better that way. Ami smiled back.

"So, shall we go?" She asked her Saurian friend.

"Yes, I think I am ready now," Gravitas answered with a curt nod.

Ami smiled and stood up. "Then let's go."

* * *

**Next chapter: Breakfast, family trees and history!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

****Kuroui: You don't have to worry, I just kind of forgot to update. I have written up to chapter 131 already, I'm just posting them at a weekly pace. Oh, Nightmare definately did it with a scowl and a blush. ;) Thanks for the review!

Ariel Night: If I'm not mistaken, Kawaii means cute/adorable. I'm glad Gravitas' progress is noticable! Thanks for reviewing! =)

Fatal Mars: I am happy you liked what I created here, as well as my original characters. That's the scary part of fanfiction, trying to capture the character of the canon characters correctly, and writing developed, good original characters as well. I'm relieved to see me and my co-writer succeeded. Thanks for the review!


	109. Breakfast, family trees and history

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**109. Breakfast, family trees and history**

While Ami was being shocked by the sudden arrival of her mother and Nightmare did her maidenly chores, the house of the Outer Senshi was slowly beginning to wake up as well. Michiru was busy making breakfast, softly humming a tune as she did so, the serenity of last night still soothing her. Haruka was sitting at the table, reading the sports section of the newspaper while now and then sipping from her coffee. Setsuna came staggering in, dressed in a bathrobe lazily thrown over her nightgown, looking as if she were still half asleep, only lured to the kitchen by the smell of coffee. Haruka saw it, and chuckled.

"Morning, Sets," she greeted with a grin. She wanted to make a teasing joke, but held back because she really didn't feel like being sent back to the Jurassic this early in the morning. For one thing, there was no coffee there. The dinosaurs running around didn't make it very appealing either, unless you were called Ignika.

Setsuna grumbled something incomprehensible and sank down on a chair, pouring herself a cup of the wondrous elixir known as coffee.

"Slept well?" Michiru asked kindly as she baked some bacon – for the Saurians – until it was crispy and salty, just how their guests liked it. Setsuna nodded once. Michiru had to chuckle as well, and let her be, returning to her cooking.

Upstairs, Hotaru lay peacefully and innocently asleep in her room, tucked warmly under the covers of her bed, her face serene and cute. The room next to hers was Setsuna's, and then the one of her other two parents. Besides Haruka and Michiru's room, at the end of the hall, was the guest room, occupied by Traveller and Ignika. There was only one bed in the sparsely decorated room, but neither Saurian minded that at all. They liked one bed, because Traveller and Ignika always slept together, the little Child of Life cradled safely in his big sister's arms and embrace.

Now was no different, and Ignika found himself wake up as usual staring at Traveller's chest and face. His big sister was still asleep, her face relaxed and calm, her breathing soft and gentle. Ever since arriving here, and being able to sleep in this wonderful bed, Traveller slept a lot better, longer and deeper, Ignika knew. It was because she knew they were safe here, she knew she could relax here, and allow herself deep sleep. Ignika felt much the same, though that had only started once he had been reunited with his family. Before, he had been filled with too much worry and fear about all the new things to be able to sleep long, deep and peaceful. Even if he slept well despite that.

Ignika yawned and stretched his arms above his head. He had slept wonderfully, even better than usual. And he knew why that was. He only had to place his hand on his heart to know it. He had parents now, a rare luck and privilege for a Saurian boy. So few Saurian children ever got that! Sisters and brothers were fantastic, of course, and Ignika wouldn't trade them for anything in the world. But parental figures were still different in a peculiar way, and Ignika was very happy to have them. After the 'adoption' yesterday evening, and missing the end of the movie, they had watched a nice documentary together instead, and after that played a short board game as a family before going to sleep. It had been one of the most wonderful evenings of Ignika's long life.

Quietly, the boy slipped out of Traveller's embrace, not wanting to rouse her from her sleep. She looked so happy. But his nose had caught the scent of coffee and bacon coming from downstairs, and it made his mouth water. At least, the bacon did, coffee was horrible. It also meant that his 'parents' were up, probably, and he wanted to go downstairs and be with them and have a normal morning like any child would have with his parents. So, after putting on his socks, Ignika tiptoed out of the room, closed the door quietly behind him and went downstairs to the kitchen. Shyly, he peaked in the kitchen, seeing his two new mamas and his new papa. Hotaru was still asleep, apparently.

"Morning, Ignika." Haruka greeted her new adopted son.

"Morning, sweetie." Michiru smiled at him. Setsuna just nodded and murmured her greeting as well. Ignika blushed at being called 'sweetie' by his mama, and shyly shuffled into the kitchen.

"Good morning, Michiru-mama, Haruka-papa, Setsuna-mama!" he greeted back with a small innocent smile. Then he frowned a bit and looked uncertainly at them. "Did I greet you right?" he asked naively, his face sinfully cute. "I don't know how a good son should greet his parents… But I want to be a good son!"

"Yes, that was completely correct." Michiru smiled. "Now then, do you want some breakfast?"

"Yes, Michiru-mama!" he cutely said, scrambling to take a seat. Michiru smiled and put some bacon on the plate, as well as a tasty, crispy toast, and gave the breakfast to her newfound dear son.

"There you go, sweetie." She said lovingly. Ignika blushed again.

"Is that what mamas call their sons, Michiru-mama?" he asked innocently.

"Nope, daughters, too." Michiru smiled.

"And loved ones." Haruka added. "Though I haven't heard that particular term for a long time…" Haruka winked at her lover.

"Oh hush, Haruka, you've heard tons of others." Michiru chuckled. Ignika looked curiously at his mama while taking a bite out of his bacon. Michiru noticed the glance. "Hmm? What is it, Ignika?"

"What kind of others, Michiru-mama?" the Child of Life asked naively.

Michiru chuckled. "Oh, a lot of things. Mostly involving the word 'love' and 'dear'…"

"Uh-huh, right…" Setsuna grumbled. "'Deer', and 'tiger', and 'wildcat', and 'kitty', and 'panther' and…"

"Setsuna!" Haruka looked at her, astonished. Michiru's mouth fell agape.

"Wha… How did you…?"

"What kept me up all night do you think?" Setsuna glared at the couple and put her hands on her hips. Ignika giggled, in vain tried to stifle it, and then laughed out loud innocently.

"I must have been really fast asleep, because I didn't hear anything tonight!" he said.

"Good for you." Setsuna sighed. Ignika felt sorry for his mama, and placed his hands on hers. Setsuna smiled. "Thanks, Ignika." Her little son smiled widely, and used his life powers to ease his mama's fatigue.

"You're welcome, Setsuna-mama!" Setsuna smiled and stroked her new son's hair gratefully. Ignika purred softly, loving the affection. Following the sudden impulse, Setsuna hugged him. Ignika squealed in delight and threw his arms around her as well, snuggling close.

"Aww…" Haruka smiled at the lovely scene. Ignika giggled.

"Am I doing good now, Haruka-papa?" he wondered aloud innocently.

"You definitely are." His new papa nodded.

Ignika liked hearing that, then returned to his breakfast and ate a bit in silence. Then he asked a question that had been bugging him ever since last evening. "Haruka-papa, Michiru-mama, Setsuna-mama, what do parents do with their children who are as old as me?"

"Well, normally, children of your age go to school." Haruka said, taking another sip of her coffee. "And in the free time, parents and children just spend time together. Playing games, reading books, going out for walks…"

"Take their children to amusement parks, museums and theatres…" Michiru added.

"What are 'mu seems'?" Ignika asked curiously.

"Museums are places where various interesting exhibits take place." Michiru smiled. "Like paintings of various famous artists from all over the world, both modern and from centuries ago, as well as sculptures, and…"

"That's the art museum." Setsuna interrupted. "There are also other types of museums. Like historical museums hold items from epochs and times long passed, records of wars and great rulers, but also things normal people used in daily lives…"

"And paleontological museums contain bones and mannequins of extinct animals…" Haruka added, sipping her coffee. Ignika's eyes got shiny and starry upon hearing his papa's words. The two other women in the room looked at her. "What?" Haruka asked innocently.

"Extinct animals?" Ignika squealed in excitement. "Oh, mama, papa, mama, can we go watch? Can we? Please, can we? Can we can we can we can we?"

Michiru chuckled. "Sure. But I'm not sure if the museum is open for public at the moment, with the attacks and all…" Ignika's face fell, and he immediately cursed all the invaders. "It still might, though." Michiru smiled. Immediately, the boy's smile came back.

"We'll find it out." Haruka promised him.

"Thank you, Haruka-papa, Michiru-mama, Setsuna-mama!" Ignika said happily. "What kind of extinct animals do you have here on earth?"

"Oh, a lot of." Setsuna said. "Practically, museums contain all evolution of earth's lifeforms from fossils of its simplest forms to modern days." Ignika sighed dreamily.

"That's so interesting!" he said.

"Indeed." Setsuna nodded. "Animals are sometimes more fun to watch than humans."

"That goes without saying, Setsuna-mama," Ignika said matter-of-factly.

Setsuna shrugged. "It's a matter of taste. I did enjoy watching great geniuses at work looking through the Time Gates."

"I have seen the Great Beings at work," Ignika replied. "I do not think anything could ever top that, when it comes to seeing great geniuses at work."

"Agreed." Setsuna nodded. Her little son smiled and turned back to his breakfast. All that crispy bacon was delicious, but because it was so salty, also made him thirsty.

"Michiru-mama, is there any milk?" he asked sweetly.

"Yes, there is." Michiru smiled, pouring him a glass. "And how about some cookies to go with it?"

"Yay! I would love to, Michiru-mama!" Ignika exclaimed happily. Michiru gladly gave the boy his milk and some chocolate cookies, which he eagerly began to devour, happy he was being treated so well. Michiru chuckled softly at his antics. Haruka and Setsuna did as well. When he was not changing genders or talking naively about mating, Ignika was cutesy incarnated.

"It's kinda weird that you reptiles like milk." Haruka remarked suddenly. "I mean, I can understand us mammals, our life starts with milk, but you…"

"Well, I like how it tastes when it's ice cold, Haruka-papa," Ignika replied innocently. "I've never drank it before I came here, though Master Angonce did mention once that it's good for the bones."

"Ah. I see. That is true actually." Haruka smiled and nodded.

"And I'd rather drink milk than coffee," the boy continued, making a sour face when thinking of the black drink. "It's so awful, Haruka-papa, why do you all drink it so much?"

Haruka raised her eyebrow. "Well, for one thing, it is tasty."

"And helps you wake up…" Setsuna mumbled. Ignika stared at them, cutely doubtful, not sure if he could believe them. His personal experience with coffee was far from 'tasty'.

Michiru chuckled. "It's partly because you are a child." She said kindly. "As you grow older you develop a taste for more bitter things." Ignika now looked at his mama with one eyebrow raised _very_ high.

"When _I_ grow older, Michiru-mama?"

"No, I was talking in general." Michiru said, then smiled sadly. "Sorry, I didn't mean to remind you…" The little child with the white hair gave his new mama a wide sunny smile.

"I don't mind, Michiru-mama," he said honestly. "Living forever doesn't seem that bad if I have you and Setsuna-mama as my mamas and Haruka-papa as my papa."

Haruka chuckled. "You don't mind having three parents?"

"Should I?" the boy wondered curiously. "Hotaru doesn't seem to mind…"

"Well, we raised Hotaru from when she was a baby, so having three of us actually seems normal to her." Setsuna said.

"Used to be normal." Michiru corrected. "Until she regained her memories, and went to school."

"But she still loves you all very much as her parents," Ignika mused. "I know, I can tell."

Michiru smiled. "We know that as well. And what about you?"

"What about me?" the boy asked, not understanding.

"Do you love us as parents?" Michiru winked. Haruka and Setsuna also looked attentively at the boy, wanting to know the answer.

"Of course I do!" Ignika exclaimed, looking almost offended by Michiru asking him. "I mean, how can I not? You have no idea how much it means to me to have people I can call mama and papa, Michiru-mama! It makes me so happy and complete inside! I can never thank you enough for having me."

"Oh, Ignika… That's so sweet of you." Setsuna smiled, feeling all warm and happy as well. Ignika happily went over to the Senshi of Time and hugged her dearly, nestling himself against her.

"You're welcome, Setsuna-mama," he said. "I meant every word." Setsuna smiled and cuddled him, almost melting from the cuteness. The little Saurian boy purred in comfort.

Michiru chuckled. "Awww, you're so cute when you purr." She looked at him a bit starry-eyed. Ignika blushed deeply under the starry gaze of his new mama.

"Almost as cute as Hotaru is when doing kitty impressions." Haruka remarked. Ignika frowned.

"Hotaru imitates felines?" he asked clueless.

"Well yes, pretending she is a kitten." Setsuna explained. "It's a fun game."

"Oh yes, especially to watch her!" Michiru exclaimed.

"I don't remember her doing that before…" the Child of Life muttered, digging in his memory in search of such an occasion, but finding none.

"Oh, she's just older now, she doesn't do it as often as when she was a small child." Haruka explained. "But she's still very good at it." The little boy gave his 'papa' a cute innocent smile.

"I'll have to ask her, then," he grinned.

"Ask me what?"

Everybody turned to see Hotaru coming into the kitchen, still wearing her nightgown and looking a bit sleepy. The Child of Life smiled warmly at his new big 'sister'. "Good morning, Hotaru!" he greeted happily.

"Morning, Ignika!" Hotaru replied with a smile. "Good morning, papa, good morning, mamas!" She said cutely to her parents. Ignika giggled at her cute expression and went over to give her a hug. Hotaru gladly accepted the hug, snuggling her newfound brother to her chest. The little Saurian boy purred once more. Hotaru chuckled and said:

"Meow."

Ignika looked up, startled, and looked at his friend wide eyed. Hotaru blinked at him innocently. "What?"

"Nothing!" he quickly assured her with a smile. "You surprised me, but that sounded really cute!"

"Meow!" Hotaru smiled and decided to do a full kitty impression on him. "You like me playing kitty, Igni-nya?" She winked at him. The Saurian turned human nodded and hugged her again.

"I do," he said with a smile. "But I thought felines didn't talk, unless they're magical like Luna and Artemis?"

"Sure meow, but where's fun in playing without words, nya?" Hotaru asked.

"But then why is it called an impression of a kitty?" Ignika wondered.

"Because I meow really like a kitty! Nya-nya meow mrrrrr…" Hotaru purred. The Child of Life laughed and began to giggle madly as he understood the cutesy of the act, and why his parents loved it so much.

"Alright, you proved your point, Hotaru-chan," he smiled.

"Mrow. I'm glad you like it, Igni-nya!" Hotaru meowed cheerfully. Ignika rolled his eyes.

"Okay, okay, cut it out already!" he begged. "I can only stand so much cutesy!"

"Aww, okay." Hotaru said and stopped the act. Ignika giggled again and then returned to his chair and poured himself some more milk. "NYA, MILK!" Hotaru cried and skipped over to the table. Her parents broke down laughing, while their new son found himself very confused, for he did not get what was so funny.

"Hotaru, Ignika asked to stop the acting!" Haruka said through giggles.

"But milk is nya!" Hotaru objected.

"Milk is what?" Ignika asked, all confused. "What's so funny? Why is Hotaru acting like that? I don't get it! Papa, mama, help me, I'm confused!"

"It's alright, Ignika." Haruka said, still chuckling softly. "Hotaru just got too caught up in her acting."

"But why did she react so badly to milk?" the confused little Saurian pressed on.

"Because cats' favourite food is milk. And fish. At least, the stereotype is so." Setsuna explained. A light bulb appeared above Ignika's head and lit up, indicating he finally understood, and he nodded sagely. Haruka reached out, took the lightbulb down and stored it safely in her pocket, mumbling something about it coming in handy.

"And that's how we Senshi get spare lightbulbs." Setsuna muttered, looking at the fourth wall.

"I'm surprised Traveller hasn't come down yet after all this noise," Michiru muttered with a smile. Her words weren't cold yet, or Traveller suddenly appeared at her side, arms crossed, looking annoyed and tapping her foot.

"Good morning!" Hotaru greeted her cheerfully. Traveller smiled briefly at the little girl.

"Good morning to you as well, little one," she answered. Then she looked annoyed at the other adults again. "And as for you three, thank you very much for said noise that _did_ rise me from my wonderful sleep."

Setsuna sipped her coffee. "You do realize it's been several hours since dawn, right?" She asked casually.

"You do realize we went to sleep hours past midnight, right?" the Saurian retorted.

"Touché." Setsuna nodded. "All thanks to the lover birds." She glared at the lesbian couple. The two looked at each other with a smile and then at Setsuna innocently.

"We celebrated the adoption in our own way," Haruka shrugged with a grin. Setsuna mumbled something incoherent and returned to her coffee. Ignika looked at his green-haired mama worriedly.

"Should I take more fatigue away, Setsuna-mama?" he asked kindly.

"Ah, no, it's quite alright." The Guardian of Time smiled. "Take care of your sister instead." Ignika nodded, and hurriedly shuffled over to Traveller to ease some of her fatigue. Hotaru meanwhile sat at the table and poured herself some milk. Once Ignika was done, Traveller gave him an appreciative hug and kissed his hair, then sat down at the table.

"Is there anything left for me?" she asked casually.

"Of course there is." Michiru smiled. "Will you be fine with some bacon, or should I also fry you an egg?" She suggested.

"May I be so bold as to ask for those eggs?" the Saurian woman wondered, a bit hesitatingly.

"Huh? Why so official all of the sudden?" Michiru raised her eyebrow.

Traveller shrugged and smiled apologetically. "Ah, my apologies, Michiru-san," she said softly. "But to be honest, this is the first time we have a family breakfast as… well, humans, I suppose, and I am not certain how such things go. Also, I'm not quite sure what my new position in this weird family is, to be honest."

Haruka shrugged. "Will something like Setsuna's sister do? Then you're Hotaru's aunt." She suggested.

"The aunt of my brother's sister?" Traveller repeated, rolling her eyes.

"Yep, and the aunt of your brother, too." Michiru smiled, rolling her eyes as well. "Let's just keep it simple and say you're a dear adult family member, hmm? Else we'd get lost in the family tree."

"True!" Ignika chimed in cutely, and he started to count on his fingers. "If she's my sister then she's technically your daughter too, Michiru-mama, Haruka-papa, Setsuna-mama, and Hotaru's sister, while she's your age, and then some! If she's Setsuna-mama's sister, she's Hotaru's aunt, as well as my sister and my aunt at the same time!" He shook his head and giggled. The other Senshi laughed softly as well.

"Sounds like a soap opera!" Hotaru chimed between giggles.

"More like some confusing medieval fiction drama." Setsuna muttered.

Traveller and Ignika shared a confused glance. "What do you mean by that, Setsuna-mama?" the little Child of Life wondered.

Setsuna shrugged. "Nothing in particular. It's just that low-quality medieval fiction also had a lot of confusing family trees. Or so I remember."

"Is there any reason why that was so?" Traveller asked.

"Apparently, back then people found it interesting. The ones who could read, that is, and those were nobles only." Setsuna explained. Her answer was once again met by two confused stares, coming from the Outer Family's two newest members.

"Nobles?" Ignika and Traveller echoed.

Setsuna smiled. "Are you really in the mood for a lecture?" She asked.

"We might as well," Ignika said with a smile. "Now that it doesn't look like we're leaving anytime soon, I wouldn't mind learning more of this world."

"Well then." Setsuna smiled. "To put it short, nobles are like royalty, but of a lower social standing. They were usually wealthy people who owned lands and riches, but the most important thing to being a noble is the bloodline. You are noble only if your ancestors were noble, with few exceptions. Nobility could be granted by a king or queen, however, for memorable deeds or something akin."

"It doesn't have anything to do with being noble?" Ignika asked cutely.

"Well, it did at first, and true nobility always existed." Setsuna explained. "However, since only blood and family mattered, some of the nobles were far from noble. And of course that lead to their downfall later."

"How so?"

"Why, for various reasons, but the most important was that the ordinary people could not stand it anymore." Setsuna said casually.

"That's logical," Traveller said. "Come to think of it, doesn't that sound similar to what happened about, jeez… How long was it again, little brother?"

Ignika looked at her, confused at first, but then his eyes lit up in understanding. "Oh, you mean…" He frowned and thought deeply. "One thousand seven hundred twenty eight years before the Skystone fell, right?" Traveller nodded.

"Oh? And what happened then?" Hotaru asked curiously. The rest of the Outer family also looked at them with interest, wanting to know more.

"You could call it the end of an experiment," Traveller said calmly, stirring the milk she had poured herself a bit. "A turning point of the social development of our race, I guess."

"Well, what was it? Tell us!" Hotaru demanded eagerly.

"Well, of course this was before our time, and before the Great Beings came," Ignika continued the story. "It's just, our race has either been nomads or settled in very small communities and settlements. At one point in our history, there was an attempt to move on to more, to bigger: a city, as you call it. We just called it a big village, because after that one attempt, word spread all around the planet, and it was never done again, so there was no need for our own word for 'city'."

Haruka raised her eyebrow. "Did something go wrong?"

"In the beginning, it went well, or so the stories say. The grand village was founded by one Saurian and his family, and they gathered many others around them over time. It wasn't intended to become a 'city', it just became like that because the location was so good and it seemed to offer so many advantages to those who lived there," Traveller continued. "But slowly, things changed. The founding Saurian family began to think that, because it was 'their' village, they could decide who did what, or who was allowed to do what. At first it went subtle, and friendly, but it evolved and escalated. And eventually…" The Saurian of Teleportation now looked at Setsuna. "The ordinary Saurians couldn't stand it anymore."

Setsuna chuckled. "And I take it that the punishment was swift to come?"

"Well, kind of, the stories differ depending on who you ask. Suffices to say that the first and last Saurian 'city' fell, and none was ever build again. Word spread that big settlements only lead to what had happened, and so our race forsook that route, and continued like we had before," Ignika finished.

"I see…" Setsuna nodded. "Well then, it's great that your race learned from its mistakes, which is never the case with humans."

"It's also amazing that word could spread over the entire planet." Michiru said thoughtfully. "Here, communication between humans rarely went outside their country, region or even town or village for most part of our history."

"Well, what do you expect when more than three quarters of the population are nomadic?" Ignika smiled innocently.

"Touché." Michiru smiled. "Most humans forsook being nomads when they started to tend the land and grow crops."

"That's what you get for not being full fledged carnivores," Traveller grinned.

"Indeed." Haruka sipped her coffee. "That makes me wonder if dinosaurs could have evolved into sentient beings if it wasn't for the Ice Age."

"Who knows," Setsuna smiled mysteriously. The family sat silent for a while, until Hotaru asked:

"So, what are we going to do today?" The two Saurian members of the family glanced at the three parental figures of the house, curious as well. Deciding daily activities was something they left up to Haruka, Setsuna and Michiru.

"Well, why not go to the museum, like Ignika wanted?" Haruka suggested.

"Oh, that would be lovely!" Ignika said excitedly, smiling at his new papa.

"What kind of museum?" Hotaru asked.

"The paleontological one." Haruka smiled.

"I thought we'd go to the museum of extinct animals…" Ignika pouted, not understanding the word the racer had used and looking disappointed.

"Ehm, that's what I said." Haruka corrected him. The Child of Life gave her a not-understanding look. "Palaeontology is the science that studies extinct animals." Ignika's face lit up in understanding and he let out a soft 'oh!'.

"I like that idea!" Hotaru said cheerfully.

Traveller nodded as well, smiling in agreement. "I do not see why not. We need to do things together as a family now, after all. Something that interests my brother would be a good opportunity for that."

"I'm with Traveller on this one." Setsuna nodded.

"Then it's decided." Michiru smiled. Ignika smiled happily and took another sip of his milk. He was happy they would do something that normal families would do with their children, too. It made him feel as if he were truly part of one now, and nothing could make him happier than that. He looked forward to the visit. Extinct animals were very interesting, and he'd love to see what former lifeforms of Earth looked like.

Hotaru smiled at Ignika's enthusiasm. She was glad for the boy as well, even if the museum visit excited her less. Extinct life wasn't her forte. Still, it was an activity as a family, something she always enjoyed. And what could possibly go wrong while visiting a museum?

* * *

**Next chapter: Lovers, mothers and sisters!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: I post at a pace of one chapter a week because it gives me some space. Like, if I ever get a writer's block, but I have ten chapters ahead written out, then I have ten weeks in which I can get over my writer's block without having to quit updating the story. It's a safety measure of sorts. I think critical and old-fashioned describe Saeko Mizuno very well, yes. I have no clue how Ami's mom is in canon, since we never see her, so we had to make up her character ourselves. Saeko was mostly created by my co-writer Tioko, but I gave it the green light. A bit of family tension will make for interesting situations with Gravitas. I like Gravitas, too, her progress and development is one of the more interesting bits of the story, and I'm having a lot of fun writing her, awkward situations and all! =p Thanks for the review!


	110. Lovers, mothers and sisters

Author's Note: The first part of this chapter contains direct references to sexual activities. Skip till the first grey line if you're uncomfortable with such things.

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**110. Lovers, mothers and sisters**

Makoto slowly opened her eyes. The alarm clock said it was well past noon. She slowly sat up, feeling exhausted and sore all over her body. Just as she was trying to remember why she felt so badly beaten up, she saw Chameleon snoozing on the bed next to her, and remembered everything.

"Nine times." She muttered. "Nine freaking times. Freaking nine times... Not counting fellatios…"

Slowly, she got out of the bed. Oh, the night was lovely, she loved Chameleon a lot, he did too, and their symbiosis proved it, but Makoto wasn't prepared for what awaited her in bed.

"Nine times…" She muttered as she dragged herself to the bathroom. Chameleon was a perfect mate, no matter how inexperienced, and Makoto was skilled enough to make them both feel good… But she never expected Saurian males to have this much stamina!

Makoto dragged herself into the shower and turned the warm, almost hot water on. "Nine times…" She muttered yet again. And it wasn't even the stamina that surprised her. It was another anatomical difference between human males and Saurian males.

Saurian erection didn't fade until they were completely spent. And that took more than nine times. Had Makoto not fallen asleep, who knows how long Chameleon would have gone on. Oh, she experienced a lot of wonderful climaxes as well, but they completely drained her.

And Chameleon would probably come wanting more.

Sighing, Makoto turned the shower off and got out. Loving a Saurian was going to be a lot more difficult than she thought… After drying herself, Makoto went to the kitchen to make them both some breakfast, and a good cup of coffee for herself. She really needed it.

In the bedroom, Chameleon hadn't even noticed Makoto had left, not immediately at least, and he kept on sleeping contently because Makoto's warmth still lingered. But once that started to fade, the young Saurian stirred in his sleep and he groaned. His hand searched around sleepily and lazily, trying to find that source of warmth that had kept his body warm all night. When he didn't find it, Chameleon fully woke up. His eyes fluttered open and he took a deep breath before letting it out in a deep sigh.

At first, he was confused because he didn't wake up on the couch, which had been his sleeping place ever since he had arrived here. But then the memories of last night came back to him and he smiled. It had been wonderful, he thought, even if Makoto didn't have as much stamina as he had… He grinned faintly as he remembered her shock and amazement at that when she first noticed it… He definitely would have to tell Ignika this new thing he had learned about human males. His little brother would probably be very interested in that, and no doubt go on one of his thinking sprees again about how humans could possible procreate when their males had only that much strength.

But Chameleon didn't care about that. He smiled and sighed dreamily as he thought back to last night. He had no words to describe it, the things Makoto had taught him, the love he, they, had felt… The love they had _made_. He had no idea it could be that complex or elaborate. Briefly, the Saurian boy turned human wondered how different it would have been with Rain… He quickly shook his head. Rain was dead. She was an important memory that he held dear, but a memory nonetheless. Makoto was real, and he was madly in love with her and she with him.

Thinking of Makoto made him fully realize she wasn't next to him, and Chameleon turned around on his back and sat up, a bit sleepily but otherwise perfectly fine. He wasn't sore at all. "Makoto?" he called out curiously, softly. He got no reply. Either Makoto didn't hear him from the kitchen, or was too sore or sleepy to reply. Chameleon didn't move, unsure of what to do. He wanted to be a good mate, no, that wasn't right, humans weren't mates, Makoto had told him, they were lovers. He repeated the word firmly to himself and nodded. He wanted to be a good lover and do everything right, so he wasn't sure if he was supposed to get out of bed now or not…

"Chameleon? You up yet?" Makoto called out from the kitchen.

"I'm awake," he replied happily.

"Breakfast is ready, come to the kitchen!" She called him. Chameleon nodded, even if she couldn't see that, and jumped out of bed. He almost forgot to put his clothes on, and then he noticed he couldn't find all of them except for his short trousers. Shrugging, he just put those on and left the bedroom and walked to the kitchen, the scent of coffee and food greeting his nose. He smiled in delight, especially when he saw the person he loved so much sitting there at the table, waiting for him.

"Good morning, Makoto," he said lovingly, coming over to her and nuzzling her neck briefly.

"Morning, Chameleon." Makoto smiled weakly at his affection. "Did you sleep well?"

"Better than ever before!" came the cheerful reply. Chameleon was absolutely bustling with energy and positive emotions, and it showed. "How about you, my lover?"

"I slept like a log." Makoto said unenthusiastically. Chameleon raised an eyebrow and his smile dropped. He could feel and see now that something was up. Frankly, she looked like a mess, and her mood wasn't at all what he had expected from someone who had loved him so much last night… What had he done wrong?

"Makoto…?" he said quietly and carefully, almost as if afraid. "What… what did I do?"

"Hmm? You didn't do anything, Chameleon." Makoto answered sleepily and took another sip of her coffee.

"Then why aren't you happy?" he asked, hurt. "I thought you would be… We had such a perfect night! We sealed our bond… and our love… It was perfect, I loved it so much… So why aren't you happy?" The reptile turned human looked at his lover, confused and afraid.

"It's not that I'm not happy…" Makoto said quietly. "I am. But… I'm just tired, Chameleon… I'm not made for so much mating…" The Saurian frowned, not understanding. "What?" Makoto asked, confused by his silence.

"What do you mean, you're not made for mating?" he explained.

"For mating this many times a night." Makoto corrected him. Chameleon's face fell even further.

"You didn't… like it?" he asked worriedly. "I… didn't hurt you, did I?"

"I did, and it was wonderful! I enjoyed it a lot, and it brought me higher to Heaven than I thought possible! But…" Makoto said sadly. "There was just too much of it… My body can't bear it…" Chameleon bowed his head, not sure how to deal with this new piece of information. The image of perfection he had build up in his mind… was a lie. "Chameleon?" Makoto asked, worried.

"I'm sorry…" he apologized quietly. "I thought it was good… I didn't realize you didn't like it… You just kept going and going, so I didn't stop to think… that it wasn't good for you… I'm sorry…"

"But it was good!" Makoto cried. "Just, too much… and I didn't want to stop and upset you…" The Saurian of Camouflage looked up at her with sad eyes, close to tears. It hurt him, not because he suddenly didn't enjoy it anymore or didn't love her anymore, but because she hadn't told him. "Chameleon…?" Makoto looked at him, confused.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked, his voice strained with emotion. "I thought you loved me, trusted me…!"

"I… I do… but… You were so enjoying it, I didn't want to hurt you by saying I need to stop!" Makoto said with a frown. Chameleon took one of her hands in his.

"Makoto, don't you get it?" he said tearfully. "Last night would have been wonderful no matter how many times we did it, even if it had only been once! You should have told me, I would have understood… You should have trusted me…"

Makoto bowed her head in shame. "I didn't want to hurt you…" She whispered. Chameleon squeezed her hands, but didn't know what to say himself. His 'perfect morning' had been all but that. Makoto suddenly pulled him close and hugged him. Ignika's only brother let himself be hugged, enjoying the warmth she gave him, and the strength of their bond he felt this way.

"I'm sorry…" Makoto whispered. Chameleon still didn't reply, unsure of what to say. "I enjoyed the mating, really…" Chameleon hugged her tighter.

"Did you?" he asked naively and innocently.

"I did. Until it got too much… But I loved it still."

"I'm sorry," he apologized again. "But thank you still, what you gave me tonight will be enough to last me for my eternal life. So you don't have to worry, I won't hurt you any more…"

"Huh?" Makoto asked, confused.

"Well, I understand you don't want to… what did you call it… oh yes, make love again with me since you feel so much regret about tonight…" Chameleon explained. He squeezed her hand and gave her a sad but understanding smile. "That's okay, I still love you regardless."

"Wha…? But that's not what I meant, Chameleon!" Makoto exclaimed. Now it was Chameleon's turn to frown and be confused. "I enjoyed the lovemaking, and I don't feel regret… I'm just physically worn out and exhausted because we did it too many times… But that doesn't mean I don't want it at all!" She explained.

"I don't want to do it if it ends up hurting you the next morning…" Chameleon replied quietly.

"It won't if we don't overdo it again…" Makoto answered. The Saurian of Camouflage looked up at the woman who meant so much to him, love shining in his eyes. Makoto smiled back at him and pulled him into a loving kiss. Chameleon purred, placed his hands on her cheeks and kissed her back, having come to love this act of intimacy a lot after last night. Makoto was light and gentle this time, and just enjoyed the softness of his lips. Chameleon did the same, and inwardly he smiled. He had a lot to tell to his family. He almost grinned as he imagined Nightmare's reaction. Makoto broke the kiss and asked:

"Hmm? What's so funny?" She smiled.

Chameleon caressed her face gently. "Just imagining Nightmare's reaction when I tell her how lovely you were."

"And what would that reaction be?" She wondered with a smile.

Chameleon rolled his eyes. "Triple yuck!" he cursed, imitating Nightmare as best as he could. Makoto laughed heartedly at that.

"Oh yes, that is very like her." Chameleon grinned and hugged his lover tightly.

"So what do lovers do the morning and day after a wonderful night, Makoto?" he asked cutely. "I have so much to learn about this, I don't even have a clue."

"Usually they get back to everyday life." Makoto said, taking another sip of her coffee. "'Cause work won't wait till you're done being lovey-dovey." A raised eyebrow was the response she got.

"It won't?"

"It won't. But since it's a day off anyway…" Makoto smiled. "How about we just spend some time together?" Chameleon smiled widely at that idea.

"Sure thing," he said warmly. Then he got a teasing look in her eyes. "How about in the bedroom?" he asked, sticking his tongue out playfully. Makoto rolled her eyes.

"If I go to the bedroom now, I'll fall asleep right away, despite all the coffee."

"Aww, I'll keep you awake," her new lover said.

"Won't work." Makoto insisted. Chameleon hugged her again.

"I know, and it's okay," he assured her. "Last night was okay because I wanted to seal our bond, but it's not the season for me, so I don't really have the urges or the desires." He squeezed her hand. "So what can we do then?"

"Well… We could go for a walk. Have a date, so to say." Makoto smiled.

"A… what?" he repeated, confused.

"A date. It's when a couple goes out and does things together, like visiting different places and stuff." Makoto explained vaguely. "We'll see how it goes." Chameleon nodded. He didn't mind not having a plan. Going along with the flow was practically his life motto. "Well then, shall we go get dressed?" His lover smiled.

"If I can find my clothes, that is, you threw them everywhere last night," Chameleon grinned.

Makoto chuckled. "Then let's go look." Her younger – body-wise – lover nodded and climbed to his feet.

"But after that I want my breakfast," he reminded her.

"Sure thing." Makoto smiled. "And after that, we're going on a date!"

"Looking forward to it," Chameleon smiled back, giving her another kiss.

* * *

Ami and Gravitas rose up from the couch where Gravitas had just sat comforting her friend. The two still held hands, and with a small smile, Ami tugged Gravitas along towards the kitchen where her mom was waiting to meet the Saurian. Gravitas felt a tiny tinge of nervousness, a strange new emotion she didn't like, and she tried to suppress it almost immediately out of habit and instinct. Ami didn't stop her from doing it this time, nervousness would only be a hindrance in this talk. Slowly, she opened the door to the kitchen.

Her mother was still sitting there drinking her tea and was seemingly lost in thought. In all honesty, the sudden appearance of this 'Hiroko' in the life of her daughter puzzled Dr. Mizuno, and she needed a lot of time still to figure that puzzle out. Upon noticing her daughter and her guest, however, she smiled politely at them. Ami smiled back nervously, but Gravitas reacted as she always did: by doing nothing and staring aloofly.

"I believe our acquaintance didn't begin so well." Saeko said. "Let's start it anew, shall we?" She smiled at Gravitas. In her head, Gravitas ran over her list of proper reactions and picked out the one she needed in this situation. She nodded and bowed her head respectfully. "I am doctor Saeko Mizuno. It's a pleasure to meet you." Ami's mom said with a polite smile.

"Hiroko Genkai," Gravitas replied tonelessly. "It is a pleasure for me as well." If one were to go by the sound of her voice, it didn't sound as if it was a pleasure at all. But that couldn't be helped, that was how Gravitas was.

"You are staying here as your home got destroyed, am I correct?" Saeko asked.

"You are," Gravitas replied simply, neither unfriendly or friendly. Emotionless.

"Then let me welcome you to stay here until your family finds a new home."Ami's mom said calmly. Gravitas looked up and nodded, trying to look grateful.

"Thank you for your kindness," she said, with a hint of true gratitude in it.

"You are welcome." Saeko smiled, noting the change in her voice. "Now then, with these formalities behind us, would you care to have a cup of tea?" Gravitas looked at the table and at the teapot and the cups. Unnoticeable by Saeko, she sniffed, picking up the scent of the tea. She recognized it as the scent of a tea she liked and nodded.

"That would be nice," she admitted, looking at Ami sideways. "If there is honey in it."

"Of course." Ami smiled. "And perhaps we should go buy some cake to celebrate mom's homecoming?" Gravitas' eyes lit up with undisguised eagerness and happiness at the thought, though she tried to contain herself.

"That would be very lovely, yes," she said with a voice that was, for a change, full of emotion. Saeko was surprised by that, but didn't show it.

"Actually, I already bought the cake, as well as some take-out sushi. It's in one of the bags I had with me." Ami's mom said.

"Ah. That's very kind of you, mother!" Ami smiled at her. Gravitas looked gratefully at the older woman as well.

"Would you mind bringing it then, Ami, while me and Hiroko set the table?"

If Ami was by any means nervous of this request, she didn't show it. "Shall we serve it in the living room, like we always celebrate something like this?"

"Yes, that would be appropriate." Ami's mother smiled. Gravitas glanced from Ami to Saeko, not certain of what to do. Ami's mother noticed that.

"You'll help me put the plates and food on the living room table in proper and pretty order." She explained. Gravitas nodded. Properness and order were good. Ami's mom stood up and went to the cupboard to get her special set of plates, and Ami left the kitchen to get the cake and sushi. Gravitas stood there and waited for further instructions. "Here." Ami's mom said, giving her some of the plates. "Carry these to the living room and put them on the table."

"Very well," Gravitas said. She accepted the plates and carefully went to the living room and put them down on the table, as instructed. Saeko followed her with tea cups and chopsticks in her hands. Putting those on the table as well, she swiftly arranged all the plates and cups properly. The Saurian of Gravity stared at the chopsticks. Were was the spoon or fork Ami had taught her to eat pastries with?

"Oh, I forgot." Saeko said, and went to the kitchen to get dessert forks for the cake. Gravitas sighed, relieved. Try as she might, she could not eat with chopsticks. Which was too bad for her, as she was expected to eat the sushi with them. Gravitas looked at Saeko.

"What else do I do?"

"Bring the tea." Saeko ordered just as Ami brought the food to the living room. Mother and daughter then began putting it on the plates. Ignika's middle sister went to the kitchen without complaining and fetched the tea, as well as the honey and the sugar, which she balanced perfectly on her arms while carrying the teapot with both hands. When Saeko saw it, her jaw almost dropped, but she got a grip on herself on time. Once she got over the initial shock, she thought that this was one more point for Ami's theory of Hiroko not being autistic. Autists usually weren't handy with things, on the contrary, they usually came across as clumsy. Then again, all rules have exceptions. Meanwhile, Ami took the teapot, sugar and honey from Gravitas and put them on the table as well. Gravitas smiled gratefully at her friend.

"_You're doing well._" Ami thought to her with a smile, pride shining in her feelings. Gravitas' small smile widened a tiny bit and she let Ami feel what little gratitude she felt.

"Well, now that the table is set, let us get to the meal." Saeko smiled. Gravitas nodded, but wondered where she should sit. Ami solved that problem, thinking to her that her mom should sit at the head of the table with Ami and Gravitas at her sides in front of each other. The Saurian girl was fine with this and sat down. Saeko and Ami did so as well.

"Itadakimasu!" Saeko declared, and the Mizuno began their meal. Ami and Saeko took their chopsticks and helped themselves to some sushi. But Gravitas just looked confused, not sure of what to do. She hadn't really understood what Saeko had said either.

"_My mom officially began the meal. And you should eat some sushi._" Ami thought to her.

"_I cannot eat with sticks,_" Gravitas replied.

Ami frowned. "_You're expected to… You're Japanese, supposedly._"

"Something wrong, Hiroko?" Saeko asked, noticing she wasn't eating anything.

Gravitas was just about to confess that she didn't know how to use chopsticks when Ami interrupted her: "Oh, she just likes taking her time when picking food." She said quickly, then thought to her again: "_Watch closely and try to feel how I do it. You're a quick learner, it should be easy._" Gravitas mentally nodded and observed. Ami slowly picked up a sushi, dipped it into soy sauce and then ate it. The Saurian of Gravity copied, though she dropped her sushi in the sauce. "_Pick it up quickly, else it's too salty._" Ami advised. Saeko raised her eyebrow lightly, but didn't comment. Accidents happen even if you've been eating with chopsticks for your whole life. Gravitas tried to pick it up, but it was clear she struggled. Saeko was beginning to frown when Gravitas finally managed to fish it out. Of course, now it was too salty. "_Eat it anyway._" Ami ordered. Gravitas sighed, but did as instructed, swallowing it whole and quickly without chewing. She didn't like salt. "_You know, you can eat sushi without the sauce. They're tasty like that, too._" Gravitas nodded and picked up another one, and this time she didn't drop it. Ami smiled and returned to her meal. There were plenty of sushi to eat still before they could move on to the cake. Gravitas longed for the sweetness, though.

"Do you like these sushi, Hiroko?" Saeko asked.

"They're not bad," Gravitas replied. "Cake is better." Saeko chuckled.

"You can have some now if you want it so much."

"Really?" Gravitas said, unusually excited.

"Yes, really." Saeko smiled, but her comment was quickly followed by Ami's warning:

"_Don't dig in wildly, act dignified._"

"_I'll try_," Gravitas promised, and then to Saeko she said, deadly serious: "I think I like you." She used the same tone she had used when she had told the three 'spies' that she didn't like them. It unnerved Saeko a little, but she knew autists were bad liars.

"I'm glad. I like you as well." She said evenly. Gravitas smiled gratefully and then looked at Ami curiously.

"Did I do well?"

"You sure did." Ami smiled. "You deserve some cake." Gravitas smiled even wider, and felt a tiny bit of satisfaction, though she didn't know what to do with it. Ami chuckled: "_Just enjoy it._" Then added aloud: "Would you mind cutting the cake, mother?"

Saeko smiled. "Of course I won't." She cut the cake and put a big piece on Gravitas' plates. "Here you go."

"Thank you," Gravitas answered politely.

"Would you like some tea as well?" Ami's mother asked.

"That would be lovely." Saeko then poured her a cup. Gravitas thanked her again, then took the honey and put a lot of it in her tea.

Dr. Mizuno chuckled. "You have quite a sweet tooth, don't you, Hiroko?"

"I suppose so," 'Hiroko' admitted. "It's a trait that runs in the family."

"Yeah, they're all crazy over cake." Ami chuckled. "I suppose that comes from their harsh childhood at the orphanage." Gravitas nodded, to further strengthen the lie.

"We had no cake there," she said.

"I see. Well, no wonder you like it so much." Saeko nodded. "What's your favorite kind of cake?" Gravitas thought for a moment, caught of guard at first by the question. But then in her head she went over all the kinds of cake she had eaten so far in her mind, and picked out her favorite."

"Cake with fruit," she said with a nod. "Or with whipped cream. Or with chocolate."

"Or all of the above." Ami laughed softly. Saeko chuckled as well. Gravitas smiled and nodded, oddly cute and innocent while doing so.

"Cake makes you especially happy, doesn't it?" Saeko noted, taken by her cuteness.

"It does, it is very sweet," Gravitas replied honestly.

"Ami told me studies also make you happy." A dreamy look fell over Gravitas face as she thought of books and the wonders of mathematics that Ami taught her. All those pretty symbols, the cool, cold, hard logic behind them, the riddles she had to solve…

"Yes, very happy," the silver-haired woman admitted happily. "I love studying and learning…"

"And what do you like to learn?" Saeko asked.

"Ma-the-ma-tics," Gravitas answered, carefully pronouncing the word of her beloved subject. "It is very interesting, and I am happy I learned that there exists something as wonderful as that. Ami made me very happy by introducing me to it."

"And you've made wonderful progress." Ami smiled at her.

"I love reading as well," Gravitas added. "Dictionaries are especially fun."

"Oh? Why so?" Saeko raised her eyebrow.

"Because in most cases I do not comprehend at all what they are about," Gravitas explained dreamily.

"And… What's so fun in that?" Saeko asked, confused.

"It is very intriguing," came the clarification. "And it means there is more for me to learn. I like that, for learning and studying is… fun."

"I see." Saeko said slowly, then smiled. "It's good that you find studies fun. But sometimes it is hard to learn new things."

"That makes it even more interesting and rewarding to learn," Gravitas objected. She frowned then and looked at Ami sadly. "I wanted to go to this 'school' like Ami and learn more, but she said that that is not possible for me."

"Alas." Ami sighed. "You can't deal with social aspects of school yet. You need to continue your studies on your own for now." Gravitas nodded, though the idea that she could not go to school clearly saddened her deeply. Saeko looked at her thoughtfully.

"Perhaps studies at a special school could be arranged for her?" She asked.

"I'd rather not do that, mother." Ami said before quickly correcting herself: "If that was up to me to decide, I mean."

"Why not?" Saeko looked at her daughter.

"I believe that Hiroko will benefit from communicating with normal people a lot more than from studying among… people similar to her." Ami explained her position.

"I… see the point…" Gravitas muttered. "I could learn my emotions that way…"

"Learn emotions?" Saeko asked. This moment intrigued her, she was curious if what her daughter said was true. Gravitas nodded.

"I need to learn how to feel again," she said.

"Again…" Saeko repeated quietly. The Saurian girl nodded again.

"I stopped feeling at… a certain point of my life. Now I have to feel again for my sister, so I will," she explained further. Then Gravitas frowned. "Though it is hard and confusing. Emotions are troubling. They lack logic, they aren't like mathematics. I like mathematics. I don't like the complications of emotions."

"I see…" Saeko said slowly. "Ami said you're making good progress, though."

"She said so to me as well. I think I… feel it… too," Gravitas finished lamely. Saeko nodded, and they continued their meal in silence.

Ami took her time to smile proudly at Gravitas: "_You did really well with the talk._"

"_Did I_?" Gravitas wondered, surprised by the praise.

"_You did._" Ami smiled.

"_Thank you_," the Saurian thanked her friend, taking another bite of her cake and savoring the taste. She took another one and then another, and the meal passed on in silence for a while. Then Gravitas looked up at Ami questioningly. "Can I ask something?"

"Yes?" Ami replied.

The Saurian of Gravity glanced briefly at Saeko, then at Ami again, and asked, in her usual cold, distant voice: "I know my sister has a training for this voyage ball game tomorrow… Can we go watch?"

"You mean volleyball?" Ami corrected her. "Yes, we can."

"So your sister plays volleyball?" Saeko asked.

"My 'sister' taught my sister, yes," Gravitas nodded. "Though I have never seen her do it, or seen the game itself for that matter. And I did not like the other girls who play with her."

Saeko looked at her, confused by her choice of words. "What?"

"'Sister' is what Hiroko calls Minako." Ami quickly explained what Gravitas meant. "Because Minako practically took over the role of being the older sister for Kira. And Hiroko had never been interested in sports, and thus didn't attend or watch them." Gravitas nodded in confirmation.

"Though I did meet other girls from the valley ball, when they were spying on us. I did not like them," she added.

"Vol-ley-ball." Ami corrected her again.

"Vol-ley-ball," Gravitas repeated, nodding firmly once she got it.

Saeko chuckled at the pronunciation difficulties. "And… why didn't you like those girls?"

"They spied on us," Gravitas repeated. "And made my sister hurt and mad and hit our 'sister'."

"They did?" Ami asked. "I don't remember them hitting Minako…"

Gravitas shook her head. "They made Kira so mad and hurt that _she_ hit our 'sister'."

"Ah." Ami nodded, understanding.

"Why did that happen?" Saeko wanted to know.

"They spied on us for some reason," the disguised Saurian of Gravity explained. "That made my sister mad, though I do not know why."

"I see…" Saeko said thoughtfully. Gravitas didn't say anything further on the subject and returned to her cake. The other two women did, too.

Ami was smiling, happy and relieved. At first she thought her mother's homecoming was going to end in a disaster, but now things were going quite well. And starting tomorrow Saeko will get lost in work, as usual, and come home only late in the evening, if at all…

"_Everything will be well._" She promised Gravitas.

"_I hope so_," Gravitas replied simply. She finished the last of her cake and then thought of what she had asked. Tomorrow she would visit her sister unexpectedly and show interest in one of her sister's hobies… Like a proper sister. It made her feel happy about herself. It wasn't as if anything could go wrong during such a visit.

* * *

**Next chapter: The museum of natural history!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Hmm, so far we haven't written a chapter containing Michiru or Ami swimming yet, but it's actually a great idea, so Ami and Gravitas can do something else but study together. Thanks for the tip, really! And thanks for the review! =D

Fatal Mars: Glad you like the portrayal of Ami's mother, it's always a tense moment to write characters you know exist in canon but don't have a canon personality. Hope the chapter managed to relieve you of the finals' stress. ;) Thanks for reading!

Ariel Night: I'm happy you love it. As for your question if every Senshi will get a Symbiosis partner, I can spoil it and say that not every one of them will. Thanks for reviewing. =)

Lucia Sennen: Artemis is way too old for Hotaru. Besides, I don't think Haruka, Michiru and Setsuna (not to mention Hotaru) would appreciate it if their little daughter got turned into a kitty, no matter how cute! =p But technically, Ignika could do it, no problem, it's within the possibilities of his powers. Thanks for the review!


	111. The museum of natural history

Pardon the delay, due to the New Year weekend I didn't have the time to update last week. Hope nobody panicked. Anyway, here is chapter 111.

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**111. The museum of natural history**

It took the Outer Family two hours to get ready to go to the museum. And for that, they had to thank none other than Michiru, who had to wash her hair before going out, do them properly and then put on make-up. Haruka seriously didn't understand what the fuss was about, but didn't complain, since she quite adored the result.

"We're not going to one of your concerts, Michiru-mama," Ignika said as he looked innocently at his mama. He had been told to put on his best clothes too, however, and had done so with little complaints.

"Oh, don't worry, I'm only wearing light make-up this time." Michiru smiled. "And it didn't take that long, in my opinion."

"When she gets ready for a concert, it takes her three hours." Hotaru whispered to Ignika. The boy's eyes widened, but then he remembered all the fuss the day of the concert they had all gone through. Hotaru then added: "At best." The Child of Life nearly fainted in disbelief. Hotaru giggled at his reaction.

Traveller sat patiently at the piano, dressed in proper clothes as well. Not her dress she had for the concert, of course, but something suitable for going out to a museum. Setsuna had bought it for her, and she loved it. Setsuna came over to her and smiled.

"Now that even Michiru is ready, we can get going." She said. The Saurian woman nodded, and Ignika could hardly contain his happiness. Even if they had to go by car.

"Me, Michiru, Hotaru and Ignika will be driving in my car, and you're with Setsuna. How does that sound?" Haruka asked Traveller. Ignika's oldest sister shrugged and smiled.

"Anything is fine by me. Is it far?" she wondered.

"Relatively." Haruka said. "About an hour of driving, or less if we're lucky." Traveller grimaced at the thought. Hotaru smiled:

"Just memorize the place carefully, and we won't have to do that again!" She said cheerfully. The Saurian woman laughed at patted the little girl on the head.

"A fine idea," she admitted.

"So just bear with it once, hmm, please?" Hotaru looked at her cutely. Traveller chuckled at her cute expression and gave her a hug.

"Don't worry, I will, I won't ruin this day as a family," she promised.

"Besides, I have some classic music CDs for you to listen in the car." Setsuna smiled. That made the Saurian of Teleportation instantly less reluctant for the long car drive ahead of them. It was no secret that none of the Saurian family liked riding in a car.

"Let's get going then." Haruka suggested. The others nodded and followed the 'papa' of the family out of the house and to the cars.

* * *

"Are we there yet?" Ignika asked cutely from the backseat of Haruka's sports car. Hotaru sat right next to him, and Ignika's new 'sister' giggled at her little 'brother' his cuteness and innocence. Though she could imagine her parents getting a bit annoyed, he asked it every five minutes or so.

"Not yet." Haruka answered yet again. "And won't be for another thirty minutes, so stop asking." The boy bowed his head for a moment, then looked apologetically at his papa.

"I'm sorry, Haruka-papa…"

"It's okay." She smiled at her child. Ignika smiled back, relieved that his new papa wasn't angry at him. He turned his attention to Michiru, who was humming softly, which couldn't be heard over the noise of the car and the wind blowing past them. Michiru noticed that, and looked at her son:

"Hmm? Something wrong, Ignika?" She asked him.

"No, I just wonder, isn't it scary to be in the front of the car like that, Michiru-mama?"

"No. Why do you ask?" Michiru looked at him, amused.

"It would be for me," the little boy admitted. "Everything coming at you so fast… And you can't stop it…"

"But it'll never hit you, Haruka won't let it, so it's fine." Michiru smiled.

"Haruka-papa drove so fast on the race track…" Ignika shivered. "I was afraid she'd hurt herself or have an accident!"

"I'm not driving nearly as fast now." Haruka quickly said. "We're going pretty slow in my opinion." Ignika's eyes widened and he shivered. They went already too fast in his opinion. He wasn't a Saurian of Speed and he didn't enjoy going super fast very much.

"I'd like to ride on the front, but I'm never allowed." Hotaru said. Ignika looked at her as if she was crazy. "What? It's fun, and you can see a lot more than from the window here on the back seat."

"I don't think I'll ever sit in the front seat of a car," Ignika said determinedly.

Haruka chuckled. "Each to his own."

"Well, I know why you like it, Haruka-papa, and I respect that, I just don't think I can share the love," the Child of life explained shyly.

"That's okay." Haruka smiled. "Nobody asks you to. We all have different interests an preferences. I, for one, never read those books on art Michiru loves." She then noticed Michiru's glare. "What?"

Ignika noticed the glare and, afraid his new parents might argue, quickly intervened innocently: "Do you like art, Michiru-mama?"

"Of course I do. And I'll have you know I'm quite a skilled painter." Michiru replied.

Ignika nodded. "Yes, I remember you admiring Angonce's paintings when we first visited him. And having a lot of paintings at home, too."

"Oh yes. Most of the paintings at home are mine." Michiru smiled.

"Do you paint extinct animals, too?" her brand new son wondered cutely.

"Oh, I'm more a landscape painter…" Michiru said. "Seascapes, too… But I did paint a view on a prehistoric jungle once."

"Landscapes are good too," Ignika nodded. He sat back, took a deep breath and relaxed. It was still a bit strange to have parents, but he liked it a lot. He couldn't wait to get to the museum either. He was so curious about the extinct animals of earth! "But animals are better, of course… Speaking of which…" He smiled innocently at his mama and papa. "Are we there yet?"

* * *

Setsuna and Traveller drove in silence, enjoying the classic music playing in the car. Traveller found it fascinating – not only the music itself, but also that it could be recorded and played without any instruments whatsoever. She wondered how that worked. It probably wasn't magic, but technology, but for the Saurian woman those two often seemed the same. Setsuna told her before that it was too complex to explain, however. Traveller only wished one didn't need a car to play the music. And that it was possible to carry music with you and listen any time one wanted. Traveller sighed. Yeah, right, as if that was possible. She loved music so much…

"Something wrong, Traveller?" Setsuna asked. She felt that something was off through their bond. The Saurian shook her head.

"Not really," she replied. "Just thinking of how wonderful it would be if one could listen to music wherever he or she wanted. It sounds absurd, I know, but one can dream, no?"

Setsuna laughed softly. "One can, actually." The Saurian of Teleportation turned her head to Setsuna faster than the speed of light, eyes wide.

"What?"

"Yep. You're not the only one who dreamed of that." Setsuna smiled. "Humans did invent a device called a 'player'. There are two kinds of players now – CD players and MP3 players." Traveller frowned, neither of the two words making any sense to her. "Well, CD players are for listening to CDs and can't play anything without one, and MP3 players have music stored in them, they don't need anything else." Though Setsuna kept it simple, her explanation still gave Traveller more questions than answers and went completely over her head. She knew what a CD was, but it, and the rest of Setsuna's terms, still mystified her, she didn't understand how a disk or an object could have music stored on or in it. Setsuna felt it and sighed. "It's too complex to explain. All you need to know is that humans know how to carry music with them and listen to it anytime."

"That's amazing…" Traveller whispered.

"Is it?" Setsuna smiled.

"Of course it is! Music everywhere… what a privilege…" came the awed reply.

"It's long since become something normal for humans." Setsuna said with a smile. "You probably noticed people with round headsets covering their ears, or with small buds with cables in their ears while walking in the street, didn't you?" Traveller thought about it for a moment, then nodded. "Those things produce sound. All those people are listening to music that is playing only for them."

"How very lucky for them," was Traveller's answer.

Setsuna smiled. "I actually own a CD player, though I seldom use it. How about I give it to you when we get home?" Traveller's eyes widened.

"You would do that for me?"

"Of course. I don't use it often, so why not do something nice for my symbiosis partner, who is almost like a sister to me?" Setsuna smiled. If Traveller could have hugged and squeezed the life out of Setsuna at that moment, she would have. Setsuna chuckled. Saurians were really like children in some aspects. Traveller felt that through their bond, and puffed her cheeks in mock-annoyance.

"I am not a child!"

"In _some_ aspects, Traveller." Setsuna smiled. "All of us are children to some degree, and will always be." Traveller huffed and crossed her arms. "Even me." Setsuna added. That surprised her friend. "I know, it's hard to believe." She smiled.

"How are you in any way a child?" Traveller wondered.

"Well… I can't really say I act childish, but sometimes…" Setsuna said quietly. "Sometimes I long for childhood. Mine was so long ago I don't even remember it. I look at the children playing with their toys, and wish I had them, too. Or more like…" Setsuna paused, thinking of how to word it. "I sort of wish I had a toy about which I could say: 'This was my favourite childhood toy'. Alas, that's not possible. It's all lost eons ago…"

"So is mine," Traveller reminded her. "You learn to deal with it. I have lived as long as you have, my friend."

"Perhaps. Or maybe I lived longer… It's hard to tell time at the Time Gates." Setsuna smiled sadly. "But one can still long for childhood."

"I thought you were only a thousand years old, which is my age," the Saurian said.

Setsuna smiled. "It's just a random number that I learned to accept. When you can travel thousands of years to the past or the future, it's hard to keep track of your own age."

Traveller shook her head. "But this… past kingdom you all lived in fell thousand years ago, which is around the time you were stationed at the gates. So that makes you a thousand years."

"Indeed." Setsuna nodded. "At least, if we take the time that passed chronologically."

"There is no other time," Traveller replied.

"There's subjective time." Setsuna objected. "For example, if you're unconscious, you think that only a moment has passed when you come to, even if it lasted for several days. Same with me and time travel. I could go five years back in time and live until now. Then I'd be five years older, while chronologically I'll remain the same age as now."

Traveller groaned audibly. "Much too complicated. Keep it simple, I'm only a primitive reptile!"

"Exactly. That's why I say that a thousand years is just a number. I could be a lot younger or older than that." Setsuna said. Traveller shrugged and gave up. It didn't really matter.

"It's not important," she said. "Thousand years, more or less… If you stay with me, then at one point such a long time will seem like just a second to us both."

"True…" Setsuna agreed. Traveller sighed deeply. It scared her so much… Setsuna felt her fear and asked: "Why?"

"Aren't you afraid?" Traveller asked in reply, surprised. "Afraid of the scope of immortality? Living for all time, until a year becomes a second, a millennium a day and so on? Knowing that it will never, ever end? That the world, the planet, the universe will collapse around you, be reborn, countless of times, again and again, while you remain unchanged?" The Saurian of Teleportation shook her head. "It scares _me_ witless."

"Indeed. That's why I prefer not to think about it." Setsuna shook her head. "We'll probably lose our minds in process. Unless Master Angonce teaches us how to deal with this."

"I hope he will," Traveller muttered.

"He has to deal with it himself." Setsuna reminded her. "And he doesn't seem anywhere near losing his mind."

"But he's born immortal, that's a difference," Traveller said.

"Indeed." Setsuna nodded. "But I don't think he and the other Great Beings would have made Ignika at all if they thought he'd be incapable of eternal life."

"True, but they didn't make _me_, or you for that matter."

Setsuna shook her head. "Ignika was born to live a mortal life just like you and I were. He wasn't supposed to be detached from the world like the Great Beings, and thus is capable of handling immortal life. If he can do that, so can we."

"It's still different. He never knew a normal Saurian life, he was raised from day one by the Great Beings to be immortal," Traveller explained.

"True." Setsuna admitted. "However…" She started, but then shook her head. "Ah, this subject is too complex to think about, anyway. Let's just wait and deal with it as it comes."

"I suppose that is wise in this case, yes," Traveller smiled and nodded. She looked at her friend amusedly. "By the way, are we there yet?"

* * *

Finally, the Outer Family arrived at the museum. Ignika jumped out of the car as quickly as he could, while Traveller managed to do it a bit more calmly and composed. The human members of the family got out as well.

"Gee, Ignika, keep your shoes on!" Haruka chuckled amusedly while locking her car. Ignika looked at his papa confusedly.

"But I'm not taking them off, Haruka-papa…" he said innocently and naively.

"It's an expression, sweetie." Michiru explained with a smile. "You look as if you want to run to the museum so fast you'd probably lose your shoes in process."

"So keep your shoes on." Haruka repeated.

"Oh, I see!" Ignika smiled, glad he understood. "I will, Haruka-papa. Thank you for explaining, Michiru-mama."

"You're welcome." His human parents said in unison. Ignika's smile widened and he threw himself at them, hugging them close. They eagerly hugged him back.

"Aww, that's so sweet!" Setsuna said, smiling.

"I hope you're not jealous, Setsuna-mama," Ignika said carefully.

"Of course I'm not." Setsuna smiled. "You're my son as much as theirs, so why should I be jealous?"

"Because I'm not hugging you now…" came the reply.

"It's alright, really…" Setsuna began, but was interrupted by Hotaru:

"I'll do that for you!" She said cheerfully and hugged her Setsuna-mama. Ignika giggled and nodded, liking that solution. Traveller stood by the side, feeling a bit left-out even though she was smiling as well. The scene was so cute and beautiful, not to mention touching. Setsuna smiled and pulled the Saurian woman into a hug as well. Traveller yelped as she was pulled off her feet, but accepted quickly and put her arms around her best friend and Setsuna's little daughter.

"Anyway, shouldn't we get going?" Haruka asked. "People are starting to look weirdly…" Ignika looked around and noticed his papa was right. This also immediately brought back his excitement for the museum.

"Yes, we should! Let's go, Haruka-papa!" He grabbed her hand and started to tug her along, running in a random direction.

"Eiju, wait!" Haruka said as she was dragged by her physically stronger son. "Calm down! You're going the wrong way!" Ignika halted in his tracks and turned around sheepishly, his head bowed and embarrassed.

"Sorry, Haruka-papa…" he muttered.

"It's alright… As long as you let _me_ take the lead now." His papa said. Ignika nodded obediently, his cheeks quite red. Haruka nodded, satisfied, and led Ignika back to the rest of the family. The boy felt quite stupid and didn't dare look up from his feet. Hotaru noticed that.

"Oh, cheer up, Ignika." Hotaru smiled. "We'll go to the museum, and if you behave properly, everything will be okay."

"I'm sorry," he muttered, barely audible. "I'm stupid…"

"Come on, it's okay to get a bit overexcited." Setsuna smiled.

"But still… I didn't mean to make such a fool of myself, I should have let papa be the guide…" the boy replied quietly.

"Ignika, don't make such a big deal of it." Michiru smiled. "It's alright, and you didn't make a fool of yourself."

"I didn't?" he asked timidly.

"You didn't!" Hotaru confirmed. "Now why don't we go to the museum? It'll cheer you up." Ignika nodded and smiled a bit. He did finally want to see those extinct animals. The family smiled and set out on their way.

* * *

"Now remember, Ignika, once inside, you must behave. Do not shout and do not run. Talk quietly." Setsuna instructed the boy. The Child of Life nodded and told himself firmly to behave as they told him and act like a normal human boy. He didn't want to ruin their family trip. Certainly not! But he couldn't help but ask, curiously:

"I won't, Setsuna-mama, but why can't I?"

"Because the rules say so. And they say so because by shouting you'll distract other visitors and ruin their experience, and running… It's too dangerous to run in a place full of ancient exhibits." Ignika nodded in understanding and promised again that he would obey. Setsuna smiled at him and lead him along.

At the entrance to the museum Haruka paid the fee, and the family went inside. In the entrance hall, a skeleton of great size hung from the ceiling, and both Ignika and Traveller gazed at it in awe. It was the skeleton of a whale, but they did not know that.

"Fascinating, is it?" Haruka smiled. The two Saurians nodded wordlessly.

"It's so huge…" Traveller muttered. "Is it a sea reptile? I see some similarities…"

"It is a sea mammal." Setsuna corrected. "And don't worry, it eats only plankton."

"Plankton?" Traveller asked.

"Only such tiny creatures?" Ignika exclaimed.

"Yep." Hotaru confirmed with a smile. "I learned that at school recently."

"Are they extinct?" Ignika wondered.

"Some species, yes, but not all of them. They still thrive deep in the ocean." Michiru said. The Child of Life noticed a shimmering look of admiration, almost dreamy, in his mama's eyes, and he smiled.

"You like them, huh, Michiru-mama?"

"I do. I like all sea creatures." Michiru smiled. Ignika looked up at the skeleton again and looked thoughtfully, the same look he always got when he studied a new life form. He wished he could study it from up close and from all angles, but he realized they would be in this entrance hall for half a day then. His family probably wouldn't like that.

"And you're not allowed to touch them anyway," Hotaru informed her brother when she could guess his thoughts. Sometimes it was as if they had a bond, too.

"Anyway, let's move on to the other exhibits." Haruka smiled and urged her family to move along. The others nodded, especially Ignika, who was very curious about what else awaited him inside this peculiar building. He was so excited he didn't even pay attention to or care for the architecture. Setsuna led them away from the entrance hall, and stopped before another interesting skeleton. It looked like a crocodile, only it stood much higher on its legs than modern crocodiles, and it was a lot smaller, too. On the tablet underneath it read:

_Protosuchus_

"Weird name, isn't it?" Hotaru remarked innocently.

"It means, loosely translated, something like 'early crocodile', Hime," Setsuna explained kindly, smiling at her little daughter.

"Oh. Well, it does look like one. Or what's left of it does, at least." She said, smiling. Ignika and Traveller were looking at the exhibit curiously, Ignika clearly fascinated beyond comprehension.

"This is a reptile, isn't it, Setsuna-mama?" he asked quietly, his gaze fixed on the skull of the animal and its pointed teeth. "I see a lot of similarities with reptiles from Voya…"

"It is." Setsuna nodded. "And its descendants still live nowadays in tropical climate. Though those are a lot bigger." Ignika nodded in understanding and studied a bit more.

"The teeth indicate… well, naturally a carnivore, but it's hard to say if it preferred fish or real meat… I'm leaning towards meat, it's hard to say with such unspecified teeth," the boy muttered. "I'd have to look closer, study them up close and all, but I can't do that, so I can't say."

"Alas." Haruka shrugged. "Shall we move on? The most interesting things are further down the hall." Ignika nodded eagerly, and let his papa lead them all on. They rounded the corner of the small hall, and arrived in a wide open hall full of exhibits, and Ignika stood as if nailed to the floor, his jaw wide open, his eyes trying to take in all the fossils and exhibits he could see as quickly as possible. Hotaru smiled at that.

"Amazing, is it not?" Ignika could only nod mutely. There were so many exhibits, and this was only one of the halls, there were still others! He could see skeletons of sizes that beggared belief. One almost even reached the ceiling, which was certainly twenty-five metres high! It was amazing, and he felt the excitement build up in him and he had to use all his self-control not to scream it out in delight.

"Let's take a closer look." Michiru smiled and led her fascinated boy to one of the stands. Ignika nodded and let his mama take his hand, which he liked. Michiru smiled and tugged the boy along. The Child of Life eagerly followed her to the nearest skeleton, which reached about to a grown man's hip and was one and a half metre in length. It had sharp teeth in its skull, bird-like feet, but the first toe had a peculiar large claw that was held upright, off the ground. The plaque read:

_Velociraptor_

"Oh, I know that one!" Hotaru said innocently. "It was in my Biology book."

"It's also in that American movie with dinosaurs," Haruka added. "What's it called… Jurassic Park?"

"Yes, that's the one." Michiru nodded.

"It's obviously a reptile," Traveller stated, looking approvingly at the skeleton. "Almost Saurian in build, though the skull is… sturdier? Bigger? I don't quite know the word."

"From what I've seen, Saurian skulls have more the shape of a snake's head," Setsuna added helpfully. "Carnivorous dinosaurs such as this one had entirely different builds of skull."

Ignika looked at the tablet that contained information in various languages, but he couldn't read this world's alphabet. He looked at his papa. "What does it say here, Haruka-papa?"

"Well, the name of this species of dinosaurs is Velociraptor. Literally, that means 'a fast thief'." Haruka read. Ignika nodded in understanding. The creature did seem very light in built, made for speed. He sensed the bones were hollow, too. "Also," Haruka added. "It was apparently a very intelligent creature that presumably hunted in packs, and was also one of the few known dinosaurs to have feathers."

"Really?" Hotaru asked in wonder. "I thought that only a few flying dinosaurs had feathers…"

"Dinosaurs didn't fly, sweetie," Michiru smiled. "A few of them could hover, as far as I remember, but flying dinosaurs never existed. They evolved into birds."

"Umm, that was what I meant." Hotaru said sheepishly.

"These creatures became birds?" Traveller exclaimed, surprised.

"Through evolution, yes." Setsuna nodded.

"I can definitely see the similarities," Ignika nodded, his eyes being trained to spot such things like evolutionary links.

"Heh, it's amazing, and hard to believe." Hotaru smiled. Ignika shook his head.

"Not really," he said professionally. "If you look at the way this 'die no sour' has its arms folded against its bodies, its very similar to how birds fold their wings. The presence of feathers further strengthens this. The S-shaped neck is also a very bird-like aspect, and if you shorten the tail, and change the skull, this would be a very big bird. Aside from the lack of a breast bone for the muscles of the wings to attach to."

"Oooh. Sounds plausible indeed." Hotaru nodded, trying to look just as professional, but not really succeeding. Ignika giggled at her efforts. Hotaru looked at him, but then giggled as well. The Child of Life smiled at his new human sister. She smiled back. "Shall we go look at something else then?" She suggested.

"Sure thing! You choose," he said cutely.

"Hmm… Let's go there!" Hotaru pointed at an exhibit which had a reconstruction model of a prehistoric jungle with a few dinosaurs in it. Ignika nodded, took her hand and ran over to it. "Eiju-kun, no running!" Hotaru reminded him. The Child of Life quickly halted in his tracks.

"I'm sorry!" he quickly apologized.

"It's okay. Now let's just walk there." Hotaru said with a smile. The boy nodded and Hotaru led him along. Soon enough they arrived at the reconstruction. It showed a jungle, and the life on the different levels of it. On the ground there were dinosaur models, up in the lower branches were small feathered dinosaurs, even higher there were insects, and up in the sky flying pterosaurs. "That's how we think everything looked like back then." Hotaru explained.

"You _think_?" Ignika repeated, confused.

"Well, humans have no way of knowing it for certain." Setsuna, who came over with the rest of the family, explained. "We can only make theories and models based on archaeological findings and other researches."

"I see…" Ignika muttered. "Master Angonce would simply recreate the creatures and their surroundings and then study them."

"We don't have technology for that." Haruka said simply.

"Oh yeah, I forgot," the boy said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

"Well, at least the models look good!" Hotaru said, looking through the glass. Ignika had to admit that was true, the models of the living creatures inside the model looked very lifelike and realistic. If it weren't for the glassy eyes, one would say they were just standing very, very still.

"Do you like those models, Traveller?" Setsuna asked her symbiosis partner, who was silent for quite a while now. The Saurian nodded with a smile.

"Yes, they seem quite realistic and lifelike. Whoever made them must be very skilled," she said calmly.

"Indeed." Setsuna smiled.

"Does this jungle look like Voya?" Michiru wondered.

"It does," Traveller admitted. "Even though we have different kind of trees… The general impression this gives off, the way life works and is situated in it is practically alike."

"I see." Michiru smiled.

"Let's move on!" Ignika cheered.

"Let's." Setsuna agreed and led the family to the next window. This one showed fossilized eggs of a certain dinosaur. Hotaru leaned in to take a closer look. The eggs were quite large, as long as Haruka's hand. The plaque read that they were Oviraptor eggs. Hotaru giggled.

"Eggs of an egg thief." She smiled.

"Which was actually an error in naming," Setsuna said. "The first Oviraptor was found on a nest of eggs which they thought it was stealing. Only later they learned that they were its own eggs."

"Oh? I didn't know that." Hotaru smiled innocently.

"Now you do," Setsuna smiled back.

"Yep!"

"Where's Eiju?" Haruka suddenly asked, noticing the boy wasn't at the eggs anymore. Michiru gasped and looked around, trying to find him. Traveller looked around, unnoticeably sniffed the air and then smiled.

"There he is," she said, pointing to not far away, where the boy was standing, eyes wide, jaw on the floor, staring at the skeleton of a gigantic carnivorous dinosaur.

"Ah. Figures." Haruka shrugged and went over to her son, followed by the rest of the family. As they came to stand besides him, they couldn't help but be awed as well. The giant skeleton was fourteen metres in length and five metres high, with a giant skull full of sharp carnivorous teeth. It could snap a Saurian or human in half with one bite. Its massive legs, ending in feet with four toes – three big ones with large claws pointing forward, a fourth smaller one not touching the ground pointing backwards – supported the strong, lean body of the giant hunter. It's arms were much smaller, ending in hands with three fingers. Glancing down at the name plaque, Haruka read:

_Giganotosaurus_

"Awesome…" Hotaru stated the obvious.

"That's an understatement…" Traveller muttered. "It's… enormous… Mighty… Overpowering… I had no idea such enormous land carnivores existed! Certainly not on Voya, the largest predator of our world doesn't even reach half the size of this mighty creature."

"It's indeed hard to believe." Setsuna nodded. "But the proof is right before our eyes."

"I've never seen _anything_ like this…" Ignika whispered, his voice full of awe and fascination.

"Really?" Hotaru asked. It was kind of strange to see Ignika fascinated by something natural this much. Usually he was calmer about this. While that was true, he had never seen a land predator as big as this one. Ignika knew there were big sea creatures, even on Voya, but this, the Giganotosaurus, was something else! An adult of this species would have no natural enemies, Ignika knew, aside from other adults.

"Yes, really," he muttered absentmindedly. "What a mighty titan…"

"Indeed." Haruka said quietly.

"Too bad it's extinct," the boy added.

"Well, the way our planet is now, it wouldn't be able to support a creature of this size." Michiru reasoned.

"I guess, but now I can't study it and make friends with it!" Ignika said disappointedly.

"Make friends?" Hotaru exclaimed. "How can you make friends with a gigantic bloodthirsty and probably unintelligent carnivore?" Ignika smiled at her and tapped his head.

"I have mental powers for something," he grinned.

"I… I guess… Still…" Hotaru started, but then frowned. "I don't know, this idea just seems way too weird." Ignika giggled and nodded.

"Yup. I don't think it would work anyhow. I'm just teasing," the Child of Life smiled innocently and cutely.

"Ah. I see!" Hotaru smiled, then giggled. "It's always hard to understand when you're joking and when are you serious." Ignika took her hand and squeezed it.

"I'll take that as a compliment!" the boy replied. "But I still would have liked to study this creature when it was alive."

"I won't do it." Setsuna warned him. "So you'll have to ask Master Angonce." Ignika looked at his Setsuna-mama, confused by her meaning. Setsuna shook her head. "Forget I said that."

"But I don't get it!" Ignika objected. "Why would I ask you for this creature, Setsuna-mama?"

"Who has access to the Time Gates, hmm?" Setsuna winked at his son.

"Oh, right, I forgot," the boy blushed. "But that would disrupt the Time Stream, no?"

"Maybe…" Setsuna shook her head. "Yes, it probably would. So I won't do it, don't even think of asking."

"I wasn't going to," Ignika replied, surprised she would even think him capable of asking. Ignika knew that if an animal was extinct, there was a reason for that. Even this mighty predator had not been capable of adapting fast enough to survive in the constant race of evolution. There was a reason for that, and Ignika accepted that. He had no intention of bringing this old mighty being back in this time. Maybe Master Angonce would, in his domain, but not the Child of Life, oh no. He didn't guess that Setsuna could also bring Ignika back to the dinosaur age, and Setsuna decided not to clear this misconception. Which was probably for the better.

"So, shall we move on?" Haruka asked.

"Yes, I have seen enough of this creature for now," Ignika said, his eyes giving one last dreamy look at the Giganotosaurus. "Now I wanna go look at that giant!" he said, pointing at the skeleton of a brachiosaurus, though Ignika didn't know it was called that.

"Sure thing." Haruka agreed and led the boy to the desired skeleton.

* * *

Time flew by faster than Ignika would have liked it to. There was so much to see in the museum. They spent a whole of four hours in just that one hall of the dinosaurs before they could move on to the next hall, which held exhibits of life before the dinosaur age. It was quite clear to the family that it was impossible to see everything the museum had to offer them in one day.

"It's almost dinner time…" Haruka muttered, looking at her watch.

"I'm not hungry yet!" Ignika said cutely as he skipped a bit ahead of his papa. They were walking through a hallway that led to the next grand hall of exhibits. Paintings, plaques and other kinds of information that didn't have to be put behind glass decorated the walls.

"But we are." Michiru objected.

"Ehm, but can we eat here, Michiru-mama?" the boy wanted to know.

"Not inside the museum, and the cafes next to it are too expensive." Michiru said determinedly.

"Says the one who spends thousands of yen on clothes and jewellery…" Haruka muttered. Michiru elbowed her. "Oww." Michiru looked at her innocently and sweetly. "Yeah, yeah. And don't forget we have to drive home."

"But I don't want to go home yet!" Ignika exclaimed sadly, giving them his cutest, most imploring look.

"But we do…" Haruka muttered, who got her elbowed by Michiru again. Haruka looked at her, astonished: "What are you playing at?"

"Sorry, it's a reflex." Michiru shrugged. Ignika looked at his feet, sad and defeated. "Come on, we can always come back later." The boy sighed, why did they have to go? It was so much fun in here, and so much that there was still to see. Hotaru came over and hugged him.

"Come on, Ignika, Traveller can teleport us here now, so next time we'll have more time to spend here because we lose less by driving!"

"Indeed." Setsuna nodded. Sighing again, Ignika finally gave in. He didn't want to go, but he was a child and had to listen to his parents. Besides, he had already seen enough today to give him material for study for years to come, if he was thorough with it all. The boy looked up and smiled.

"Okay then, let's go home. Thank you for taking me here, Haruka-papa, Michiru-mama, Setsuna-mama," he thanked them.

"You're always welcome." Michiru smiled. Ignika smiled back and took his mama's hand, and Haruka came over to take his other. Together, the three of them started to walk to the exit, Traveller and Setsuna following right behind them, chatting quietly about some things they had seen in the museum today. Hotaru had lingered behind for a moment to take one last look at a particularly beautiful painting, but when she noticed the others leaving, she turned to follow them…

And her eyes widened in sheer, utter horror. Her mind reeled, her vision spun, she felt sick in her stomach. Suddenly all seemed to vanish, nothing seemed to exist anymore outside of that one thing she saw. She looked at her Setsuna-mama's back, shock rippling through her own body as the familiarity of the moment hit her. Hotaru ran forward, arm outstretched towards her beloved mama, to shield her somehow, to help her somehow, to protect her somehow from that which that had filled her with so much fear.

Galaxia.

Hotaru didn't know how, didn't know when or why. She didn't even stop to think that Galaxia was dead. All that mattered was that she saw the woman, the corrupt Senshi, right here, right now, in the museum, smirking at them with that smug grin of sheer evil and utter pleasure in what she was about to do, finger pointed at Setsuna, and at her, to do that one horrible deed that gave Hotaru nightmares.

"SETSUNA-MAMA!" Hotaru shouted as invisible power laced forward from Galaxia's hand and pointed finger, striking Setsuna, disintegrating her, killing her, destroying her, abruptly ending her existence, without any chance of fighting back or stopping it. She vanished before her daughter's widened, shocked eyes, but that wasn't the end. It hit Hotaru, too, and she felt it, as sure as if it were really happening, the power striking her, tearing at her, violently, brutally ripping her Star Seed from her very being, shredding her existence apart. Hotaru could feel her body collapsing and disintegrating, and she hadn't been able to do anything.

Nothing, except scream as she was killed.

* * *

**Next chapter: Hardships for a family!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

****Kuroui: I suppose it was a bit awkward, which is why I put up a warning at the start of the chapter. And Ami shall surely brief the others on her cover up. Thanks for reading!

Lucia Sennen: It's true that she came from another planet, but she doesn't necesarily understand more than earth scientists. She lived a day to day life before, after all, knowing next to nothing about mathematics let alone space and time science. She understands her powers, but not on a scientific level, for her they were just a handy, practical tool, not something to be studied. Thanks for the review!

Ariel Night: Or I could be luring you all into thinking something will go wrong while nothing will and catch you off guard still! Wait and see. =p

Fatal Mars: Well, I usually update regulary, but last week it just slipped from my mind due to the hollidays. Apologies! And thanks for reviewing. =)

Rizwan Fariz: Well, maybe this chapter answered your question? ;)


	112. Hardships for a family

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**112. Hardships for a family**

Haruka, Setsuna and Michiru were calmly walking towards the exit, chatting about the things they saw in the museum, when Haruka noticed Hotaru wasn't with them. She slowed down and was about to look over her shoulder to see where her daughter was, when suddenly the quiet of the museum was broken by a heart-wenching scream:

"SETSUNA-MAMA!" followed by a no less horrifying scream of their little daughter.

The Senshi immediately rushed back to the museum, wands at the ready. But the hall was empty, save for the figure of their precious daughter on the floor, broken and snivelling in fear and inner pain. She was on her knees, her head touching the ground, clutched between her hands, her entire figure shaking and trembling violently.

"Hotaru-chan!" Michiru ran over to her daughter and knelt beside her. "Hotaru-chan, what's wrong?" Haruka and Setsuna ran over to Hotaru as well, puzzled by her condition. Ignika and Traveller came running back as well, having been startled by the little Senshi's scream and then by the parents suddenly disappearing. Ignika took one look at Hotaru and almost instinctively brushed his mind with hers, and knew right away that she must have had some kind of tremendous mental shock. Hotaru couldn't tell them anything, however, still trembling. She didn't even quite realize that the illusion was gone, that she was at the museum, alive, safe and well, just as her Setsuna-mama was. All that she could see, all that she could feel, was the vision she had just had.

"Hotaru… Hotaru, what happened? Tell us!" Michiru tried to reach to her. Hotaru didn't reply, she couldn't. She wasn't even aware that her mama was there. She was clutching her head, shaking, sobbing, trembling, wanting the images to go away, but they haunted her, plagued her, again and again. The experience, the feelings, the images of her mama and herself dying, she felt it over and over, as sure as if it was really happening.

"Ignika, what's wrong with her?" Michiru asked desperately.

"I… I don't know, mama!" he exclaimed, panicking almost himself as he knelt down to her and touched her head. "It seems she received a tremendously painful mental shock or something, but I don't know how that's possible!"

"What shock?" Michiru demanded.

"I don't know!" Ignika almost shouted back. "She's repelling all kinds of mental intrusion!"

"Wha…?" Michiru choked out. But then she was interrupted by Hotaru's sobbing:

"Se… Setsu-na ma-maaaaa…" She wailed in grief and pain. Desperate to do anything, Setsuna kneeled down next to her shocked little girl, to see if she could get through to her. She had no idea what was going on.

"Ma-maaaaa…" Hotaru kept wailing.

"Yes, Hotaru? Hotaru, I'm here, what's wrong?" Setsuna tried to sound calming and soothing, but didn't quite succeed. It didn't seem to help, Hotaru kept wailing and screaming and sobbing.

"Traveller, bring us home, now!" Haruka ordered. It was clear they won't be able to do anything at the moment.

"B… but what of the cars? Or if anybody sees us?" the Saurian woman muttered, confused and startled by this incomprehensible situation.

"Forget about the cars! We'll attract more attention if Hotaru stays here!" The Senshi of Wind ordered in a loud and desperate voice. Traveller muttered an apology and quickly went to work, ordering everyone to hold hands. They did, worried to no end about their daughter's mental condition. Triggering her powers, Traveller warped them all away from the museum and took them back home, worry gripping her own heart as well. She was, after all, Hotaru's 'aunt'.

* * *

Once they were home, Hotaru was immediately placed on the couch and surrounded by worried parents. No matter what they did, nothing seemed to help. Setsuna had enough of it and tried splashing their daughter with cold water. It shocked her enough to shake her out of her hysterics, but instead, Hotaru broke down into long, sorrowful cries and sobs, tears streaming down her cheeks.

Haruka took her daughter by the shoulders and began to shake her, trying to get her to say at least one coherent word: "What's wrong, Hotaru?" The Senshi of Saturn, the unhappy child, looked at her papa with tear-filled eyes, finally realising that Haruka was there. But Hotaru was still so shaken, that the only word she could utter was:

"G… Galaxia…"

That shocked all the adults in the room speechless. "What?" The Saurian members of the family, however, looked confused. They were certain they had heard the name before, but they weren't entirely up to speed with Senshi lore and history.

"What's a Galaxia?" Ignika asked innocently.

"The strongest Senshi of our galaxy…" Michiru replied in a quiet, hurt whisper. "The one turned to evil… she killed us all…"

"But she's dead!" Haruka cried in disbelief.

"I seem to remember so, yes," Traveller nodded in agreement. "Usagi-san defeated her, did she not?"

"She did…" Setsuna said, confused. They all looked at Hotaru, who was still crying and still in a state of mental shock. They didn't understand what Galaxia had to do with her crying like that. Hadn't they all gotten over it by now?

"Ma-maaaa…" Hotaru wailed and sobbed still. "Don't… wanna… die…" Her parents all gasped and quickly drew her in a tight, warm hug between the three of them.

"Oh sweetie," Michiru whispered, feeling tears well up in her own eyes as well. "We won't let you, never again…"

"Se-setsuna-ma-maaaa… no… No, no, NO!" Hotaru screamed. They hugged her tighter, but it seemed to have no effect. Ignika used her new outburst to press forward with his mind against hers, however. He felt less resistance now than in the museum, to his surprise, and managed to catch a glimpse of what was tormenting her so. Involuntarily, he shivered and quickly backed out.

"What is it?" Her parents demanded their boy.

Ignika shivered again. "Great Beings…" he whispered painfully. "She… I don't know how but, she… she saw… Setsuna-mama being killed, and then herself, feeling and experiencing it as if it was real… Just like… just like how it happened last time, I think, I couldn't see clearly…" The boy looked positively frightened. "That was more than a vision… It was almost a tangible illusion… But I don't get why…"

The parents were shocked to the core. Their minds couldn't grasp it, they could only stare at the boy in disbelief.

"Oh god…" Setsuna whispered.

"Understatement…" Haruka managed to croak out somehow.

"Ma-maaa…" Hotaru kept sobbing. "I…don't wanna… die…" Now finally moved to tears as well, Michiru pressed her little girl as close and tight to her as she could, holding her firmly, kissing her hair desperately, trying to do anything to soothe and ease her beloved little daughter. Physical contact seemed to ease her a little bit, but it couldn't take the pain away. Setsuna then gently pried her away from Michiru and gave her the strongest hug and embrace she could give as well.

"I'm here, hime," she whispered. "Alive, holding you. I won't go anywhere. And neither will you," the Senshi of Time promised, tears in the corner of her eyes as well.

"Ma…mama…?" Hotaru's sobs quieted down a little.

"Yes, hime, your mama is here," Setsuna said again, holding her close, cuddling her as if she were still that little baby she had promised to raise together with her two best friends.

"Mama!" Hotaru screamed and hugged her desperately, clinging onto her for her dear life.

"Hotaru…" Setsuna whispered back, holding her, letting her cling to her. Inside, Setsuna had to fight against the pain of the memories Hotaru had brought back now against her will. But Setsuna Meioh refused to show it, if only for her beloved daughter's sake.

"Ma-maaa…" Hotaru sobbed, clinging to Setsuna. "Don't die… don't… die… ma-maaa…"

"I won't, Hime," the Senshi of Time promised firmly, cuddling her little girl like a baby.

"I don't wanna… don't wanna anyone to die…" Hotaru sobbed in a hurt whisper. Setsuna nodded slowly in understanding and caressed through Hotaru's soft, silky hair. She understood her little girl's desire, she felt it herself. She held Hotaru close, hugged her, cuddled her, kissed her hair and caressed her back softly, trying to calm her, trying to soothe and ease her. It seemed to work, because Hotaru's sobs began to quieten.

"Ma-maaa…" She sobbed quietly.

"I'm right here, Hime," Setsuna whispered again in reply, still holding Hotaru as if she was a sweet little baby again. Hotaru cried and hiccupped for a while longer, but eventually, finally, fell silent in Setsuna's arms. The Senshi of Time kept holding her, cuddling her daughter, gently swaying her back and forth a little, intending to lull Hotaru into a healing sleep. It was the right course of action, since Hotaru was so exhausted she wouldn't be able to do anything else. Still caressing gently through Hotaru's hair, Setsuna waited until her beloved daughter drifted off. Slowly, Hotaru's breathing became even, and she fell asleep. Setsuna let out a sigh of relief, but kept holding Hotaru just in case.

Haruka and Michiru let out a sigh of relief as well. "Thank god…" Michiru whispered.

"Thank the Great Beings indeed," Traveller nodded. She sighed deeply and knelt down next to Hotaru. "What happened to her, I wonder?"

"I'm just as clueless as you…" Haruka sighed. Everybody turned to Ignika, hoping that he had some kind of explanation. The boy looked positively sad and ashamed about the fact that he knew as much as they did.

"I don't know either…" he admitted, hiding away from his parents behind Traveller. "All I know is that she received some sort tremendous mental shock in the form of that illusion… But I have no idea where it came from…"

"Damn it…" Haruka cursed.

Setsuna sighed. "Poor Hotaru… What if it happens again?"

"That's what I'm afraid of…" Ignika muttered.

"Is there anything we can do?" Michiru asked quietly. The boy shook his head and looked helplessly at his mamas and papa.

"I don't know… Be there for her, I guess… She was really afraid…" Ignika thought back to what had just happened, playing her reactions and actions over and over again in his mind to see if he could find out anything more. "When she first didn't react, it was almost as if she really believed she and Setsuna-mama were…" He swallowed hard. "Dead…" The Senshi shivered at that thought.

"Let's just hope it doesn't happen again…" Setsuna said quietly.

"I hope it doesn't," the Child of Life said carefully. "Such shocks aren't good for mind and body…" Everybody nodded. There was no way it could be good.

"Haruka, will you help me carry Hotaru to her room?" Setsuna asked.

"Of course." Haruka nodded. She slowly took Hotaru out of Setsuna's embrace and in her strong arms. The girl stirred a bit and seemed to cling to Setsuna in her sleep, but once she was fully in Haruka's arms, her hands quickly found the blonde's shirt and grabbed it. Then Hotaru settled down in her sleep again. Haruka then carefully and tenderly carried her daughter to the second floor. The others followed, not wanting to leave Hotaru alone until they were certain she was safe in her bed.

Haruka reached Hotaru's room and carefully placed her daughter in her warm bed. Michiru untied Hotaru's shoes and put them away, since they hadn't done so yet when they came home because of their worry for her. Setsuna, finally, pulled the blanket over her little girl up to Hotaru's chin, tucking her under warm and safe. Hotaru shifted in her bed uncomfortably and whimpered a little, but then turned to her side and lay still and quiet. Ignika and Traveller looked at her, uncertain and worried.

"Will she be okay, Michiru-mama?" Ignika asked.

"I hope so…" Michiru whispered. "She's a strong girl… Hopefully, she can recover…"

"In all honesty, I'm surprised this didn't happen before," Traveller muttered quietly.

"Huh?" Haruka asked, confused.

"That one of you broke down under the memory of dying," the Saurian woman explained.

"It wasn't quite a memory…" Setsuna corrected. "And we didn't break before because the pain was healed by Usagi when she revived us."

Michiru nodded. "We were healed enough not to think about it."

"Tell me something else," Traveller pressed on. "Do you fear dying? Or do you fear this… Galaxia?"

"In a way, both." Haruka answered. "Galaxia was worth of being feared while she was alive. She was the most powerful Senshi in the galaxy… And death…" Haruka shook her head.

"Death is painful, and it's always scary." Setsuna said quietly. "No matter how many times it happens, it doesn't get easier."

"It's not supposed to do so…" Ignika muttered darkly. The boy was standing in a shadowy corner of Hotaru's room, his head bowed, his back turned towards them so they couldn't see his face, or the pained expression on it.

"Yeah…" Haruka sighed. The other Senshi could only agree. Ignika shivered and didn't move from his spot. Death was his greatest fear, too. Not for himself, but for the people around him. Michiru felt something was wrong, so she came over to her son and hugged him tightly.

Ignika placed his hands upon the arms embracing him, and held them firmly. He was still shaking. Michiru stroked his hair and whispered:

"Shh… We're still alive, Ignika… That's what matters…"

"Hotaru was right about one thing…" he whispered quietly in reply, clutching Michiru's arms tighter. "I don't want you to die, mama…"

"I won't…" His mama promised. "I'll try my best not to die…"

"How can you promise that?" Ignika whispered, hurt. "Last time, all it took for Hotaru and Setsuna-mama was this Galaxia pointing her finger at them!"

"That's why I said that I'll try my best…" Michiru said with a sad frown on her face. "As long as I can overpower death, I will…" Ignika clenched his jaw and suddenly couldn't hold it anymore. He broke free from Michiru's embrace and fled the room as fast as his legs could carry him. Michiru got on her feet and went after him. But Ignika had already exited the hall and gone downstairs by the time she had left Hotaru's room. Michiru frowned and returned to the room.

Traveller watched her return, ran a hand through her hair and sighed deeply. "I'm sorry, Michiru-san," she apologised for her brother's behaviour.

"Nothing to be sorry for…" Michiru sighed. "Hotaru means a lot to him, so… It's only normal…"

"I don't think it's just that that's bothering him now," the Saurian of Teleportation said.

"I know…" Michiru frowned. "He's afraid of losing us all… of us dying…"

"Seeing the ease by which it happened because of Galaxia really didn't help much," Traveller added dryly. "I knew already, from Setsuna's memories. He didn't. It was a shock for him as much as it was for Hotaru. He must have always thought taking you all down was something difficult to achieve. But killing you was as easy as blowing out a candle the last time you died… It probably hurt and frightened him more than you can imagine."

Setsuna sighed. "That's bad… How can we help him? And we have Hotaru to help, too…"

"I don't know at all, my friend," Traveller replied. She placed a hand before her eyes and sighed deeply. "Was Zyglak and his Immoral Ones not enough, that we now have to fight these phantoms of your past enemies as well?"

"Indeed…" Haruka sighed and went to hug the love of her life. Michiru needed the comfort very much, and gladly accepted it when Haruka came to offer it. Setsuna, who was sitting on Hotaru's bed, motioned for Traveller to come over, so she could get some comfort, too, while still being there for her daughter. Sighing, the Saurian of Teleportation did as requested. Setsuna hugged her symbiosis partner, feeling their bond flare to life again. Traveller felt it as well, and was glad that it was there.

Michiru then sighed and broke her hug with Haruka. "I think I'll go find Ignika…" She said quietly.

"Should I come along?" Haruka asked worriedly.

"If you want to…"

"Maybe just in case…" came the reply. Michiru nodded and took her lover's hand. Together they exited the room and went downstairs. As they walked, Haruka squeezed Michiru's hand to comfort her. Michiru smiled at her lover, and Haruka smiled back.

"Everything will be fine," she tried to assure her aqua-haired goddess. "We'll talk with him, Hotaru will get better, and everything will be fine."

"I hope so." Michiru smiled. "Hmm… Do you think Ignika went to the garden?"

"Probably," Haruka nodded. "When he's upset, he likes surrounding himself with other life forms…"

"Let's go then." Michiru nodded. Another nod, and the two lovers walked to the kitchen and used the back door to enter the garden. Ignika was indeed there, sitting on a branch in a tree, though, what was quite unsettling, he glowed golden a bit, a sign that his power was spiking.

"Ignika…?" Haruka called out softly. The boy stiffened for a moment, indicating he had heard her, but said nothing in reply. "Would you come down, please?"

"What for?" came the snapped back reply.

"'Cause I can't climb trees, and neither can Michiru." Haruka replied. Ignika growled angrily, something his mama and papa could clearly hear. The Child of Life decided to ignore Haruka's answer. Then he shouted angrily at them, with his back still turned towards them:

"Is it true?" There was a short pause, and they could see he was trembling now. Shaking with anger or fright, they could not say. "Is it true that this Galaxia killed you with as much effort as blinking takes?"

"She was more powerful than any Senshi in the galaxy!" Haruka shouted back.

"So it's true?" Ignika snarled.

"It is…" Michiru said in a whisper. There was no point in denying it. They could see Ignika stiffen again, and for a moment they could swear they heard him utter a brief sob or wail. He clenched his fists.

"Tell me then… what worth does your word that you won't die and leave me alone have, when Zyglak could kill Galaxia with the ease she killed you?" A brief silence followed. "WHAT WORTH DOES IT HAVE?"

Haruka and Michiru stood stricken with silence. There was nothing they could say to that. They couldn't not promise it, but Ignika was right… The boy growled again, and suddenly, he had his Death Scythe in his hand. He climbed to his feet, having reached a decision, did a back flip and landed on the grass. Slowly, he turned to face his adopted parents, his face full of anger, but wet with tears.

"Prove it!" he shouted sharply. "Show me that you are strong enough to stay with me, to keep your word!" The boy grabbed his Scythe firmly in his hands, and gave them a menacing look. "I won't hold back!"

"Ignika…" Michiru said, wide-eyed and shocked.

The glow of his power increased in brightness as Ignika's sadness and anger reached a critical point. "Either Zyglak kills you, or I do it, either way I lose my parents and be hurt. Then I'd rather do it myself!" he shouted, charging at his stunned parents with his deadly weapon. Haruka and Michiru dodged the blow and nodded at each other.

"Uranus Crystal Power!"

"Neptune Crystal Power!"

"MAKE UP!"

In a flash of light, Haruka Tenoh and Michiru Kaioh were gone, replaced by Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune. Ignika snarled again at them, an animalistic growl betraying his heritage, but he seemed pleased that they at least would fight him.

Michiru retreated towards the tree Ignika was on earlier, and summoned her violin to cool her son off with Submarine Violon Tide. Haruka, meanwhile, stayed on the ground and fired a World Shaking at Ignika. The Child of Life roared in defiance and erected a barrier around himself that halted their attacks. Next he brought the water Michiru had fired at him to life and set it on its creator. Michiru, playing a different melody, dispelled the water before it could harm her. Haruka fired a Space Sword Blaster, followed by another World Shaking, hoping that one of the attacks would break the barrier. Michiru backed her up with a Deep Submerge. Ignika had no intention whatsoever of letting his already shaky barrier take the blow.

He reared back with his Scythe and channelled his power into it, just like he had taught Hotaru to do. Then he attacked, cutting through the attacks fired at him with one mighty swing of his scythe, his power leaving a rift in the air in the wake of his weapon. Raw Life power erupted from his cut, striking the two older Senshi and knocking them back considerably.

"Damn it…" Haruka cursed.

"Any idea how to beat him?" Michiru asked her lover. She wanted to say 'without harming him', but realized they most likely wouldn't be able to do that.

"None," came the sighed reply. "Try casting Submarine Reflection on him. Perhaps he has a weakness."

Michiru nodded. "Let's go."

The two Outer Senshi ran towards their child. "Space Sword Blaster!" Haruka fired.

"Submarine Reflection!" Michiru casted. The light from the mirror washed over the Child of Life, who side-stepped Haruka's attack effortlessly in the meantime. Michiru's heart sank as her mirror could find not a single weakness in the boy. No, that wasn't true. The light did shine on one particular spot of Ignika, but she didn't understand what it meant. If she had, she would have realized that Ignika's only weakness was his heart. And so there was no other way for the Senshi but to continue their futile struggle against the Child of Life.

And said Child wasn't anywhere near stopping. He was angry, but most of all, he was scared and hurt. A scared little child who feared losing his parents, his new family. Only he showed that in a peculiar, if not outright strange, way. Tears flowing freely, Ignika attacked again, charging his Scythe once again, with even more power this time. He swung and set it loose, the force of his blow threatening to damage the house if the two Senshi didn't either take the attack or stop it somehow.

Haruka and Michiru tried to stop the attack with the combined force of their World Shaking and Deep Submerge, but it only weakened the attack. The only thing that was left to do was taking it. And so the two Senshi did. There was no holding back to be felt within the attack at all, and it struck them harsh and without mercy, ripping tears in their uniforms and wounds on their exposed skin. And still Ignika wasn't done, his pain only increasing.

"Is that all?" he snarled. "Is that all you can do? If that's the case, it will be a mercy to end you right here and now!" He placed his hand on the grass and gathered his mighty Elemental power, so much that the ground trembled under the might of this incredibly powerful child.

"Ignika, stop!" Haruka cried, but was then rendered silent by what the love of her life did. Obeying the sudden impulse, Michiru ran straight into the epicentre of the energy bomb soon to explode. She knocked the Child off his feet and held him tightly. The energy he gathered faded away when Ignika was no longer in contact with the ground. He was stunned and didn't immediately react. But Michiru, Sailor Neptune, had figured out his only weakness just in time. Clutching the fabric of her uniform tightly, Ignika buried his head in her chest and broke down crying.

Michiru held him warmly and tightly. "Don't scare us like that again…" She said softly. Ignika wailed loudly and clung to her even more desperately. It was all too much for him to bear. Hotaru breaking down so badly, learning once more of the mortality of his new family and parents, the fear of losing them he felt because of that…

Haruka came and joined the embrace. "Don't cry, Ignika…" Her words only had the opposite effect, and one of his hands now clutched a handful of Uranus' fuku firmly in it. The Senshi didn't mind, and just held her son tightly in her embrace.

"Mama… papa…" the unhappy Child of Life wailed, just like his newfound sister had mere moments before Setsuna had lulled her asleep. Uranus and Neptune whispered quiet, comforting words to their son.

"We're here… And we'll be here for as long as we can…" Ignika hiccupped, shook his head and then continued to cry. He was too afraid to believe them. "We stopped you after all, didn't we?" Ignika wailed harder, for he now felt very, very ashamed of his actions from mere moments before. And true, they had stopped him, but only because he loved them too much to truly see the battle through to the end. His parents just held him safe and warm, letting him cry it all out.

"I…" He stammered, before losing himself amidst tears and sobs again.

"Yes, Ignika?" Michiru asked quietly. He buried his face deeper in her chest and wailed again, his cheeks aflame with shame. Michiru smiled and held him comfortingly. "There, there… We don't blame you…" She said kindly.

"I'm so sorry…!" he cried loudly.

"You are forgiven." Haruka said softly.

"Yes. You are." Michiru confirmed with a smile. Ignika shook his head in disbelief while he clung to them for dear life. "We forgive you, Ignika."

"Mama… papa…!"

Haruka and Michiru just kept holding their little boy lovingly, trying their best to comfort him with their love and warmth. It helped a little bit, but also had the bad effect of making Ignika feel incredibly guilty about everything he had ever done wrong to them, while they now gave him such love and warmth despite all that.

"Maybe we should go home?" Haruka suggested. Ignika soundlessly nodded, though he kept crying and was in no condition to go anywhere on his own. Haruka then smiled and picked her little boy up. The white-haired child sobbed and clutched Haruka's blue choker tightly in his hands while he tearfully snuggled against her. Michiru came over and stroked his hair, and then they set out towards home. Ignika let them, he had not the strength to do anything but cry.

Haruka and Michiru carried their boy safely into the house and upstairs to his and Traveller's room. Ignika let them, though he didn't really want to sleep. He wanted to be with them and cry. His parents didn't plan on leaving him alone, however. They placed him safely on his bed and under the blanket, and sat next to him.

"I'm sorry…" he whispered again, hiding his face in his pillow.

"We forgive you." Michiru said with a smile, caressing him gently. His little body quivered under her touch. Haruka joined in as well, stroking her boy's hair. It eased him a bit.

"I'm so sorry…" he said for the third time. "I… This… this was supposed to be… our first great day as a family… and… and instead… I… I…" He broke down in sobs again and couldn't finish his sentence.

"It's not your fault." Haruka said. "It's… Whatever caused Hotaru's vision's fault."

"I do nothing but bring you pain…" Ignika whispered, hurt and sad, not listening to Haruka's kind words.

"That's not true!" Michiru objected.

"It is…" Ignika objected, and he sat up right in his bed, his head bowed. "From day one I have caused nothing but trouble for you both, Michiru-mama, Haruka-papa. First I didn't approve of your relationship and insulted you about it. Then I turned Haruka-papa literally into a papa, causing hurt and dismay for you both. Then I constantly embarrassed you both with my stupid curiosity about the workings of females mating, as well as by mentioning it in public, discussing it with my family and embarrassing you both again for good measure. Then after all that I force myself upon you both as your 'son' because I got it stuck in my head that I, despite everything, came to love you both and Setsuna-mama as the parents I never had, all because of a dumb feeling in my chest. Thus giving you more trouble and responsibility than you ever bargained for! And even when I swore to learn to behave, like I did yesterday… I still mess up! After making myself swear to be a good, normal human son, what is the thing I do on my first day as your child? I attack you because I'm too stupid to control my grief and hurt!"

Haruka picked her son up, still wrapped in the blanket, and embraced him tightly. "Don't be silly. The things you did aren't stupid at all."

Michiru joined the embrace and stroked her son's hair. "We don't regret taking you into our family as our son. We love you, Ignika. That won't change no matter what you do."

"But how?" the boy asked, his voice nearly choked with emotion, tears filling his eyes. "How can you love me, how can you want me, after everything I've done to you?"

"What kind of parents would we be if we discarded our son just because he hurt us and did mistakes?" Haruka said firmly.

"Parental love is unconditional, Ignika." Michiru said softly. "And since we're your parents now, we'll never stop loving you."

"But why did you accept me in the first place?" Ignika demanded tearfully.

"… Because we felt it too, Ignika." Michiru smiled.

"And we were ready to act on our feelings." Haruka nodded.

"Even though I did all those bad things?"

"Yes. Even though you did all that." Michiru smiled, and Haruka nodded in agreement. That was more than Ignika could handle, and he threw his childish arms around them both and drew them in the strongest hug he could muster, shouting out his thanks and clinging to them both while the tears flowed freely over his cheeks. His parents smiled and held him gently, letting their little son cry all he wanted.

"Michiru-mama… Haruka-papa…" Ignika whispered with difficulty. "Despite everything… Despite all the difficulties… I grew to love you both… After I saw how kindly you treated Hotaru… I knew what you had couldn't be wrong… And I admit… I was a bit jealous of her."

"Were you?" Haruka asked with a smile. Ignika blushed, embarrassed.

"I… I was… a bit…" he admitted, swallowing hard. "B… because, she seemed so happy… She loved you all three so much… And she got so much love in return…"

Michiru chuckled. "It's alright, Ignika. We indeed love Hotaru deeply."

"I love her too!" the boy exclaimed. "And… and it hurt me so much to see her hurt like that… And I couldn't do anything to help her. And when… when I then also learned… how you d… d… died… last time… It… It was too much for me…"

"It's hard for all of us." Haruka said quietly.

"Reacting like this… It's not really abnormal." Michiru said carefully.

"That's no excuse for what I did…" the Child of Life whispered painfully.

"It doesn't matter." Haruka said firmly. "We forgive you regardless." Ignika gave her a tight hug. He had come to admire the short-haired blonde even more now, especially since she forgave him so easily despite all the misery he had put her through. Haruka hugged her boy back and stroked his hair.

"You must be tired now, hmm, Ignika?" Michiru asked softly.

"Not that much, Michiru-mama," he replied. "I'm just relieved…"

"I wouldn't be surprised if you were tired." Michiru smiled. "So many things happened today… Did you like the museum?" She tried to get the Saurian boy's thoughts off the bad things.

"Oh yes I did!" he exclaimed eagerly. "I wish we didn't have to go yet, but then, Hotaru didn't really leave us a choice. But I hope we can go back someday, because I feel there's still so much I didn't see!"

"Indeed." Haruka smiled. "And what did you like the best?"

"That giant reptile predator!" came the excited reply.

"Why?" Haruka asked.

"Because it was so big and strong!" Ignika explained. "Truly a miracle of evolution, and one I would love to study excessively!"

"You also seemed to be quite interested in the fossils. Why is that?" Michiru asked.

"Because I find the whole process of fossilization so utterly fascinating! It requires so many mighty powers of the planet to preserve a print or fossilize a tiny bone of a creature! It's so amazing!" the boy replied with a dreamy look in his eyes. "I bet Gravitas would like to learn about such things, too."

"Oh? Would she?" Michiru asked, a bit surprised.

"Well, she likes studying, and I think she would be interested in the inner workings of a planet and geology," Ignika said. "Especially if there's pressure involved."

"I thought she had her head filled up with maths." Haruka scratched her head sheepishly.

"She does, but she likes studying as a whole," Ignika shrugged.

"I see." Haruka nodded.

"And you? Did you like the museum, Haruka-papa?" Ignika asked cutely, bringing the subject back to the museum.

"I did. Though I have to admit that the most entertaining thing was watching you and Traveller." His papa smiled. Igniak raised an eyebrow in surprise.

"Really? And why was that?" he wanted to know.

"Such sincere enthusiasm and fascination, it's quite a sight to behold." Haruka replied honestly. Ignika blushed a bit and looked away sheepishly. Haruka got elbowed by Michiru. "What?" She looked at her lover, confused.

"Thank you for the compliment, Haruka-papa," Ignika thanked her, just as sincere.

"You're welcome." Her papa smiled. "See? There was no need to elbow me." She playfully glared at her lover.

"Sorry, reflex." Michiru smiled cutely and innocently at her.

"Haruka-papa? Michiru-mama?" Ignika began timidly.

"Hmm?" The parents looked at their son.

"Thank you…" said son whispered quietly, his head bowed, his cheeks a bit red with shyness. "For loving Hotaru, and for loving me! And that goes for Setsuna-mama, too."

"You're always welcome, Ignika." Michiru smiled.

"Yes, you are." Haruka nodded with a smile as well. Ignika smiled back, like a true, normal little boy loving his parents. Even if both his mama and papa were women, and he had two mamas. But Hotaru had gotten used to it, and so would he. He already had, in fact.

"Haruka-papa, will Hotaru be okay?" Ignika then asked worriedly.

"She will." Haruka nodded. "Especially if you help her."

"We'll all help her." Michiru smiled.

"So will I," Ignika nodded firmly, crossing his arms and looking confident. "I will make sure she feels okay again when she wakes up, and I won't let anyone of my family die ever again!"

"Right!" Haruka smiled at him. "But for now you should probably rest. You need your energy." Ignika nodded obediently. Though it was only noon, after everything that had happened, a little nap wouldn't hurt. He laid down on his back again. Michiru gently tucked his blanket, then kissed her little boy on the forehead. Ignika purred softly.

"Sleep well." Michiru wished him.

"Thank you, Michiru-mama," Ignika whispered back sweetly.

"You're welcome." Haruka answered in her stead, and the two adults made to leave the room. Ignika pouted.

"Don't I get a sleepwell kiss, Haruka-papa?" he asked.

"You got one from Michiru." Haruka smiled. "But have another one." She came over to his bed and kissed her son on the forehead. Ignika giggled, purred again and thanked his papa. Haruka smiled at him, and then the adults left the room, leaving Ignika to his own thoughts. But he wasn't the only one. Haruka and Michiru, or in fact every inhabitant of the Outer Senshi's house, had a lot to think about.

* * *

**Next chapter: The first date!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Yeah, little sibblings can get annoying in the car. Gosh, the memories! =p Thanks for the review!

Ariel Night: Glad you still love the story. Thanks for reading!


	113. The first date

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**113. The first date**

"Makoto, are you ready yet?" Chameleon asked yet again.

"Almost!" Came the voice from Makoto's room. The Saurian male sighed and sat down restlessly on the couch, crossing his arms for a second, then he jumped up and started to pace around said couch again. She had been saying 'almost' for almost half an hour. Or more. He just didn't get why girls needed so much time to get ready!

Makoto, meanwhile, was putting the finishing touches on her make-up. For her first date with Chameleon, she had to look perfect! Finally, she smiled at herself, pleased with what she saw in the mirror.

Makoto came out of her room and smiled at Chameleon. "There! How do I look?" She asked eagerly. She was wearing a brand new knee-length white sundress than had big realistic-looking flowers of different colours printed here and there, and left her back exposed. Makoto also wore matching white platform sandals and carried a white purse. Chameleon looked her over and smiled.

"Beautiful as always," he replied warmly.

Makoto chuckled. "Thanks. Although I tried to be prettier than usual…" Chameleon rolled her eyes.

"You can't beat perfection, my love," he said affectionately. Makoto smiled and blushed lightly at the compliment.

"Thank you… So, shall we go now?" Her new boyfriend nodded, though he looked confused as well.

"Go where, though?" Chameleon asked.

"Well… I was thinking of just walking around the city, or going to the park."

Chameleon raised an eyebrow. "How is that _romantic_, as you called it?"

"Well, both variants leave us freedom to see and choose what we want to do. The park, for one, has plenty of romantic places. And sometimes there are music bands playing in it, or some events going on. The city, however, has really nice cafes and many other places where we can have a date."

Chameleon thought for a moment. Makoto had given him so much already, and kept herself strong that night just for him. So, he decided, he had to return the favour. "Well, I'll let you choose."

"Hmm…" Makoto thought for a while. "To the park then. I somehow think you'll like it more than walking around the city." Chameleon nodded, that was true. "Let's go then." Eagerly, the Saurian of Camouflage ran over to his mate. Makoto smiled and led him away from the apartment.

* * *

"It's nice here, no?" Makoto asked as they walked through the park. There weren't much people there, at least, by Makoto's standards, but they often came across other couples strolling by. Chameleon, who was walking by her arm, nodded. The air here was crisper than in the city, but it still didn't smell very great, and certainly was nothing compared to Voya's clean air. Still, the trees and the water were great, as was the rest of the plant life. It being less populated was a mayor plus, too.

"It is," he confirmed, snuggling closer against her. Makoto smiled and put her head on his shoulder.

"I'm glad." She smiled, then pointed somewhere to the side. "If we follow that lane, we'll reach the pond."

"Shall we go?"

"Yes, let's go there." Makoto smiled. "We can see the ducks then, or maybe even a couple of swans." Chameleon wondered briefly why she wanted to see birds so badly. Makoto chuckled. "'Cause they're cute, and you can feed them with bread." The Saurian boy whom she loved looked at her weirdly. Feeding animals? Whatever for? He didn't say that, though.

Instead, he pointed out the obvious: "We don't _have_ any bread with us, Makoto."

Makoto giggled. "So you think. I knew we might be going to the park, no?" She winked at her boyfriend. "It's in my purse."

"But what's the purpose?" he asked.

"I dunno. They're just neat and cute when they swim up to you to get the bread." Makoto smiled. Chameleon chuckled and shook his head. Sometimes he thought he would never fully understand humans. In some aspects, Makoto thought the same. "Hey, look, there's an ice cream stand over there. Want some?" She asked her boyfriend.

Chameleon looked sheepishly at her. "What's ice cream?"

"Oh? I haven't introduced you to it yet?" Makoto looked at him with wide eyes. The Saurian boy shook his head. "Well, that definitely needs to be done! Follow me!" Not that the Saurian boy had any choice, Makoto practically dragged him there. Chameleon yelped as he was dragged along, forgetting for a moment that he was physically at least twice as strong as she was, even if she was older.

Makoto hummed a happy tune as she looked at the ice cream stand, thinking what she should pick for Chameleon. Chameleon stood by her side, staring confused from his mate to the stand, trying to figure out the weird scents that had settled in his nose.

"Hmm… I'll have a pistachio ice cream, please, and vanilla with chocolate chips for my boyfriend." Makoto decided, addressing the ice cream man with a smile. Chameleon's ears perked up at the mentioning of chocolate.

Makoto handed him his ice cream and paid for both. "There you go." She smiled. The boy looked at the cone she had pushed in his hands, confused. He didn't know what to do with it. Makoto smiled and dragged him gently from the stand again. The boy let himself be dragged along, sniffing curiously at his ice cream.

As soon as they were out of the hearing range of the ice cream man, Makoto explained what this new dish was about: "You should lick it, it's cold and sweet." Ignika's only brother nodded slowly, and carefully tasted his cone. He quickly pulled his tongue back.

"Cold!"

"Yep!" Makoto smiled. "But taste again, it's really good!" She said and began licking her own ice cream. Chameleon carefully followed her advice, licking again. The ice cream melted on his tongue and released its flavours to his taste, and his eyes widened in surprise. "Don't you agree it's nice?" Makoto asked her lover.

"I sure do!" he said happily, eagerly licking from his cone. "It's cold, but so very sweet! And with chocolate!" Makoto chuckled at his eagerness.

"Enjoy. Wanna try mine as well?"

"I wouldn't mind," came the reply. Makoto smiled and brought her ice cream to Chameleon's face. The boy tasted, but his face twisted weirdly. He didn't really enjoy it, and quickly licked from his own cone again. "Don't like it?" Makoto raised her eyebrow.

"Not really," he admitted apologetically.

"Aww, okay. Why not, though?" Makoto asked, returning to her ice cream.

"The taste is not up to my taste," he explained, giving her an apologetic kiss on the cheek.

"It's alright. But at least you like the vanilla one." Makoto smiled.

"Sure do!" he grinned and he continued to lick it up happily, enjoying the calm serenity of the moment. Makoto thought he looked quite cute during it, and continued to lead him to the pond where the ducks were. The Saurian boy stared at the water birds for a second.

"This must be the place Gravitas and Nightmare went to, cause I seem to remember Nightmare saying she found those birds on the water fascinating," he said.

"Well, if they saw the ducks, this must be the place, 'cause it's the only pond in the park." Makoto pointed out and threw some bread crumbs to the ducks. Chameleon watched with disguised amazement how the water birds came very close to the edge of the pond, where they stood, to pick up the crumbs.

"Nightmare called them retarded," he grinned.

"Why so?" Makoto asked innocently while watching how cutely the ducks at the bread.

"Because they were too stupid to flee from potential predators," her boyfriend explained. "She could have grabbed them and wrenched their necks before they even got the idea to fly away, she said."

Makoto rolled her eyes. "They're just used to humans. And besides, why would we want to hunt them? If we want to eat a duck, we can always buy one in a shop, plucked and made ready for cooking. And these are kept safe for their cuteness." Makoto explained.

"I know, I'm just saying what she said," he shrugged.

"Heh. By the way, wanna have roasted duck this evening? I know a lovely recipe." Makoto suggested happily. Chameleon nodded, smiling.

"Sounds lovely, as always," he grinned.

"Okay! We'll buy the ingredients on our way back then." Makoto smiled. "But for now, let's enjoy the cuteness, shall we?" Makoto threw some more crumbs to the ducks and handed Chameleon the bread so he could do it, too. Uncertainly, he copied her earlier movements. The ducks quacked and eagerly ate up the bread. Chameleon rolled his eyes.

"Look at them gobbling it up as if it were as good as your food, Makoto," the Saurian chuckled.

Makoto laughed softly. "Oh, I'm sure they wouldn't like it. I'm glad you do, though." Makoto smiled and hugged his arm, laying her head on his shoulder.

"Not like it?" he exclaimed. "Nightmare's right, they're retarded." Makoto laughed again and continued to snuggle to Chameleon. Smiling, the Saurian of Camouflage put his arm around her as well, hugged her close and purred contently. Makoto giggled and tried to purr in return, but it didn't turn out well.

"You're doing it wrong," he said.

"Oh, I'm sure you can teach me." Makoto smiled. "You're so cute when you do that…"

Chameleon raised an eyebrow. "I am?"

"At least I think so." Makoto confirmed. To please her, he purred again and kissed her on the cheek. Makoto kissed his cheek in return, then gave him a quick peck on the lips. Chameleon smiled in delight, loving the affection. Makoto smiled at him. "So, shall we continue our walk?"

"To where?" he wondered.

"Well, there's a small stage further in the park, and there's always some kind of musical event going on there, as street bands love the place." Makoto explained. "Also that place has some stalls with various neat stuff, maybe I can find myself a lily hairpin."

"Anything is good, as long as I'm with you," Chameleon said, love-struck.

"Alright!" Makoto exclaimed. "Let's go then!" Her Saurian friend nodded, and followed her to wherever she wanted.

* * *

"That was fun, don't you think?" Makoto said with a wide smile as she and Chameleon were walking towards the park's exit. Ignika's only brother nodded and squeezed lightly in her arm.

"It was," he confirmed. "Do we have to go home already?"

"Well, we should go if you want that roasted duck to be prepared properly." Makoto said. "It can take a couple of hours." Chameleon gave her puppy dog eyes.

"Please, just a little while longer, just together on the bench, please?" he begged. Naturally, Makoto's heart melted.

"Aww, you're irresistible." She gave in, smiling lovingly. "Why do you want it so much?"

"Wanna feel you lean against me at the pond, with that lovely lily hairpin," he explained. "Watching the ducks, surrounded by green. Would be almost like a romantic day on Voya."

Makoto giggled. "I thought romance didn't exist there?"

"Well, whatever is the Voya equivalent then," he shrugged.

"Okay then." Makoto smiled, letting Chameleon lead her wherever he wanted. They soon arrived at the pond again, and Chameleon picked a nice bench standing in the retreating sunlight. Smiling, he beckoned her to sit down. Makoto did, and leaned against Chameleon who sat next to her. He put an arm around her and hugged her close again, never wanting this moment to end. Makoto shared his desires, and closed her eyes peacefully as she rested against him.

They sat like this for a while, until Chameleon suddenly got an idea and sat up. "You know what, I passed some pretty flowers on the way here, I'm gonna go and pick them for you!"

"Ehm, be sure they aren't surrounded by a fence if you do." Makoto warned. "Otherwise we might get in trouble."

Chameleon rolled his eyes. "Nobody will ever see me pick them."

"True enough!" Makoto agreed with a laugh. Smiling, Chameleon gave her a soft kiss on the cheek and then walked away to where he saw the flowers, leaving his beloved alone for a moment. Makoto sighed peacefully and leaned against the back of the bench. It was a lovely day and a no less lovely date, and Makoto was looking forward to making it even better with the roasted duck and the romantic dinner she was planning. With another wonderful night following it, of course.

She had her eyes closed, and when she heard something behind her, didn't think much of it, guessing it was Chameleon who had come back with his picked flowers. Then she suddenly felt something wrap itself around her waist and arms, hauling her up in the air. Eyes widening in shock, Makoto looked at the source of this sudden intrusion. And when she did, her breath got caught halfway her chest, her eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets and her face became as pale as a corpse's skin. There was no way, her brain screamed. It had happened in the past, it couldn't happen again! Usagi had made sure of that! And yet…

And yet it was Sailor Aluminium Seiren holding her.

For a moment, a very brief moment, Makoto found herself back in time, when she had been Jupiter, with Mercury at her side, in exactly the same predicament, and with utter, sheer horror she realized what was about to happen. Rudely she was pulled back to the present as the fake Senshi holding her attacked, and there was nothing, absolutely nothing Makoto could do as she felt her body disintegrate, be torn apart while she was consciously aware of it happening, the look of shock and dreadful realization of what was happening never leaving her face. Brutally her star seed was ripped from her mortal flesh, and Makoto could do nothing.

Nothing, except scream as she was killed.

* * *

Chameleon had been picking the nicest, prettiest flowers for his lover that he could find, when her scream reached his ears. Without thinking even a second, he dropped his lovely bouquet and stormed towards the sound, quickly arriving back at where he had left his dear Senshi, but there was no threat visible. There was only Makoto, in a state he had never seen her in before. She was lying on the bench, curled up in fear, her fingers clutching her hair as she sobbed hysterically. Chameleon rushed to her side and knelt down besides her, trying to grab her hand but failing, worry overtaking his entire being.

"Makoto? Makoto!" he called to her. "What's wrong? What's the matter? What happened? Makoto!" His lover didn't seem to be aware of his calling, or even his presence, she just continued to cry. Her loud wails and hysterical crying hurt him badly, and he dearly wished he could help her, but she didn't react to anything he did. He looked around, trying to find anyone who could help, but the park was empty. Perhaps it was for the better, with Makoto in such a state. But what did he have to do? What could he do?

"_Calm down, Chameleon_," he told himself. "_First, take her home, there you have a phone and you can call Ignika. She's not hurt, so it's probably in her head, and that's Ignika's department._" He could try to reach her through their bond, though, and he did. He gasped in disbelief as he felt her extreme fear and pain, but couldn't see the cause of it, as if it was blocked. He tried to pry deeper, tried to reach out to her and calm her, but it was almost as if she repelled his efforts in a way. Eventually he had to give up, and figure out a way to transport her home without attracting too much attention.

Seeing that the situation was dire, Chameleon camouflaged himself, but also, did something that was tremendously hard for him to do. His power was self-centred, meant to protect and camouflage him and only him. To extend that power to another person or object, was something that took tremendous mental discipline and power. Neither of which he had very much. But Makoto was hurt, so he had to try. To his surprise, his symbiosis bond helped the process, since being in contact with her always made their power and link stronger, even if they hadn't actively attempted to summon the power just yet. But regardless, the bond was there, and helped the young Saurian with his task, and slowly, very slowly, Makoto began to vanish as well, being camouflaged by the power of her lover. Her wails also quieted somewhat, as the embrace and the soft, warm power of the bond conflicted her vision and pain of being dead.

Glad that so far so good proved to be a good saying for the moment, Chameleon picked her up in his arms and tried to ignore the bursting headache that was already coming up from straining his mind and powers so much. He had to endure, for her sake. Finding his way home without Makoto's guidance would not be easy, but he had a visual memory, and as soon as he found a point of recognition outside of the park, he would be fine.

"Don't worry, my mate," he whispered gently to his still hysterical love, bond or no bond. "I'll bring you home, then I'll call my brother and it will all be fine, you'll see." Makoto didn't hear him, and continued crying, trapped alone in the vision of her sudden, painful death. Sighing, but determined, Chameleon began to run, finding the path out of the park easily enough.

As soon as he arrived on the streets, things got hard. It was difficult for him to and carry Makoto, and keep them both camouflaged, and search his way through this maze of stinking, grey stone. His mind nearly exploded from all that work it had to do, but he recognized a road sign, even if he couldn't read it, and then recognized some other things like posters, neon lights or decoration, all which pointed him in the right way. As he ran through the streets, he was aware he caused quite a panic, being invisible and Makoto's hysterical sobbing not helping much.

"_We'll make the news_," he chuckled dryly to himself. Luckily, he wasn't that far from home now. He realized as he neared the apartment that he had no idea where Makoto had put her key, or how those worked, so instead he took the firestairs and climbed up to the balcony of her apartment, knowing that that door had been left open for emergencies. He quickly went inside and placed Makoto carefully on the couch. She hadn't calmed down in the least, but at least she was home now, and he thankfully shut his powers off, granting his mind relief.

"The phone, the phone," he muttered to himself, running to said machine. He cursed as he fumbled with the horn. "Oh how did this work again…" He growled, then glanced at the paper besides the phone, on which the numbers stood of all Senshi that hosted a family member. Because Chameleon couldn't read, the family members were represented with small drawings of their weapons. "Right, I have to push the buttons with the same symbols as on the page here…" Slowly, the Saurian of Camouflage managed to dial in the number of the Outer Senshi's house. Breathing hard, impatient, panicking and with a terrible headache, Chameleon put the horn to his ear.

"Come on, come on, pick up, answer, little brother, Makoto needs you!"

* * *

Haruka and Michiru were having their much-needed tea when the phone rang. The two shared a glance and Haruka went to pick up the phone.

"Moshi-moshi?" Haruka said. The next moment, she had to hold the horn far from her ear to not get deaf, since Chameleon, who hadn't ever phoned before, didn't know you could talk normal, and thus practically roared:

"MANWOMAN, IS THAT YOU?"

"Yes, yes, and don't shout so loud!" Haruka said, annoyed and snappy because of all that happened earlier. "I can hear you fine!"

"Give me Ignika, I have to talk to him NOW!" Chameleon said, his voice urgent and the boy not in the mood to be polite or long winded.

"He's sleeping. What's wrong?" Haruka answered, casting a worried glance at Michiru, who returned it, fearing the worst. On the other side of the phone, Chameleon nearly exploded with impatience.

"I don't have time to explain!" he growled. "Makoto suddenly got hysterical and I need Ignika here to heal her NOW!"

"Right. Hang in there, we'll get Traveller and Ignika to you." Haruka said and hung up.

Michiru looked up worriedly. "Makoto?"

Haruka nodded. "Yes. Let's go." With that, the two went upstairs.

On the other side of the phone, Chameleon put the horn back on the hook, somewhat relieved that he had succeeded in calling help. Worriedly, he went over to his beloved mate, who was still crying, sobbing, weeping and wailing hysterically. The Saurian boy sat down on the couch and put her head in his lap, softly caressing her hair, but it helped nothing.

"Hang in there, Makoto…" he whispered. "Help's on the way…"

* * *

**Next chapter: The haunting memories!**

* * *

Thanks to Kuroui and Ariel Night for their reviews!


	114. The haunting memories

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**114. The haunting memories**

Never before had Chameleon been so relieved to see the faces of his family as when Ignika, Traveller and Haruka materialized in the living room of Makoto's apartment. The Child of Life looked a bit tired, as if he had just gotten out of bed – as a matter of fact, he had – but most of all was worried, just like the other two newcomers.

"Finally!" Chameleon sighed, relieved, though in fact it had been less than five minutes since the phone call. He mentioned at the hysterical Senshi of Lightning whose head rested in his lap. "Quickly, little brother, help her! Something happened, I don't know what, but help her, make her better, please!"

"I'll… I'll try." Ignika said, rushing over to Makoto's side and putting his hands on her forehead.

"She just collapsed in hysterics, huh?" Haruka said grimly.

"Yeah," Chameleon nodded. "I left her alone on a bench in the park for only a moment, to pick flowers for her, and then suddenly I heard her scream and… she was like this…"

"Same as Hotaru then…" Traveller concluded. Her oldest brother's head snapped up upon hearing this, and Chameleon looked at her, worried and frowning.

"What do you mean?" he asked, not sure if he really wanted to know.

"We were leaving the museum, and Hotaru staggered behind a bit." Haruka explained. "Then we heard her scream." She sighed. "If this is the case, then Makoto is reliving her worst memory now." Chameleon's frown deepened.

"Her worst memory?" he asked, wanting her to clarify if she could.

"Death." Haruka answered curtly. "The most recent one." Chameleon gasped softly, and was about to say something but got interrupted by his brother.

"Hopeless," Ignika sighed. "It's just like with Hotaru, she blocks all of my attempts!" He looked at Haruka. "I think this calls for shock therapy, Haruka-papa, like Setsuna mama did with Hotaru. Can you get some water?"

"Sure thing." Haruka nodded and rushed to the kitchen to get it. Chameleon managed to put aside his worry for one moment to look at Ignika, once again confused.

"Haruka-papa?" he repeated with a frown.

"Oh, ehm, that…" Ignika gave a shy smile. "I got adopted…"

Chameleon was about to shout out 'what?' but got interrupted by Haruka returning with the requested water. "There you go." She said, handing it to Ignika. The boy thanked his papa and promptly threw the ice-cold water in Makoto's face. Makoto gasped and spluttered, then shook her head, suddenly more aware of her surroundings. The shock pulled her out of her thinking that she was dead, and left her with only the terrible pain of the memories that replayed themselves so vividly in her head, and she broke down crying. She turned over to her side and grabbed Chameleon's t-shirt, clinging to him as her only source of comfort.

"Makoto…"

"Ch… Ch… Chameleon!" She cried before continuing her sobs and wails. Glad she was finally responding, he took her hand and squeezed it softly.

"Tell me what's wrong," he whispered, reaching out to her through their symbiotic bond as well, trying to ease, calm and soothe her with his presence.

"S… so painful, Chameleon…!" Makoto sobbed and wailed. "It hurts to die…"

"Shh," he whispered back. "You're not dead. You're alive, breathing, and with me."

"Y… yes…" Makoto had to agree, but her crying continued: "I don't wanna die…" She grabbed fistfuls of his shirt, but then suddenly took in a deep, shocked breath and veered up, eyes wide and seemingly almost lost in hysterics again. Her memories got mangled up. "Ami!" she cried desperately. "Ami died with me, too, didn't she! She's dead, isn't she? Ami's is dead, isn't she?"

Everyone shared a glance, confused by this sudden change of topic, but at the next moment Haruka was kneeling next to Makoto:

"NO!" She shouted, putting her hands on Makoto's shoulders. "Ami did not die! She's alive, just like you! It's all an illusion!" Makoto looked around wildly at first, as if trying to find the source of this voice that was right in front of her. When her eyes finally settled on Haruka, they looked at her strangely for a moment, as if they didn't know her, and then they got filled with tears, as Makoto slumped forward towards Haruka and cried in despair. Haruka hugged her, letting her cry it out and trying to comfort her as well as she could.

Ignika, Traveller and Chameleon could only watch the broken Senshi cry, and all three of them felt incredibly, painfully powerless. Haruka gently rubbed the crying Senshi's back, slowly but carefully releasing her grip on her and handing her over to Chameleon, who she guessed was better suited for comforting her.

"Don't… don't want to…" Makoto stammered, her voice raw with hurt, but she couldn't finish her sentence due to more tears. Chameleon hugged her tightly.

"I know," he said. "And I won't let you die. I'll protect you, I'll protect Ami, all of you. You won't die. It's over, Makoto it happened in the past. You're alive, and I'll make sure it stays that way."

"Y… you will?" Makoto asked quietly, crying and hiccupping. Chameleon nodded, hugging her again.

"I will. We all will, won't we?" he asked, looking at the others.

"Of course." Haruka nodded. "We'll all protect each other…"

"I won't let anyone touch my family or the friends of my family," Ignika said determinedly.

"Same goes for me," Traveller added seriously.

"E… everyone…" Makoto whispered, her crying quieting down a little. "I don't wanna die…" Chameleon held her tightly in his embrace and kissed the top of her head, cuddling the older girl as best as he could, caressing her back, making soothing noises.

"Shh, you won't die, my mate," he promised. "Never, ever again."

"R… really?" Makoto asked weakly.

"Really," Chameleon confirmed, not stopping or hesitating for a moment to think if he would really be able to keep that promise. He didn't care, all that mattered was calming his beloved down, in whatever way worked. It seemed to, because Makoto's sobs quieted, and she huddled close to Chameleon for comfort. The Saurian of Camouflage gave her that desired comfort, holding her warmly, soothing her softly, trying to get her to relax and sleep. Makoto whimpered some more, but eventually was overcome by her mental exhaustion, and fell into an uneasy sleep. Relieved, Chameleon let out a deep sigh. So did the others present in the room.

He looked at them apologetically. "I'm sorry…"

Haruka looked confused. "For what?"

"Bothering you with this, calling you up so unexpectedly and…" Chameleon sighed and shrugged, not finishing his sentence. He looked tired himself.

"It's alright." Haruka assured him.

"Sorry for shouting before…" Chameleon added after a short silence. "Never used a 'foan' before."

"That's okay. Just speak normally next time." Haruka replied. She then sighed and rubbed her forehead. "I wonder if any others had fallen to it yet…"

"This is not normal," Traveller muttered, stating the obvious.

"You think?" Haruka sighed. "And it always seems to strike when a Senshi is left alone…" She shook her head and looked at the three Saurians. "Could it be a Saurian attack?"

Ignika shook his head. "I don't know of a single Saurian power, not even an Immoral One, that could cause such vivid, terrifying, life-like illusions and mental agony. A Saurian of Illusions can't trick a person into thinking they're dead, a Saurian of Mind Control or Mind reading doesn't have the power to make it feel lifelike. Not even Nightmare could cause such terrifying nightmarish visions that feed on your greatest fears…"

"But it can't be anything else!" Haruka protested. "Either we don't know something about Saurian or Immoral powers, or Galaxia really came alive. Which is very unlikely."

"Or it is neither of those, and simply a third threat or power we know nothing about," Traveller suggested.

Haruka sighed. "A third threat or power usually attacks innocent people first, not aim its attacks precisely at the Sailor Senshi." Haruka shook her head. "I'm telling you, this has to be something to do with Zyglak."

"What if it's Zyglak himself?" Chameleon whispered fearfully. Haruka shook her head again.

"Master Angonce would've found a way to notify us if this was the case."

"You don't know that, Haruka-papa," Ignika objected. "We do not know how far Zyglak's power can reach. He may not even need to be in this dimension to inflict nightmares upon you." Haruka had no way but to agree and slowly nod.

"But that would mean we can't do anything at all…"

"And how is that not at all a possibility?" Chameleon asked bitterly, looking down at the sleeping Makoto with compassion and worry.

Haruka shook her head again. "I don't think that's the case. The nightmare happened when Hotaru and Makoto were left alone, and you don't see me collapsing right here. If Zyglak was indeed so precise and powerful to send nightmares across dimensions, don't you think such a little thing as presence of others wouldn't have mattered?"

"That's an untested theory, Haruka-papa, Hotaru and Makoto being alone might just have been coincidence," Ignika said.

"I… guess…" Haruka slowly said, and sighed deeply. "But I get the feeling it is so."

"It doesn't matter, regardless," Traveller sighed as well. "We were powerless to stop or do much in either case."

"Indeed…" Haruka had to agree. Chameleon caressed his lover again softly, looking hurt by the fact that he couldn't help her.

"So what do we do, then?" he wondered quietly.

"Not leave anybody alone, I guess…" Haruka said. "And seek advice from Master Angonce."

"Guess there won't be any roasted duck for me tonight," Chameleon sighed sadly.

"You two can come over and dine with us if Makoto's awake by then." Haruka suggested. The Saurian of Camouflage smiled gratefully at the racer. Some company of his family, and some other Senshi for Makoto, sounded very appealing.

"That would be nice, if you don't mind," he said gratefully.

"Of course not." Haruka smiled at his gratefulness. "You're welcome to come."

"Yeah, then we can eat together again like in the good old days, brother!" Ignika smiled cheerfully.

"I know the situation is anything but the occasion to celebrate, but we can get cake." Haruka chuckled.

"Count me in!" Chameleon grinned.

"I guess we'll be going home then." Haruka said, standing up.

"When do you want us to be there?" the Saurian of Camouflage asked.

"At… Seven o'clock maybe?" Haruka said. "I think Makoto would be in no condition to help out in the kitchen, so just come when it's all prepared." The Saurian boy nodded.

"That'll do. Makoto'll tell me when that is, I hope…" He looked at his love again. "I'd better lay her in her bed for now."

"True." Haruka nodded. Chameleon smiled a bit and carefully got up from the couch and then picked his mate up in his arms.

"Thank you all for coming, I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't been here," he said sincerely to the three visitors.

"You're welcome, brother!" Ignika said cheerfully.

"You're family, what did you expect?" Traveller smiled.

"We're glad to help." Haruka summed it up. Chameleon smiled again, and then vanished into the bedroom to put Makoto to rest. Haruka and Ignika took Traveller's hands then and they teleported away together.

* * *

"We're having guests?" Setsuna asked once Haruka, Traveller and her new little son were done giving their report of the events that had transpired at Makoto's apartment. She wanted to keep the conversation light for now, preferring to think about the seriousness of the matter later, when she was alone, preferably after a check up at the Time Gates.

"Yes, we are." Haruka nodded. "Any ideas for the meal?"

"Chameleon said they were gonna eat roasted duck, Haruka-papa," Ignika reminded them.

"Hmm, that seems like a nice idea." Michiru smiled. "I don't have any duck, though…"

"The stores aren't closed yet," Setsuna said, looking at her watch. "If you went by car, you'd be too late, but with a little teleporting…" She looked at her symbiosis partner.

"That reminds me, we still need to get the cars back from the museum." Haruka remembered.

"Teleporting it is, then," Setsuna concluded.

"Yes, let's." Traveller nodded.

"Anything else we need to buy?" Setsuna asked.

"Some apples…" Michiru started.

"And a cake." Haruka interrupted her.

"Maybe something that Hotaru likes?" Ignika suggested innocently.

"Hmm-mmm, no, nihon soba doesn't go well with duck." Michiru decided. Ignika had no idea what that meant so he didn't say anything. Traveller, however, being Hotaru's new 'aunt' had come up with a different idea:

"Hotaru-chan collects lamps, no?" she said. "We could give her a new one?"

"That's a nice idea." Haruka complimented. Traveller looked a bit relieved upon hearing that. "I'm sure you can find something neat."

"But you have to hurry, else I won't have enough time to roast the duck." Michiru warned.

"So who will go shopping, then?" Traveller asked. "Me, Haruka-san and Setsuna? Haruka can get the food, me and Setsuna pick a gift for Hotaru, and then they can each drive their car home while I teleport back with the duck so you can get started on it, Michiru-san?"

"Sounds like a good plan to me!" Setsuna smiled.

"And Ignika will stay at Hotaru's side." Haruka said sternly. "Better not leave her alone now…" The boy didn't mind doing that.

"Let's get going then." Setsuna nodded. Traveller nodded and extended her hands to the two women she would have to take along. The two took her hands, and the next moment, they vanished. Ignika stood watching at the spot where they had been standing a mere second ago, then turned towards his Michiru-mama and extended his arms.

"Michiru-mama, can I get a hug?" he asked cutely, but his eyes and facial expression stood sad. The entire ordeal of today was clearly still bothering him. Not only Hotaru and Makoto's seizure, but also how he had behaved towards his mama and papa. Michiru smiled warmly at him:

"Of course you can, Ignika." She said kindly, spreading her arms invitingly. The boy gladly accepted that invitation and threw himself at her, his small, childish arms wrapping tightly around her. Michiru hugged him back, holding him safe and warm. The boy snuggled against his parent, happy for the warmth.

"Michiru-mama, will Hotaru and Makoto be alright?" he asked quietly.

"They will, I'm sure of it." Michiru smiled. "As long as we're there to make them feel better…"

"But what if it happens again?" Ignika insisted, worried.

Michiru's smile dropped. "We can only hope it doesn't… And be there for them if it does…"

"And what if it happens to you, Michiru-mama? What should I do then? I don't know! I don't want it to happen…" He hugged her tighter. Michiru did the same.

"Come on… You're with me. Nothing bad will happen as long as we're together." Michiru said. Ignika wasn't too sure of that, but didn't voice his suspicions.

"But Haruka-papa said I have to watch Hotaru, and then you are alone!" the boy said instead.

"Let's go watch Hotaru together then." Michiru said. "I don't need to do any cooking till Traveller comes back with the duck, anyway, I can make everything else while it's roasting." Her white-haired son thought for a moment, then nodded. That seemed like a good idea. Michiru got out of his embrace and took his hand to lead him upstairs. Ignika happily let her lead him along. It was great to have a mama.

Hotaru was still sleeping when they came to her room, her face in an unhappy frown. Ignika tiptoed over to her and sat down on the edge of the bed, looking worriedly at his 'sister'. Hotaru whimpered a bit in her dream and curled up a bit more. Getting an idea, the Child of Life triggered his powers and reached out with them to the Senshi of Ruin, bathing her a bit in the golden light, trying to soothe her. It seemed to work as Hotaru eased up a bit and sighed, her face getting a more relaxed expression.

"It worked!" Ignika whispered happily, looking at his mama.

"So it did." Michiru smiled at him. She sat on the other side of Hotaru's bed and caressed her daughter lovingly. Hotaru relaxed even more to that. Ignika looked at the scene and nearly melted.

"You love Hotaru very much, don't you, Michiru-mama?"

"Of course I do." Michiru smiled. "She's my dear daughter…"

"She told me that at first, you wanted to kill her," the boy said, a bit accusingly.

Michiru shrugged. "Mistakes can happen. We thought it'd get us rid of a greater evil… But she proved us wrong." Michiru sighed. "We raised her ever since she was reborn… And we will never kill her." Ignika sighed, relieved.

"That is good," he nodded. "I do not want anybody to die, let alone at the hands of my own mama…"

"Except for the bad guys." Michiru smiled.

"That goes without saying, Michiru-mama," Ignika giggled.

"Mmmph…" Hotaru moaned, turning over. It looked like she was about to wake up. Ignika and Michiru hurriedly stifled their laughter, and Hotaru sank back into dreamland again. They watched her sleep for a while, and then Ignika turned to Michiru again.

"Was Galaxia really that strong?"

"She was." Michiru nodded.

"Stronger than an Immoral One?"

"Perhaps… Or maybe just as strong, I'm not sure." Michiru admitted.

"You defeated Immoral Ones," Ignika pointed out.

"With symbiosis." Michiru corrected.

"But you didn't need Usagi-san, and she wasn't the only one who could beat them. In fact, she couldn't," the Child of Life rebuked.

"What are you trying to say?" Michiru wondered.

"If Galaxia was as strong as an Immoral One, and you can beat an Immoral One when you're together, why couldn't you beat Galaxia? Why could only Usagi-san do it?" Ignika explained. "I don't understand… If you had had symbiosis, could you then have beat Galaxia?"

"We could have, I guess…" Michiru said. "But we didn't have any power that was even close to symbiosis. Only Usagi could summon something power-wise alike to it, and only in dire circumstances."

"If Galaxia was a Senshi, too, how could she even have so much power in the first place? In terms of raw power, none of you can tip an Immoral One, or even me, aside from Hotaru, maybe, or very maybe Usagi-san," Ignika wondered.

"Her planet must have been very powerful." Michiru said. "And she used other Senshi's star seeds to power herself up even more. And since she slaughtered most of the galaxy, her power was unmatched…"

"Then how could Usagi-san match it on her own?"

"Because of her faith in us, and because she was all alone, with the whole world, whole galaxy depending on her."

Ignika shook his head. "That simply won't do," he said, crossing his arms and looking thoughtful. Michiru said nothing, watching Hotaru's sleep closely. "Michiru-mama, you can't say: 'If an enemy appears who is stronger than me, it's okay if he kills me, Usagi-san will defeat him'."

"It's not like we go down without a fight…" Michiru argued.

"But that's besides the point," Ignika objected. "The objective of a fight is to win, always. And defeat should be bitter, always, even if somebody else wins for you when you're gone."

"Can't argue with that…" Michiru said.

"So you have to become stronger," Ignika concluded.

"Wish we knew how." Michiru sighed. "We received all our power-ups from outside forces… Not by ourselves." Ignika shook his head.

"You can become stronger even with the power you currently hold, Michiru-mama," he told her. "It all depends on how you use it, how you train it, a bit of willpower and a lot of training." He looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Do you think I always could use my powers as versatile as I do now?"

"Probably not, but you had hundreds of years to hone it."

"Did you ever hone it at all?" Ignika wondered.

"I did." Michiru said with a frown. "For several years I fought alone, until Haruka was awakened." Ignika mused over that in silence.

"Well, I still think you could train yourself until you can beat Galaxia," he finally said.

"We had no time for that." Michiru frowned. "It all happened too fast…"

"I know, but still, if you get that strong, it will help you a lot for future battles, and also, it would help you conquer her memory, no?"

"I don't know… I mean, I agree it would help, but, against memories?" Michiru said doubtfully. Seeing she didn't understand what he meant, her son explained:

"Michiru-mama, if you knew you are as strong as her, or stronger even, would the memory of her scare you then, still?" he asked. "What would there be left to fear? You could beat her if she stood before you, so…"

"I see…" Michiru said thoughtfully. "Well, I guess you're right."

"That's the whole problem of this situation," Ignika whispered, as he looked at Hotaru sadly. "Even though she is dead, Galaxia still has power over you, because you cannot let go of your fear of her… Fear born from the fact that you know that if she stood before you again suddenly, you would die, like those visions showed Hotaru and Makoto…"

"Perhaps…" Michiru whispered and sighed. It was true that they all feared Galaxia, because of how effortlessly she killed them all last time.

"I wish I had been there…" Ignika said sadly. "Then maybe we could have prevented this…" He made a weak gesture at Hotaru upon saying 'this'.

"Indeed…" Michiru sighed.

"Forgive me, Michiru-mama…"

"For what, Ignika?"

"Not being there…" was the answer.

"It's alright, Ignika." Michiru smiled comfortingly. "You weren't supposed to be in this world at all…"

"Do you regret that we came?" the Saurian of Life wanted to know.

"Not at all!" Michiru said honestly. "Thanks to you I have another precious child now, and four more friends." She smiled at her little boy. Ignika smiled back, carefully leapt over Hotaru and crawled in his mama's lap.

"And thanks to you I have parents now, Michiru-mama," he said cutely, snuggling close. Michiru smiled and hugged him back lovingly. The little boy purred. Michiru chuckled and stroked his hair.

"I love you, Michiru-mama," Ignika whispered sincerely.

"I love you too, sweetie." Michiru smiled. The little Saurian turned human purred again, giggled and buried himself even deeper in the warm embrace, wishing nothing more than to never lose that feeling, ever. Michiru let him do that and was about to say something when Hotaru stirred in her sleep again, and looked close to waking up. She smiled and placed one hand on Hotaru's cheek, the other still cuddling her son.

"Mmmh…" Hotaru moaned, turning on her back and rubbing her eyes sleepily.

"Hime?" Michiru called gently.

"Ma-ma…" Hotaru yawned and opened her eyes. "I'm… not dead, am I?"

Michiru felt gentle tears well up in her eyes, and before Hotaru could say or do anything, the Senshi of Neptune had pulled her into the embrace with herself and Ignika, clutching her two children close.

"Oh, Hotaru, my hime, of course you aren't," Michiru whispered happily, if tearfully. Hotaru smiled and hugged her mama very close. Ignika smiled at his 'sister' and took one of her hands in his. Hotaru squeezed his hand in appreciation. There was no need for words, they understood what the other wanted to say without those.

"Mama…" Hotaru whispered sweetly, feeling safe in her embrace.

"Hime…" Michiru whispered back, happy that her beloved daughter seemed to have calmed down, and that she felt safe within her embrace.

"Makoto and Chameleon are coming for dinner tonight!" Ignika chimed happily.

"Yep!" Michiru confirmed. She kissed her daughter's hair. "And I'll need you to help me make dinner, hime."

"O-okay, mama." Hotaru smiled.

"But first we need to wait for Traveller to come home with the ingredients." Michiru explained. And as if on cue, a voice shouted from downstairs, one sounding very much like Ignika's oldest sister:

"I'm home!"

Michiru chuckled. "Right on time!" She then beckoned her little daughter to get out of bed. "Come on, there's a duck waiting to be roasted." Hotaru nodded and crawled out of her embrace, Ignika reluctantly doing the same. "Let's go!" Michiru said and led her two adopted children downstairs.

* * *

**Next chapter: Giving comfort!**

* * *

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Ariel Night: I can't spoil much, but I can definately say that it's not Felnas the Disruptor doing the evil deeds. ;) Thanks for the review!

Lucia Sennen: Ignika does know of the Star Seeds, but only since chapter 112 when it was revealed to him why Galaxia could kill them so easily. Thanks for reading!

Rizwan Fariz: I'm afraid the action is still a bit off, there's more buildup coming first. Hope you can bear the wait. Thanks for the review!


	115. Giving comfort

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**115. Giving comfort**

Ignika sniffed the air in the kitchen and felt his mouth water. The scent of the duck roasting in the oven was delicious, and he could barely wait. "Just how much longer, Michiru-mama?" he asked for what was probably the thirteenth time in less than half an hour.

"About fifteen minutes or so." Michiru said patiently. She had just finished preparing her wonderful rice with vegetables and was preparing to make a salad. Ignika let out an 'aww' sound, indicating his sadness that it would still take that long. The scent was maddeningly good.

"May I help you with the vegetables, mama?" Hotaru asked cutely.

"Of course you may." Michiru smiled and gave her daughter a cucumber to cut. Ignika watched them both for a bit, then decided not to torment himself any more than necessary and retreated to the living room.

Hotaru giggled. "Tee hee. After all this time, he's still not used to how good your food is, Michiru-mama!"

"Well, it would be a shame if he did." Michiru chuckled. "I'd miss all those compliments he makes then."

"I will never stop making them, Michiru-mama!" Ignika said, poking his head in the kitchen again for a second.

"Is that so?" Michiru asked with a smile. The boy eagerly nodded. "Why?"

"Because you like hearing them," he replied sweetly. "And because good work deserves to be complimented, too!"

"That's true, mama!" Hotaru said, smiling cheerfully.

"Aww, you flatter me." Michiru replied, unable to hold back her smile.

"No, simply telling the truth!" Ignika giggled.

"Are you trying to bribe me for a bigger piece of duck?" Michiru asked teasingly. Ignika huffed and crossed his arms, looking annoyed that she thought so. Michiru chuckled. "Relax, I'm just teasing." The Child of Life looked relieved.

"Are Haruka-papa and Setsuna-mama back yet?" Hotaru asked innocently.

"I expect them any moment," Michiru replied.

"And then Traveller will get Makoto and Chameleon, right?" Hotaru asked again. Her mama nodded in confirmation. "Okay." Hotaru was silent for a moment, then said: "I realized just now that it's actually the first time we asked any of the Inners for dinner, Michiru-mama."

"Is that so?" Michiru raised her eyebrow, then got a thoughtful expression. "Hmm, now that I think of it… It's true."

"Why is that?" Ignika asked with a frown from within the door frame.

"No idea." Michiru shrugged. "It just happened so… There never was a reason to invite them, I guess."

"Just for the sake of it…?" Ignika tried quietly, not liking this exposure of distance between the two Senshi groups.

"I guess…" Michiru said slowly, walking over to the shelf to get oil. Thanks to Hotaru, the salad was almost finished now, only required some seasoning. Ignika followed his mama with his eyes. Michiru came back to the table and noticed his gaze. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I'm worried, Michiru-mama," the boy explained quietly. "I thought Inners and Outers had overcome their differences?"

"We have." Michiru answered. Seeing how Makoto was the first to ever get casually invited, Ignika wasn't very convinced. "Oh come on, everything happens for a first time. Besides, we live quite far from the others, and just inviting them over for dinner isn't as convenient as you think. Now it's easy because of Traveller."

"Will we invite the others a lot then in the future?" her son wanted to know.

"Why not?" Michiru smiled. Pleased with that, Ignika's head retreated from the door frame, back into the living room. "Aaah, he really cares about as all." She smiled.

"Yep!" Hotaru nodded. "We're his family."

"Became it in such a short time…" Michiru smiled.

"Well, he had been searching for a big family for a long time…" the little Senshi replied.

"Indeed…" Michiru nodded, then fell silent for a while. "…How are you feeling, Hotaru-hime?" The Senshi of Ruin didn't answer immediately, looking thoughtful and a bit uncomfortable, as if she didn't want to give a bad answer.

"Better…?" she finally tried, her voice quiet and tiny.

"You sure?" Michiru frowned, worried by her tone. Hotaru nodded and smiled a bit, a honest, shy smile.

"Sleeping helped… and Ignika using his powers… and you and Haruka-papa and Setsuna-mama loving me…" Michiru smiled back and hugged her daughter. Hotaru put her arms around her mama tightly, and buried her face in her mama's apron.

"I love you, Michiru-mama!" Hotaru whispered, her voice a bit strained, as if she could burst into tears any moment now.

"I love you too, my dear hime…" Michiru replied warmly. Now Hotaru did cry, and she pushed herself even closer to that woman she loved so much, for that woman was her mother. Michiru hugged her back, and let her cry to her heart's content. Her little daughter needed it. They weren't truly tears of sadness, but tears of relief and happiness, relief and happiness for the fact that Michiru was still there to let her cry. This heart warming scene was interrupted, however, by a ring of the oven's timer.

Hotaru looked up, giggled and sniffed at the same time. "Heh… heh…" she tried to laugh, smiling while tears still flowed. "I guess the duck couldn't stand being ignored."

"Indeed." Michiru smiled. "Better turn off the oven before it catches on fire just to make us notice." Hotaru giggled, and let go of her mama. Michiru went and turned off the oven, but didn't take the duck out yet to let it cook a bit more while the oven was cooling off. Done with that, she straightened herself again and looked at Hotaru warmly.

"It's easy to forget, with everything we've been through, that you are still a child, Hime," she noted.

"I guess it is…" Hotaru sighed. Michiru caressed her cheek.

"Hey now, it was a compliment," she laughed.

"Oh!" Hotaru said, hugging her mom again. Michiru's laugh became louder, and she hugged her little girl back. Hotaru snuggled in her embrace, and Michiru calmly caressed through her hair. At that moment, they heard the front door close, and they could hear Haruka call out:

"We're home!"

Michiru looked down at her daughter and smiled: "Well, I think there's two people now who would also like some very tight hugs, hime."

"Yay!" Hotaru said with a smile. "Let's go meet them." Michiru nodded, and took Hotaru's hand in hers. Hotaru then eagerly led her mama to greet her papa and her other mama. Haruka and Setsuna had just finished pulling off their shoes when mother and daughter arrived in the hallway.

"Ah! Hotaru-hime." Setsuna smiled. "I have a gift for you." She showed her daughter the box in her hands. Hotaru stared at the gift dumbly for a moment, before looking back at Setsuna with shining eyes.

"Oh! Thank you Setsuna-mama! What is it?"

"Something Traveller chose for you." Setsuna said with a smile. This surprised Hotaru a lot, and she became a bit worried, for what would a Saurian pick as a gift for a human? Carefully, Hotaru pried open the present, peeling away at the paper. Inside, she found a wonderful lamp. It had a paper light-purple shade with dried leaves and flowers inside the paper. Those would make wonderful shadows on the walls, she knew. The design of the lamp, while simplistic, was very pleasant – it kind of looked like a magic mushroom. A wonderful addition to her collection, without a doubt.

"Like it?" Setsuna smiled.

"It's wonderful!" Hotaru exclaimed. "I should definitely thank Traveller for this."

"She's in the living room, so you can do that right away," Michiru suggested. Hotaru eagerly nodded and ran to the living room. Before she could, however, Haruka grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her back.

"Juuust a second, hime!" she said. "Your papa wants a welcome-home hug first." Hotaru giggled and hugged her papa tightly. Haruka smiled as well and put her arms around her little daughter, ruffling her hair.

"Sorry, papa… Do you forgive me now?" Hotaru said, hugging her tightly again. As an answer, Haruka kissed the top of Hotaru's head and tightened her hug briefly. "Yay!" Haruka chuckled, and then let go, pushing Hotaru gently towards the door of the living room.

"Off you go, Hime," she said. Hotaru nodded and happily ran to the living room.

* * *

While Michiru and her daughter had been cooking, Ignika's oldest – and only – brother had been carefully watching over his sleeping love. Ever since he had placed her in her bed, Chameleon had sat next to Makoto, not moving from that spot for even a millimetre. Whenever she stirred, murmured or twisted in her sleep, he softly caressed her cheek and tried to calm her with soothing noises or their bond. It helped mostly, and Makoto became peaceful for a few more minutes before murmuring again. Her sleep wasn't the easiest, and Chameleon's efforts were very welcome for her tired mind.

"Makoto…" he whispered softly, letting out a sigh as he caressed her hair softly again. Makoto stirred again and slowly opened her eyes. Chameleon wanted to hit himself on the head, he hadn't meant to wake her up! But he did, and Makoto quietly called:

"Chameleon…"

"I'm right here," he said, taking her hand.

"Chameleon…" Makoto said quietly, noting the lovely warmth of his hand. "I… did not die, did I?" He squeezed her hand lightly.

"Of course you didn't," he whispered softly.

"Felt as if I did…" Makoto whispered back.

"It wasn't real," Chameleon said firmly. He kissed the hand he held and held it close to his face. "Don't scare me like that…"

"I was scared myself…" Makoto looked at him. "It's painful and terrifying…"

"It wasn't real," he repeated.

"Thankfully…"

"Yeah…"

"I don't wanna die anymore…" Makoto whispered.

"I won't let you," Chameleon said firmly.

"Thank you…" Makoto slowly sat up on her bed and hugged her dear lover. Chameleon put his arms around her and pulled in a tight hug, never wanting to let go, wanting to continuously assure himself that she was still there, that he could still feel her. Makoto wanted the same, the warmth of Chameleon's body making the world around her seem more and more real, confirming that she was indeed alive. He kissed her hair and pressed her even closer. They sat like that for a long time, in silence. Makoto then said: "I'm so happy I'm not alone anymore…"

"You'll never be again," her Saurian friend promised.

"I'm glad…" Makoto said quietly, hugging him close again. He brushed her cheek with his thumb. It felt a bit weird to hold her like this and cuddle her in her arms since he was – body-wise at least – younger than her. But he didn't mind. This continued for quite a while until Makoto suddenly jerked up and asked: "Wait, what time is it?"

"How should I know?" Chameleon asked in return. "You know I can't read."

Makoto looked at the alarm clock on her bed table and gasped: "Oh my! Half past six! I need to get to cooking…" She looked at Chameleon apologetically. "I'm sorry for not making a duck… There's no time…"

"Oh yeah, about that…" Chameleon said, smiling. "We got invited by Ignika's hosts for dinner at their house."

"Oh?" Makoto looked really surprised.

The Saurian boy nodded. "I mentioned I probably wouldn't be getting roasted duck tonight, and then Haruka invited us."

"I see… Well, that's quite generous of her." Makoto smiled.

"Yup! And I get to see my brother and sister again," Chameleon said happily. Makoto nodded.

"When are we supposed to come?"

"At Seven O'clock, Haruka said, whatever that means," the Saurian answered.

"In a half an hour then." Makoto nodded. "I understand Traveller will pick us up?" Chameleon nodded. "Then we have plenty of time." She smiled, then looked at herself in the mirror. "Jeez, my hair is a mess…" Then looked down on her dress. "And my dress, too. Need to change…" She muttered, getting out of bed.

"It's just a dinner, not a concert," Chameleon chuckled.

"I know, but going in a wrinkled dress is impolite." Makoto smiled at him, took off her dress and went to her wardrobe to pick out a different one.

"What should I wear?" Chameleon asked as he enjoyed the view.

Makoto chuckled and handed him his jeans and a different t-shirt. "Here. You have way too little clothes, we need to go buy more sometime." Chameleon paled visibly upon hearing that. "What?" Makoto asked innocently.

"I hate shopping," her lover groaned.

"I know, but you need it." Makoto shrugged. Chameleon groaned again. Makoto chuckled on that and proceeded to pick her own dress. As he watched her, Chameleon wondered what girls had with shopping anyway. Makoto didn't reply, for he hadn't asked it aloud. The dress she picked in the end was of a simple beige colour, its fashion perfect for a friendly visit.

"You know, it doesn't matter what you'll pick, you'll look great anyway," Chameleon smiled.

"Thanks!" Makoto smiled at the compliment. She looked at the dress one last time before putting it on.

"You're welcome, my mate," came the smooth reply. Makoto then went to the mirror to comb her hair. She undid her usual ponytail and then noticed the lily hairpin still in her hair.

"Hmm… Do you think I should let my hair down for a change?" She asked Chameleon.

"It's up to you, of course, but I don't see why you have to change a winning formula," Chameleon answered.

"Aww, you flatter me…" Makoto chuckled and began combing her hair. "Why do you always wear your hair down and not in a ponytail?"

"I just like it down, that's all," he shrugged.

"I see." Makoto finished combing and made her hair into her lovely ponytail. Chameleon got up and embraced her from behind, kissing her neck.

"Lovely as always," he smiled. Makoto chuckled.

"Thanks. And you're sweet as always." She smiled.

"Am I?" the Saurian grinned.

"You are." Makoto confirmed. He kissed her neck again.

"Thank you for the compliment then," he said gratefully. Makoto smiled at him.

"So what shall we do before Traveller arrives?"

"Depends, how much time do we have?" he grinned.

"Hmm, about fifteen minutes still." Makoto said. Chameleon laughed and pulled her even closer, nuzzling her neck and kissing it.

"I think," he laughed. "You could have spared yourself the trouble of putting on that dress." Before he scooped her up in his arms and put her back on the bed. Makoto giggled.

"Oh god, don't make this one wrinkled, too!" She said jokingly. Chameleon tickled her but let go, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek before he jumped up again.

"You're right, hardly enough time anyway," he grinned.

"Aww… But you're right." Makoto smiled. "And I'm still sore." The Saurian of Camouflage laughed and helped his beloved back to her feet off the bed, straightening her dress for her. He looked her over approvingly and gave her a sweet hug.

"I'm glad you're alive, Makoto," he whispered quietly, his voice very serious.

"So am I…" Makoto replied quietly. Chameleon tightened his hug and remained silent, content to simply hold the Senshi of Lightning like that, knowing she was there for real. Makoto wished for nothing else than that, glad to be alive.

* * *

Hotaru ran into the living room, clutching her new lamp safely in her hands, looking for the Saurian of Teleportation that had chosen it for her. As expected, she found Traveller seated behind the piano, looking thoughtful as she tried different keys, listening attentively to each one, before playing some others in different combinations. She was aware of Hotaru's presence, and looked up to smile at the little Senshi.

"Thank you for the wonderful lamp!" Hotaru said cheerfully. Traveller chuckled and turned her body so that she was facing the girl while sitting.

"You're very welcome, Hotaru-chan," Traveller replied, and she nervously extended her arms a bit, uncertainly inviting the girl to come closer for a hug. Hotaru carefully put the lamp on the table and then gave Traveller a warm hug. Ignika's oldest sister took the Senshi of Ruin in her arms and put her gently on her lap, then caressed softly through her hair.

"It was really nice of you to make a present." Hotaru smiled.

"I felt you both needed and deserved it," Traveller answered, and she put her arms around the black-haired girl to prevent her from falling off her lap.

"Did I?" Hotaru said, giving Traveller a gentle stroke on her hair as well.

"Yes. I wanted to try and make you feel a bit better," the Saurian woman further explained. She looked quizzically at the little girl. "Did it work?"

"It did!" Hotaru confirmed. "I really like surprise presents… and new lamps!"

"I'm glad," Traveller smiled a bit. "I'm supposed to be your aunt now, after all, no?"

"Hey, that's right!" Hotaru remembered. "Kinda hard to remember knowing that Ignika is my brother…"

Traveller bit her lower lip. "You do not have to see me as such, if it doesn't suit you, Hotaru-chan," she said cautiously.

"Huh?" Hotaru blinked. "I didn't mean that… I just need to get used to it, that's all…" Traveller nodded slowly. Hotaru gave her an assuring smile, then cried: "Auntie Traveller!" and hugged her. The Saurian's eyes widened upon hearing that and she blinked for a moment, but then she laughed softly, smiled and nodded. She gave the lovely girl a warm hug. "You're warm and soft." Hotaru commented.

"Thank you, and you're sweet and lovely," Traveller replied, caressing through Hotaru's hair and kissing the top of her head. "My sweet little girl." Hotaru giggled at that.

"By the way, auntie, the dinner is ready, so you can go get Chameleon and Makoto!" Hotaru smiled.

"Aww, but I like you sitting on my lap," Traveller teased.

"You know, me too!" Hotaru said and cuddled to her again. Traveller laughed, and pulled Hotaru even closer, holding her warm and safe. She didn't want this sweet little child to feel bad again. Cuddles and hugs indeed worked well, because they were complete opposite of being all alone in the cold grip of death. Traveller knew that somehow, and kissed Hotaru's hair again while caressing her back. "Everyone is so nice to me…" Hotaru noted.

"Is that bad?" Traveller asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Of course not!" Hotaru smiled.

"And besides, you need it, no?" the Saurian continued, her voice calm but serious.

"Y-yeah…" Hotaru admitted. "It's true…"

"So, then just accept us being nice, we're glad to do it," Traveller concluded with a smile, hugging the Senshi of Saturn again, cuddling her.

"Okay…"

"Traveller, are you still here?" Michiru looked from the kitchen. "I've already set the table, we're just waiting for the guests."

"Ah, my apologies, Michiru-san, I was just enjoying my time with Hotaru-chan too much," she apologised.

"It's alright." Michiru smiled. "As long as you do get them…" Traveller nodded, gave Hotaru one last kiss and then set her down on her feet so she could get up herself.

"I'll go fetch them right away," she said. Michiru nodded approvingly.

"Hotaru-chan, will you get Haruka and Setsuna?" Michiru asked.

"I will, Michiru-mama!" she promised, and she immediately put the deed to the word and went to look for her papa and mama, while Traveller teleported away to get the two guests for dinner.

* * *

**Next chapter: Roasted duck!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

****Kuroui: I can't spoil much, so I can't tell you which one it is. =p Wait and see! Thanks for the review. =)


	116. Roasted duck

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**116. Roasted duck**

Not very long after she had left, Traveller reappeared in the hall of the Outer Senshi's house, Chameleon and Makoto holding each of her hands. The Saurian of Camouflage was wearing nice, neat clothes, but not as fancy as the ones he had gone to the concert with. Haruka came to greet them.

"Hello, Makoto, Chameleon." She smiled. Chameleon smiled back and made a polite bow.

"Good evening, Haruka-san," he said. "You invited, so here we are." He sniffed the air and grinned in appreciation. "Smells good, whatever it is."

Haruka chuckled. "Well, let's just say we paid close attention to the things you said." Then she looked at Makoto with some concern: "How are you feeling, Makoto?" Chameleon turned to look at his mate, worry in his eyes, wondering what her answer would be as well.

Makoto slowly smiled, not wanting to dwell on what happened. "I'm fine." She replied. The Saurian of Camouflage next to her took her hand and nuzzled her neck affectionately. Makoto's smile relaxed a little and became more genuine. "Thanks to Chameleon." Ignika's only brother smiled and squeezed her hand lightly.

"You're welcome," he replied. "I care for you, you know that."

"Yes." Makoto whispered affectionately. Haruka had to grin lightly at the sight.

"Anyway…" She said. "The dinner is ready, Michiru and Setsuna are serving the table now."

Makoto smiled gratefully: "Thank you again for inviting us. I'm kind of in no condition to cook…"

"It's okay, Makoto-san," Traveller assured her, patting the Senshi on the arm. "We fully understand. And it's nice to have you and my brother here with us this evening."

"I'm glad." Makoto replied simply.

"So, Haruka-san, do our guests have to remain in the hall?" Traveller said to the Senshi of Uranus.

Haruka laughed softly. "No, I was just about to invite them to the living room."

"I'll go tell Michiru-san, then," the Saurian woman said, and she excused herself and left for the kitchen, leaving the two guests with Haruka. Haruka then led the two to the living room. Chameleon could hardly control himself, his mouth watering as his nose picked up the scent. He controlled himself, however, remembering the etiquette Setsuna had taught him for the concert, and he stayed close to Makoto and behaved.

Makoto noticed his impatience, and chuckled: "Don't worry, setting the table probably won't take long."

"I hope so, it smells maddeningly good," he told her. "Not as good as yours, of course," he was quick to add.

"No need to be cautious, Michiru is a great cook as well." Makoto smiled.

"Well, I'll be the judge of that," Chameleon said determinedly.

"Of course." Makoto chuckled. At that moment, Hotaru entered the living room. Chameleon looked at her, and immediately noticed something was wrong with her. He didn't even have to be a human expert to see it. The look in her eyes, the light strain on her face, it was exactly the same as Makoto, and he could tell without a doubt that they had been through similar, horrible experiences.

"Hello, Mako-chan, Chameleon." Hotaru said in an even tone and with a smile even more similar to Makoto's.

"Hey, you looking good," Chameleon said, trying to cheer her up. "Changed your hair since I last saw you?"

"Eh, no…" Hotaru blinked in confusion. "Why?"

"It looks… Ehm…" the Saurian continued slowly, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. Then he shrugged. "You know what, I have no clue, I just said it for no reason. It looks more shiny, maybe?"

"Could be, actually." Haruka noted. "Michiru got her a new shampoo." Chameleon's frown deepened for a moment and he looked thoughtful.

"Shampoo, shampoo… Oh, right, that's the 'soap' for the hair, right?" he asked, looking at his mate for confirmation.

"Yep." Makoto confirmed. Chameleon nodded once, firmly, to memorize it. He then looked at the little Senshi of Ruin compassionately and kindly.

"So, ehm… how are you feeling?"

"I'm fine." Hotaru smiled. She yelped as suddenly Traveller scooped her up and hugged her dearly in her arms, before sinking down on the couch with the little girl.

"Well, with an aunt like me, how couldn't she be?" the Saurian of Teleportation laughed, and she brushed Hotaru's cheek with the back of her hand before hugging her again. Hotaru giggled, grateful for the affection.

Makoto raised her eyebrow. "Aunt?"

Traveller tickled Hotaru and looked at Makoto to answer as she did so. "Well, I was told that this was to be my new place in this little family. Well, not so little anymore, now that my brother has found himself some parents. That is kind of the reason, though, for me being an 'aunt'. I'm too old to be Haruka-san or Michiru-san's daughter, let alone Setsuna's."

"Especially since you both are older than all of us combined." Hotaru added.

"Only relatively, Hotaru-chan!" came Ignika's voice as the young Child of Life barged into the living room. "Pure year-wise, I'm the oldest of my entire family, but body wise, I'm the youngest of us all, even of my new family!"

Makoto chuckled. "Family just keeps growing, huh?"

"Quite," Traveller chuckled. "Two mamas, a papa, a new younger sister, a new mate for my brother thus counting as another sister and another sister if Nightmare but learned to share. And that all in less than a year."

"Ehm, you should count me as your niece." Hotaru corrected. "And Haruka-papa and…" She interrupted herself and shook her head. "Nevermind, it's kinda too confusing…"

"You don't say," Chameleon muttered, frowning greatly in his confusion. He looked at the Outer Senshi. "No offence, but I'm not really in need of parents…"

"Three children are too many for us, don't worry." Haruka assured him.

"You never really wanted them anyway, brother," Ignika chimed in. "But I kind of did, so now I have them…"

"You sure do!" Haruka smiled and hugged her little boy. Ignika giggled and eagerly snuggled close to his new fatherly figure, purring softly.

"Well, I'm glad you got adopted." Makoto smiled, touched and a little bit jealous. Nobody adopted her, after all. Ignika noticed that little bit of jealousy with his mental powers, and looked down at his feet nervously.

"I'm sorry, Makoto-san," he muttered.

Makoto smiled. "Nothing to be sorry for, Ignika. You should be happy and enjoy it, that's all."

"Besides," Chameleon added as he kissed his mate's neck. "You're part of _our_ family now."

Makoto chuckled and kissed him on the cheek. "Indeed." Traveller and Ignika shared knowing glances as they watched their brother share his affection with the brown-haired Senshi. It was definitely a bit strange to see Chameleon like that, but it made them happy for him regardless.

At that moment, Michiru came into the room. She smiled at her guests and said: "Dinner is served, everyone." Both Ignika and Chameleon perked up excitedly upon hearing that. The scent that filled the house drove them nearly mad because of how good it was. Michiru looked knowingly at Makoto and led all her guests to the kitchen. Ignika walked hand in hand with Haruka, Hotaru next to the little Child of Life smiling widely, and behind them came Makoto and Chameleon who looked at the little boy, touched and pleased.

The table was served wonderfully with Michiru's favourite tablecloth and one of her best sets of dishes. The foods served on those dishes definitely deserved the best, with the roasted duck proudly standing in the middle of the table on a big plate, accompanied by rice with vegetables and two kinds of salads, each of which was Michiru's specialty.

"Wow. You sure took time and effort with this…" Makoto complimented. "And how did you know about roasted duck?"

"Haruka told me, and she had it from Chameleon, I believe," Michiru replied with a kind smile at her fellow Senshi. Makoto looked at Chameleon for confirmation, and the Saurian nodded.

"Well, I told them you had wanted to make roasted duck, but probably wouldn't be in the shape to cook it anymore, so…"

"I see." Makoto nodded. "Well, thank you for that, Michiru." Makoto smiled. "Me and Chameleon were watching the ducks in the park, and Chameleon mentioned catching one of them, so I got the idea."

"He didn't catch one, I hope?" Setsuna noted, amused.

"Nope, but he did pick flowers from a flowerbed." Makoto smiled.

"Which I failed to give, since you… well, you know," Chameleon added, trailing off uncomfortably.

"Yeah, well…" Makoto shrugged quietly. "It's okay…" She received another kiss in her neck.

"Well now, don't just stand there." Michiru smiled. "Sit down, everyone, before it gets too cold." They nodded, and everybody hurriedly took a chair, Ignika and Chameleon being the first. Michiru didn't sit down yet. "Now, Haruka, will you do the honours and cut the duck for everyone?" Ignika and his brother were practically drooling by this point.

"Of course." Haruka smiled and went to take a knife and a special fork.

"Ignika, Chameleon, what would you like with your duck?" Michiru asked, indicating to the garnishes.

"What do you have to offer, Michiru-mama?" Ignika asked cutely.

"What you see here." Michiru smiled. "Rice with vegetables, vegetable salad, and salad with meat. I figured one duck won't be enough to satisfy Saurian appetites."

"Salad with meat!" her new little son replied, predictably.

"For you too, Chameleon?" Michiru asked, putting her son the desired garnish while Haruka cut a piece of the duck for him.

"If you would be so kind," Chameleon replied kindly with a nod. Michiru did as requested, and so Chameleon and Ignika both got their meals first. Though they politely managed to restrain themselves until everyone had their plates.

"Traveller, what would you like?"

"Ah, I'll try that 'rise' with vegetables," the Saurian of Teleportation answered, looking at said dish thoughtfully.

"Sure thing." Michiru smiled and put her some, then Haruka gave her a piece of duck. "Hotaru-chan?"

"I'll have rice, too!" Hotaru chimed.

"And I'll have the vegetable salad, please." Makoto smiled.

"Alright then." Michiru nodded. She and Haruka then finished putting food on everyone's plates, so the dinner could finally begin. Ignika looked around, waiting for somebody to say that complicated word that signalled the beginning of the meal.

"Itadakimasu." Michiru declared. With relish, Ignika dug in, going for the duck right away. Michiru chuckled. "How is it, Ignika?" The white-haired boy looked up, his mouth full of bird. He didn't reply, knowing speaking with your mouth full was impolite, but the look in his eyes told everything. Michiru laughed softly. It was the best compliment she had received in a while.

"It's indeed wonderful," Chameleon praised dreamily. He glanced at his mate. "Now I'm curious to how it would have tasted if you had made it, Makoto."

Makoto chuckled. "It's hard to tell if it'd be better, but it'd sure be… different."

"Better?" Chameleon tried teasingly.

"You'll be the one to judge it, not me." Makoto smiled.

"I'm sure it'll be, no offence, Michiru-san," the Saurian of Camouflage said, looking apologetically at the teal-haired Senshi. "It's truly delicious, really."

"Oh, I believe you." Michiru smiled. "Both me and Makoto have different strengths in cooking skills, but at roasted duck, I think we're pretty even." Makoto nodded in agreement.

"Nobody can ever beat you, Michiru-mama," Ignika beamed.

Hotaru giggled. "Oh please, do you want this to turn into a cooking war?" She looked at Ignika. "They're both great."

"Well, I never tasted Makoto-san's cooking," the boy replied.

"You haven't?" Makoto raised her eyebrows. "Well then, we definitely need to correct that! I should invite you to dinner, too…"

"Your apartment is a bit small, though, my mate," Chameleon reminded her.

"Well, if it's enough to hold parties for us Inners, then it should be enough to invite Outers." Makoto reasoned. Chameleon had to concede that point, though Ignika was quick to add:

"Why not invite all of us, instead of just one group or the other?" the Child of Life asked, not liking the idea of going the 'only Outer or only Inner' route again.

"'Cause for that my apartment is definitely too small." Makoto answered.

"For such things we usually go to Rei's," Hotaru smiled.

"Indeed." Makoto smiled and nodded. She sighed happily and thought back to all those great, fun moments she and her friends, both Outers and Inners, had shared after the defeat of Chaos and Galaxia, how nice and peaceful and just genuinely happy it had been for all of them. "We should get together more often." She said out loud.

"Yes, we most definitely should!" Hotaru chimed happily. "When was the last time we were together on a joyous occasion?"

"At the wedding of our Princess and Mamoru, I believe," Haruka replied. Next to her, Michiru sighed dreamily and stared off into nothing.

"Oh, and what a wedding it was…" the Senshi of the Depths smiled, remembering the light and joy on that day, and not to forget the amazing dresses all of them had worn.

"That is if you don't count Rei's homecoming party." Ignika reminded. "And what is this… 'wedding'?" Traveller and Chameleon looked just as confused as their little brother, and their eyes were fixed on the Senshi, wanting an explanation.

"Ah, it's the most wonderful thing that can happen in a girl's life!" Hotaru sighed happily.

Makoto giggled. "Actually, it's a ceremony that officially makes people lifetime mates."

"Followed by a grand celebration usually." Haruka added.

"Oh, and Usagi-san had this?" Traveller asked, intrigued. "Yet, if that is so, how come we have never met her mate then?"

"That's 'cause he's currently in another country studying." Makoto explained.

"On another continent, actually." Hotaru added with a smile.

Chameleon frowned. What lifetime mate stayed away from his mate, especially if they had a grand ceremony to unify their bond? Makoto shrugged. It was their choice to do so, and it wasn't up to them to question it. Still, Chameleon didn't like it, but he shoved it aside for now. Instead, he looked around the table questioningly, then at his mate again.

"Does this mean me and Makoto can have a… 'wedding'?"

That question caught everybody off guard. How were they supposed to explain this…?

"Well, Chameleon…" Haruka started. "You're fifteen by human aging, and at that age, people aren't allowed to wed."

"Or mate, even." Michiru added.

"Why not? What does age have to do with it?" the Saurian of Camouflage asked, confused.

"Tradition." Haruka answered. "A human is considered an adult no sooner than they reach eighteen, or twenty-one even. Otherwise wedding is illegal and mating is frowned upon."

"Which doesn't make any sense, Haruka-papa," Ignika muttered, frowning. "I mean, study of the human anatomy revealed to me girls are capable of it from age fourteen, and boys thirteen to fourteen… So why only start four years after it has become a possibility? I don't get that."

"Because mating is primary for making children." Michiru explained. Noting Ignika's sceptical look, she added: "Yes, yes, I know what you're thinking, but bear with me. Now, girls might be capable of mating at fourteen, but nine months of pregnancy is too much of a toll on their still-growing bodies."

"Not to mention childbirth itself." Haruka added. "Even fully developed women can have problems with that."

"But most importantly, even if a child was born, even if it's in perfect health… Which rarely happens if parents are too young, by the way…" Makoto continued. "Even then, there's still the problem of being capable to raise the child."

"It's easy for you Saurians, 'cause you can just leave your offspring to survive in the wild." Michiru said. "But a human child requires a lot of care, attention, patience, time and money. The latter two are especially important, and are what the young parents lack."

"That… makes sense," Traveller mused quietly, thinking it over. "I definitely would not see Nightmare or Gravitas capable of raising offspring if they laid a nest. Mind you, those are exceptions to the Saurian rule, but according to Minako, Nightmare fits in perfectly for a human girl in terms of behaviour…"

"Indeed." Haruka nodded, and sighed. "But of course there are youngsters who want do it anyway and don't consider risk, there are perverted adults who want to mate children for the heck of it… So the law states that no mating is allowed until one reaches adulthood. Then the offender could at least get punished."

"And if mating is prohibited, so is marriage and wedding and a lot of other things that also require a lot of responsibility." Makoto finished.

Chameleon reached over and nuzzles Makoto's neck. "Won't stop me from loving you, though, _my mate_."

"Well, as long as nobody reports us, we'll be fine." Makoto smiled. "Besides, you're a most wonderful mate."

"Now I wonder if we should be morbidly curious or instead ask for no details," Setsuna quipped, in a rare display of humour.

"We have children in this room, so the latter." Makoto decided.

"Hey!" Ignika objected, crossing his arms in defiance.

"I was referring to Hotaru." Makoto said calmly.

"I'm used to a lot, Makoto-san," Hotaru huffed, glaring at her papa and mama.

"Still, it doesn't feel right to talk about mating in this big a company." Makoto said.

"Quite," Haruka muttered, shifting a bit uncomfortably, glad to be able to steer the conversation away from this topic now that she still had the chance. She quickly smiled at her lover and said, rather lamely: "You really outdid yourself with this duck, Michi."

Michiru giggled. "As long as the Saurians agree." She smiled. "What do you think of it, Traveller?"

The Saurian of Teleportation smiled kindly at her musical teacher. "I think it tastes wonderful, but to be fair, Michiru-san, I have yet to be disappointed by any of your cooking."

"Thank you, you are most kind." Michiru said, flattered.

"Merely stating the truth," Traveller shrugged. She looked at Makoto. "And how is life with our unruly, irresponsible, reckless and, according to Nightmare, brainless brother, Makoto-san?"

"Very good so far." Makoto smiled and looked at Chameleon lovingly. The young Saurian stared right back, looking every bit like a love-struck puppy. Ignika saw it, and giggled.

"Nightmare would say triple yuck if she saw you now, brother," he said.

"Heh, that's quite normal for a girl her age." Haruka chuckled.

"Well, I'm a year younger and I think it's sweet!" Hotaru smiled.

"But you're not a spunky prickly teenager like she is, or pretends to be at least." Michiru said.

"Well, that's true," Hotaru said, and she proceeded to give her parents the cutest, most adorable and innocent look and expression she could muster. All the adults in the room were immediately taken by it, and a collective 'aww' escaped their lips. The Saurians and Makoto laughed at the sight of it all, before a collective, content sigh escaped them all. So far, the evening and meal were nice and relaxing.

"By the way, how are your piano lessons going, Traveller?" Makoto asked.

"I'm proceeding well, I think," the oldest of the Saurian family replied, looking at her teachers for confirmation.

"Oh, she definitely is." Haruka nodded. "Her progress is quite amazing, and her singing is almost as good as her playing."

"Did she compose anything new?" Makoto wondered.

Setsuna shook her head. "She's reluctant because, in her own words, she's afraid it won't match her first composition that we all 'seemed' to like so much."

"Umm, all of us liked it genuinely…" Makoto said, confused.

"Try telling that to her," Haruka laughed softly.

"We've tried, no avail." Hotaru shrugged and turned to Traveller. "I mean, come on, didn't you hear the crowd go completely silent at the music, stay silent after it ended, and then explode with applause? What more proof do you need?"

"Try seeing it from my point of view," Traveller huffed. "It was the first thing I ever put together, musically, and you're treating it as if it's the next… what was it called, 'Moss art'?"

"Mozart." Michiru corrected. "That's his surname, and he was a genius composer, yes."

"Well, and I am not," Traveller pointed out, as if it were obvious.

"The piece you wrote says otherwise." Haruka remarked. The Saurian composer huffed again, but said nothing.

"Oh, come on…" Hotaru frowned.

Makoto smirked: "Why don't you try to compose something then and prove us wrong about considering you a genius?"

Traveller raised an eyebrow. "You want me to purposefully compose something bad?"

"Nope, but if your next composition is not as good as the first one, like you fear, we'll believe you and take the first one as a spontaneous miracle." Makoto nodded.

"Well, that sounds fair," Traveller admitted. All the Outers gave Makoto an admiring look that spoke 'well done, Makoto!'. The Saurian of Teleportation did not yet realize she had walked right into Makoto's trap to try and get her to compose again. Setsuna did her absolute best and didn't give it away even though their symbiosis bond. Hotaru and Ignika had difficulties with controlling their giggles.

"So when are you gonna do it?" Makoto asked casually.

"Well, not today, for certain," Traveller replied honestly.

"Why not?" Hotaru asked innocently.

"Well, because we're having a lovely dinner now and I do not want to interrupt it," the Saurian woman explained.

"Not even after dinner?" Hotaru insisted, but was interrupted by Haruka.

"No, it's okay. If she doesn't want to, then it's okay if she doesn't… As long as she doesn't back out of the challenge." Haruka grinned. Traveller nodded gratefully at the androgynous blonde.

"Besides," she added. "I will need inspiration regardless, and you cannot summon that by snapping your fingers."

"Indeed." Michiru nodded.

"And you two can stop smirking," Traveller suddenly snapped, glaring at her two brothers. "Because I _do_ realise that, yes, Makoto-san has tricked me into composing again."

"Ehm… You do?" Chameleon asked sheepishly.

The glare Traveller sent him would make Nightmare proud. "I am _not_ stupid, brother, thank you very much."

"Eh, you're welcome." Chameleon muttered, shrinking under the glare.

"But are you still gonna do this?" Ignika asked uncertainly.

Traveller sighed in defeat. "I said I will, so I will, if only to get you all off my back."

"Yay!" Hotaru cheered. She loved Traveller's music, as did all the others in the room. Traveller shook her head, but smiled at the girl she was now the 'aunt' of and gave her a light hug. Hotaru hugged her back dearly. Makoto watched them both and smiled.

"So how is it to have a Saurian aunt, Hotaru-chan?" the Senshi of Lightning wanted to know.

"Well, she's been one for less than a day… And gave me a present!" Hotaru said excitedly. "So yes, she's a lovely aunt."

"Just because of the present…?" Makoto said slowly.

"No, because she is a lovely aunt!" Hotaru smiled. Traveller blushed a bit under the compliment. Everyone else laughed softly at the cuteness. Makoto then looked at the three other Outer Senshi.

"And how is it to have a Saurian son, or to have a boy at all in the family, Setsuna-san, Haruka-san, Michiru-san?"

"Wonderful." Haruka smiled. "It's a whole new experience."

"Well, not that new since he lived with us for quite a while before we adopted him, but still…" Michiru said, but was interrupted by Hotaru:

"I like having a little brother!" She chimed.

"I completely agree." Setsuna added. "Ignika made our lives brighter and more colourful." Ignika beamed lovingly at them all, smiling brightly.

"So it seems that all is well in our mixed family tree." Makoto sighed contently.

"And I like it that way," Chameleon grinned, snuggling up to her. Makoto hugged him back and held him lovingly. Traveller looked at her brother and his newfound mate and smiled, happy that Chameleon had finally gotten over Rain after all those centuries. She looked to her side to see Hotaru, the sweet little girl she was now 'related' to and happily hugged her. Hotaru snuggled up to her newfound aunt as well.

Michiru looked around the table, which was warm with familial love, and smiled. Her eyes fell on the empty plates of everyone, and with a chuckle, she asked: "So, who wants seconds?"

* * *

**Next chapter: Unexpected spectators!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Bin82501: I'm glad you enjoyed the story, and am grateful for the review. Sorry for making you hungry! =p

Ariel Night: Only way to find out what's going on is to keep following the story! =p Thanks for the review!

Knight of balinar: Oh dear, seems like I'm making a lot of people hungry, my apologies! Thanks for reading. =)

Fatal Mars: Funny you bring up Makoto's parents, since, as a matter of fact, it'll come up later in the story. I'm not paying for the dentist! Thanks for reviewing. =)

leneypoo: Ah, he's a child in an unknown realm, all alone and with his whole world turned upside down. It's not nice what he did, but I like to think he deserves some slack, he is a child in a difficult situation, after all. And it'll work itself out in the end. Thanks for reading!


	117. Unexpected spectators

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**117. Unexpected spectators**

"Is it far to this… 'sports hall'? Will we make it on time for my sister and my 'sister' their training?" Gravitas asked, trying to sound curious and interested, but not totally succeeding. Adding emotion to her voice wasn't as easy as she had thought it would be. She and her beloved symbiosis partner had just closed the door of Ami's apartment behind them, having gone outside to get on their way towards the volleyball training Gravitas wanted to witness.

"No, not really." Ami said. "We can take a bus to get to it, or have a walk. We have plenty of time, anyway." Gravitas frowned, remembering that a 'bus' was like a big car, with lots of people on them. She also recalled not having liked the car trip the day of her arrival, or to the concert.

"We walk," she said determinedly.

Ami chuckled. "Thought so. This way then." She said and went down the street. The Saurian pleasantly followed her friend, inwardly going over all the things she should or shouldn't do when in company that didn't consist of only Senshi or family. She wished she had her notebook with her, but Ami hadn't allowed her to take it with her for some reason. "_That's right, you remember most of them anyway, and it'll look kind of suspicious if you look in a notebook all the time to see what you're supposed to do._"

"But it would be helpful…" Gravitas objected quietly.

"But I can always help you." Ami smiled. "Besides, I think you could manage everything on your own." Her Saurian friend wasn't so sure of that, however. Ami just took her hand and smiled, letting her know she believed in her. Happy with that, Gravitas lightly squeezed Ami's hand back. Suddenly, Gravitas spotted someone on the other side of the street. She frowned. Ami noticed something was wrong, and followed Gravitas' gaze.

"Huh. Isn't it one of those girls who spied…?" Ami said in wonder.

Gravitas nodded. "It is. Her name was…" Gravitas searched through her memory. "Rumiko."

"Ah." Ami nodded. "Well, we'll probably meet up with her when we turn right at that crossroads." She pointed ahead. "Rumiko will have to cross the road to get to this side."

"We_ want_ to meet up with her?" Gravitas asked, confused.

"Why not?" Ami said. "I mean, we are headed to the same place, and your sister made up with them all already, so…" The Saurian of Gravity had to admit that was true, but she remained sceptical. One trait the two sisters shared was that neither of them was very forgiving. "It's up to you, really." Ami said. "We can go ahead without her if you want." Gravitas couldn't decide, so she left the choice to her friend.

Actually, their choice didn't really matter anymore, because Rumiko had crossed the road already and noticed them. "Oh, umm, good day…" She said shyly. Gravitas said nothing, merely tilted her head sideways, looking intensely at the new girl, and then at Ami, wanting to know how her friend would react before she said anything herself.

"Good day to you too, Rumiko." Ami bowed politely. "Are you heading to the sports hall?" Gravitas still said nothing, but copied Ami's bow.

"Why… Yes, I am." Rumiko nodded, looking a bit weirdly and uncomfortable at Hiroko. She didn't forget that this girl was in fact inhumanly strong, and she hurt her sister together with Miyuki and Chiara…

"So are we." Ami smiled. "Hiroko wants to watch Kira-chan play." The Saurian of Gravity nodded curtly.

"Ah… Well, I guess we could go together then…" Rumiko said with a nervous smile, although she felt uncomfortable with it. Ami smiled and nodded, and Gravitas just accepted it, albeit reluctantly. And so the three of them went ahead to the sports hall in uncomfortable silence. As they walked, Gravitas kept looking sharply at Rumiko, observing her with no intent of doing so subtly.

"Umm-mmm… Why are you looking at me like that…?" Rumiko finally asked.

Gravitas ran over her list of things she could say in her mind, but didn't immediately find anything useful, resulting in her looking at seemingly the air with a frown on her face and not replying. Rumiko freaked out a little, but supposed it was an autistic thing. It got even more freaky when Gravitas resumed her staring.

"Please stop doing that…" Rumiko pleaded.

"I don't see anything special," Gravitas said with a thoughtful expression on her face, turning to Ami.

"You're staring long and hard at her, which makes her feel uncomfortable." Ami explained.

"I know, but I was trying to see what was so special about her that made my sister want to forgive her," Gravitas explained. She shook her head. "I don't see anything, she's just an ordinary human."

"And… why do you think people need to be special to be forgiven?" Ami asked.

"Because otherwise my sister wouldn't forgive them," came the reply, as if it were obvious.

"But… we're friends… Now, at least…" Rumiko said meekly.

Gravitas frowned, obviously confused. "My sister doesn't make friends…"

"And that's exactly why Minako brought her to volleyball…" Rumiko explained. "She thought Kira could be friends with us." That still made little sense to Gravitas. What had becoming sisters with Minako done to her sister?

"_She became happier and cuter._" Ami answered mentally. "_And began to come out of her shell, just like you._" That made Gravitas silent. It just seemed so strange and… illogical.

"I… I know you two had a… very harsh childhood…" Rumiko said nervously. "But… Minako just didn't want Kira to see the whole world as enemies who are out to hurt her, and make some friends…"

"You hurt her," Gravitas pointed out icily.

"But we didn't mean to!" Rumiko protested.

"Hurt is hurt," Gravitas replied, thinking back to her own hurt.

"But we tried to make up for it… And she forgave us…" Rumiko said.

"And I don't get why," came the answer.

"Why don't you ask her?" Ami suggested. Gravitas paused for a moment, then smiled a tiny bit and nodded. That sounded logical, and she liked that. Rumiko sighed in relief, hoping there won't be any more staring or uncomfortable questions. The group continued its way in silence.

* * *

Meanwhile, the rest of the volleyball team were getting ready for the coming training. Nightmare was humming 'Raise the Noise' tune while tying her sports shoes, and looked positively happy.

"So, Kira-chan, up for another training?" Miyuki asked, smiling.

"Definitely!" Nightmare grinned. "Today I'm gonna break my record and whoop all of your butts!"

"I'd like to see you try." Chiara teased, grinning.

"Is that a challenge?" Nightmare asked with a feral smirk, though in good nature.

"Sure." Chiara winked.

"No going all-out though, I don't want to skip trainings again because of you." Takako warned.

"I promise," Nightmare swore solemnly. "I only will go all out if I ever am allowed to play in a real match, deal?"

Minako gave a start. "No deal, no deal!" She quickly said. "We might get disqualified for hurting the other team. Or you at least."

"Aww… when can I ever? It's no fun if you have all this muscle and can't use it!" the Saurian of Fear whined.

At that moment, Rumiko entered the room, looking stressed. The other girls turned to look at her, wondering why she was later than usual.

"Ehhh… We've got spectators to see us training, and I don't feel like explaining anything else." Rumiko said lamely and began to change. That got the others even more curious. What could be so bad about spectators that Rumiko ended up all stressed?

"Who?" Minako asked.

"Ah, just go ahead and see for yourselves…" Rumiko waved her hand. A bit warily, the others decided to obey her.

Miyuki and Chiara were first to enter the volleyball hall, and gulped at who they saw. Nightmare heard it. "What? Who's there?" She asked. As a reply, the two nervously said Nightmare had best see for herself. So Nightmare entered the hall, curious as a heck about who could unnerve not one, but three members of the team so far. Minako, for safety measures, hurried along with her little sister.

"Hello, sister, and 'sister'." Gravitas greeted them. The Saurian of Gravity was standing at the side of the field, Ami right behind her, trying to look 'happy' to see them again, though she kind of failed. None of that mattered, though. She could have been looking positively jubilant and reaction she would have received from her two sisters would have been the same.

Nightmare stared at Gravitas, in vain trying to scoop up her jaw from somewhere down below on the floor, stammering and futilely trying to form coherent words and sentences. Her very own sister was the last person she had expected to be here now.

"Okay, so what is the fuss all about?" Takako said, entering the hall herself. "Who are those two?"

Minako, who managed to recover earlier than Nightmare, who was still staring, ignored Takako for now and turned to Gravitas and Ami. "Hiroko, Ami, what… are you doing here?"

"Hiroko wanted to watch you playing." Ami said simply with a smile.

Gravitas nodded and came over to the two. "I… did," she said. She was frowning, trying to find the right words. "I want to be a good… sister, and to be so, I should be… interested, yes, in the… hobbies of my sister, and of you, too, of course, 'sister'." Her voice was surprisingly sincere, even if her face was emotionless aside from her frown.

"Ah. Well… That's very nice of you, Hiroko." Minako smiled warmly.

"Thank you," Gravitas replied tonelessly. She glanced at Ami, questioningly. "So I really did… good?"

"I think so, at least." Ami smiled.

Gravitas nodded again and, to the surprise of the two Senshi, went over and hugged Nightmare. Nightmare looked surprised, too, and wondered why Gravitas did it. That didn't stop her from putting her arms around her older sister and hugging her back, however.

As an explanation as to why she did it, Gravitas said: "I thought…. A sister should do this?"

"You're right." Nightmare smiled. "I don't mind being hugged, but we've got to train now."

Gravitas nodded and was about to say something, but was interrupted by Takako saying rather loudly: "Ehm, hellooo? Mind explaining what's going on? Who are they?"

"Oh, Takako, ehm… Meet Hiroko, she's Kira's sister, and Ami Mizuno, she's my friend." Minako said cheerfully.

Takako looked at Nightmare with a raised eyebrow. "You have a sister?"

"A sister, an adopted sister and two adopted brothers!" Nightmare grinned. "And Minako is like a sister to me, too!" Ami and Minako chuckled softly, finding it nice to hear Nightmare speak so positive about her family for a change.

"Whoa… That's a lot." Takako blinked.

"Didn't I explain everything to you girls already?" Miyuki wondered.

"That was before Takako recovered." Chiara remarked.

Gravitas glared at the two as they entered the room, obviously having not quite yet forgiven them for hurting her little sister. The two now realized why Rumiko was so unnerved. Gravitas glared once more for good measure, then let go of her little sister and went over to Minako, looking confused.

"Should I hug you now, too, 'sister'?"

"No thanks, that's for some other time." Minako smiled.

"Wait, how come she calls both of you sisters?" Takako asked, confused. "I thought you were cousins?" Gravitas said nothing, merely stared blankly and totally emotionless at Takako, as she usually did when meeting strangers. Takako stared back, raising an eyebrow at lack of emotions.

"Ehm, it's because Minako-onee-chan acts very sisterly to me." Nightmare explained. "So Hiroko keeps it simple and calls her 'sister'." Gravitas gave a slow nod.

"Ah, I see…" Takako nodded. But the emotionless still bothered her a lot. Before she could comment on it, however, Rumiko came up behind her and whispered to her:

"She's also heavily autistic."

Gravitas heard it - to the girls surprise since they had spoken very quiet - and turned to Rumiko, looking slightly curious, then looked over at Ami for clarification. "Autistic?"

"Oh… Minako probably told them…" Ami said, then quickly added mentally: "_It's a human psychic sickness. I know you don't have it, but it perfectly explains lack of emotions to others. I also lied to my mom about it, remember?_"

"_I remember, yes,_" Gravitas replied slowly. She looked at the two volleyball girls again, wondering what would happen now. She had the impression that her presence here unsettled them all. Was it bad that she wanted to be a good sister?

"_No._" Ami disagreed. "_Wanting to be a good sister is good. The others will get used to you, don't worry._" That eased the Saurian girl a bit, but the looks she was getting and the tension in the air didn't help much. She glared defensively and moved a bit closer to Nightmare.

"Hey girls…" Minako said peacefully, coming up to Gravitas and putting her hand on her shoulder. "Let's just start the training. Hiroko and Ami came only to watch, no?" She smiled. Both visitors were glad for Minako's intervention.

"Yes, that's true." Ami smiled, and Gravitas nodded.

"Well then, go sit over there on the bench." Minako told them. They obeyed, and Minako went to get the balls from the storage room.

"Right." Miyuki nodded. "Do the warm-up exercises for now, girls, and I'll be right back." She said, and followed Ami and Gravitas to the bench. The Saurian of Gravity frowned and looked coldly at the team captain. She didn't know why she was coming to them, didn't she have to play this game her sister played? And also, Gravitas still hadn't forgiven her yet for hurting her little sister. She had a lot of years of not caring for her little sister to make up for, and she was very determined. Maybe too much so, since it would appear she now held grudges and was very unforgiving in her sister's stead.

"Pardon me for being so sudden…" Miyuki said. "But unlike your sister, you did not receive a proper apology." She bowed and stayed that way. "On behalf of me and my two friends, I apologize for what happened." That caught Gravitas off-guard. She hadn't been apologised to before, not for serious matters like this, and she didn't know how to deal with it. So she just stared blankly at Miyuki, one eyebrow a bit raised.

"_Nightmare forgave them, so you should, too. That's why she's apologizing – she doesn't want you to hold grudge against them._" Ami explained.

"_Oh,_" Gravitas muttered, still uncertain. She just kept staring blankly at Miyuki, not sure of what to do. Miyuki seemed unfazed by it, and kept patiently waiting, remaining bowed.

"Will you forgive us?" She asked quietly.

"You… hurt my sister," Gravitas said, her voice cold and empty.

"Yes… We didn't mean to… but you know how it turned out." Miyuki replied, shivering lightly.

"You hurt my sister," Gravitas repeated. "Why?"

"Chiara got suspicious of some things…" Miyuki admitted. "Rumiko thought she might be an alien in disguise, and she really loves mysteries… They decided to spy, and I couldn't let them do it on their own. We didn't think it'd lead to such conclusions…"

"Even if we were, it gave you no right," the Saurian girl continued. "My sister trusted you, you betrayed that. You hurt her." She shook her head. "I don't like people who hurt my sister."

"I know, and you have every right for it… However, we realized our mistakes and made up for them…" Miyuki said quietly. "Kira forgave us…"

"I am not Kira," Gravitas pointed out. Miyuki nodded. The silver-haired girl sighed deeply. She was struggling now, coming to an area of emotions and feelings she had no experience with whatsoever and hadn't learned about yet. She felt helpless, not sure of what to do. She glanced at Ami, knowing her friend would want her to forgive them, but was it so easy?

"_If you're not sure what to do now, just say you'll think about it. Don't keep her standing bowed like this…_" Ami advised.

"I… don't know," Gravitas finally said, emotionless. "I haven't… learned about forgiving and its feelings yet. I will think about it once I know the feelings a bit…"

Ami nodded. "You may stand up. She will think about forgiving you." Miyuki stood up, being a little sore from staying still for so long, and went back to her team, who were all waiting for her. Gravitas watched her go and sighed. Why was it so complicated?

"So, what took you so long?" Chiara asked.

"What did she say?" Rumiko wondered worriedly.

"She questioned me, and then said she'll think about forgiving us." Miyuki said.

"After she made you stay and wait for this long?" Takako raised her eyebrow, then shook her head. "Pfeh, the nerve…" She muttered. She suddenly felt the cold glare of Gravitas on her, who had heard every word thanks to her superior Saurian hearing.

"It is not my fault feelings are complicated and illogical, or that you hurt my little sister," she said, with the coldest, iciest, harshest and most emotionless voice she could muster. Takako just gulped and stared at her helplessly.

"How did she hear it from so far away?" She whispered.

Minako shrugged. "Runs through her family on father's side. Kira can do it, too."

"Yep!" the disguised Nightmare grinned. As opposed to her sister, she looked positively happy and almost _cute_ and _adorable_. "Isn't it nice of Hiroko to come and see me? She never did that before! It's amazing! That Ami girl really has a good influence on her." She sighed happily. "Never seen her be so expressive and do so well in bringing out her emotions either. She's definitely improved."

The others just stared at her wide-eyed. If _this_ was _expressive_ and _open_, then what was she like at worse times? The girls didn't dare to think about it. 'Kira' was oblivious to it all, however, and smiled, full of energy now.

"So, shall we train? I wanna make sure Hiroko's trip here was worth it. Let's impress her!" And, to make it appealing for the other girls, she added: "Besides, if she sees that you do mean well for me now, she might forgive you after the training. I'll talk to her about it, too, if you want me to."

"Oh yes, please do." Rumiko nodded several times, a bit too quickly.

"Kira's right, let's give it our best!" Miyuki declared.

"Yes!" Everybody agreed.

* * *

**Next chapter: Training and death!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

leneypoo: Well, the Senshi _were_ hard learners, so Ignika felt repetition was justified. He worries for them. I don't really think Ignika has an "I know best" mode, it's more his nature and his background. He's the _only_ Saurian that was ever educated on Voya, knowing the ins and outs of his race like noone else, and in our world, he certainly understood the situation more than the Senshi did in the beginning. I don't recall him having made rash decisions. Sometimes he needs to think quick, and if he gets very defensive when a decision backfires, I think it's more because of thinking "I'm a child, I have tons of pressure on my shoulders, I need to make a decision on the fly possibly deciding the life or death of those I hold dear, I'd love to see you do better! So excuse me for being defensive." than it is because he thinks "I know better". He's also used to being listened to, and old habbits die hard, especially since he lived with them for more than a millenium. I'm not saying this to excuse his character flaws, but just to explain where they're coming from. Thanks for the review! =)

Bin82501: I thank you for your compliments. And thank you for reading! =)


	118. Training and death

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**118. Training and death**

Gravitas watched the training with rising curiosity. She didn't understand the game and at first, when it was just practicing passes and certain moves, she didn't see the appeal in it or why her sister and 'sister' liked it so much. When the team played a training match, however, things got more interesting, and she understood the competitive aspect of it, explaining why her little sister liked the game. Gravitas often had to ask Ami for an explanation on why things were or weren't allowed, but Ami was no expert on volleyball herself, leading to Gravitas deciding she had to ask her two sisters once training was over. Her aloof eyes never once left the players on the field, and she observed their every move and quirk, which was a bit unsettling to the girls. Nightmare, who was used to it, however, noticed utmost interest in her sister's eyes, and loved the fact she took interest in her hobby.

"Hey, onee-chan!" She shouted to the other side of the field. "You should buy cake today!"

"Huh?" Minako looked confused for a moment, and that was enough for her sister to score another point with a well-timed serve. Nightmare grinned as her distraction strategy worked. Well, it was only partly a distraction, she did mean it. An occasion like this required a cake. Minako looked at her part of the team apologetically. "Well, yeah, she's right. Gotta buy cake." The situation turned even weirder as Gravitas got a positively excited, eager, happy and pleased look on her face at the mentioning of the word 'cake'. The game froze, everybody stared.

Ami giggled. "Loving cake is also their family trait, don't be so surprised at it." She explained. Gravitas nodded, but once she noticed she was being stared at, quickly formed her blank expression once again. Everybody stared a little more, then went back to the game. This pleased Gravitas, who resumed watching. She didn't like being stared at whenever she had an emotion on her face. It made it seem as if it was wrong of her to do so.

"_Not at all. They're just surprised because contrast between you showing emotions and not showing emotions is too big._" Ami corrected. "_What you need to do is to try and learn to show all your feelings openly, not just your love for cake._"

"_That's difficult_," Gravitas objected.

"_I know._" Ami agreed, placing her hand on her shoulder. "_And I by no means expect you to o it right away. But you'll learn to do it someday._"

"_Will I_?" Gravitas wondered naively.

"_I'm sure you will._" Ami smiled. "_You're making amazing progress even now, and I'm sure Nightmare agrees with me._"

"_My sister has changed a lot, too,_" Gravitas said.

"_I agree._" Ami smiled again, looking at the game. Gravitas looked back as well, smiling a tiny bit. Her family had really changed ever since coming here. It was good, for a change. "_See? Change isn't scary or always bad at all._"

"_I suppose so…_" Gravitas agreed slowly.

"Hey, don't space out, I'm about to make an awesome move!" Nightmare cried out to her sister just as Rumiko made a pass. Nightmare then did an attack move that couldn't be deflected correctly because of the spin added to the ball. Surely enough, Chiara tried to deflect it, but failed as the ball flew into the 'out' zone. "Did you see that?" She asked her sister with shining eyes. Gravitas nodded.

"I did," she said, frowning. Why did Nightmare ask if she had seen that? Her eyes worked properly, she wasn't blind…

"_She's asking if you're impressed by it._" Ami hinted. Gravitas got the idea and nodded. She then got a different idea in mind.

"Can I try?" she asked, looking around, with a hint of curiosity in her cold voice. Nightmare looked at Miyuki, waiting for her decision.

"Sure, why not?" She agreed, because what choice did she have, really? If she disagreed, it would lower the chance of them all being forgiven, and Hiroko was a type of person you'd better be friends with.

"Just don't go all out with strength." Minako warned.

"Why not, Onee-chan?" Nightmare asked. "She can play against me, then there's no problem. And then I can finally get some exercise with _all_ my muscle."

"I'm afraid the hall wouldn't survive then…" Minako said in a joking tone. "_I'm only half joking, actually._" She added.

"We'll be careful, 'sister'," Gravitas promised monotonously.

"Okay, I guess. Right, Miyuki?" Minako glanced at her.

Miyuki nodded. "Let them play, it'll be fun to watch."

The two Saurians looked thankful at the team captain, even Gravitas, if only slightly. They then eagerly took the field, Gravitas having observed everything enough to feel confident she could do this, if only a bit. Nightmare was just happy she would do something fun together with her sister for probably the first time in her life. It was almost unbelievable. The team sat on the bench on both sides of Ami, waiting for action to start.

"I hope they don't hurt each other in their excitement," Ami muttered to Minako.

"I hope they won't wreck the hall…" Minako replied. "And don't worry, they're sisters, they won't hurt each other." Ami nodded quietly, and the two returned their focus to the two sisters.

Nightmare had the ball, so she served, not holding back in the slightest, giving the same powerful serve that had injured Takako the last time she had used it. The volleyball girls recognized it, and waited, a bit tensed, to see what Gravitas would do. The Saurian of Gravity calmly waited for the ball, then effortlessly passed it back, perfectly copying the move she had observed so many times during the training. Miyuki, Chiara and Rumiko, who had experienced Gravitas' strength first-hand, weren't very surprised she could cope with it. Takako was, however. She shivered.

Excited, Nightmare did it again, trying to score, but Gravitas almost predicted her sister's move and blocked the pass, tossing it back easily once again. Nightmare deflected it, sending the ball close to the 'out' zone so that it would fall just at the border. Gravitas quickly calculated where it would land and ran over, passing it back and managing to score one point.

"Hey, you're not half bad." Nightmare grinned.

"I observed well, sister," Gravitas replied, feeling a hint of pride.

"So you did. But I'm still better." Nightmare grinned. She served, and when Gravitas passed the ball back to her, she did a cunning move – sent the ball to fly just a little bit past the net. Gravitas tried to deflect it, but the ball hit the net, just like Nightmare planned. As the ball dropped back on her side of the field, Gravitas knew her sister had made a point. The ball shouldn't drop on her own side, Gravitas knew.

"So you are," she said.

"Come on, your turn." Nightmare grinned. Gravitas nodded, and gave an extremely powerful serve that would no doubt crack the floor if Nightmare didn't catch it. "Now that's what I'm talking about!" She exclaimed. Even if her sister got another point because Nightmare took the ball with her hands, it meant they could go all-out now!

"See? What did I tell you?" Minako whispered to Ami. "_Don't break the hall!_" She warned her imouto-chan.

"_Gravitas, please be careful with your strength…_" Ami begged Gravitas at the same time.

Both sisters made a mental whine to the Senshi of how they just wanted to not be restrained for once. Minako was quick to react, though. "_Okay, if you obey me for now, I'll share this great awesome idea I just got when we have cake._" Both sisters were curious and mentally asked for more. "_It involves volleyball and Saurians, but I won't tell you more for now._"

"_No fair, Onee-chan!_" Nightmare objected.

"_You'll forgive me once you hear it, but for now, keep your strength down._" Minako said firmly. Reluctantly, the two sisters agreed, though they still played with more than normal strength. But even that much was more than enough to impress Miyuki and her team.

"Runs through her family, you say?" Takako asked thoughtfully.

"You mean the strength? Well, yes." Minako nodded.

"What's with their parents? They're victims of illegal experiments or something?" Chiara asked jokingly.

"No idea." Minako shrugged. "Mom never understood her sister's choice. Besides, it's not like they're the only people with extraordinary strength. Makoto is exceptionally strong, too, but they're completely unrelated, I can vouch for that."

"But the rest of the family was adopted, and Kira said they all have it," Takako said.

"Did she now?" Minako raised her eyebrow.

"She did, when we practiced together first time," the other girl replied. Minako shrugged then.

"I dunno, I know little about the orphanage, and besides, I don't really communicate with other cousins as much as with Kira and Hiroko."

"You haven't met the rest of their family?" Miyuki asked, surprised. How was that possible, when Minako had told them so much about Kira's family situation?

"Of course I have!" Minako said. "I meant that I spent a lot more time with Kira than with the rest of them during the past… How much time, again?" She asked Ami. Ami had to think quickly for that one and calculate in her head a bit.

"More than three weeks." Ami nodded. "Their house was destroyed in one of the attacks, together with the rest of their street, so now the family is scattered among friends' houses." She hoped that was smooth enough a lie to pass. The others nodded in understanding, accepting it.

"So yeah, during that time I got to know Kira a lot closer than before." Minako nodded in conclusion. "As you all know now, she's actually pretty sweet!"

"At times." Rumiko corrected, watching the fierce game of volleyball the Saurian sisters were playing.

"I suppose, but she's good at heart," Minako insisted. "It just… had to be brought out."

"Indeed." Takako nodded.

"The same goes for Hiroko," Ami smiled gently.

"Yeah, we kind of noticed how happy Kira was…" Chiara said, shifting a bit uncomfortably. She wanted to ask another question, but remembered Saurian superior hearing, so she didn't at first. But when she saw Kira and Hiroko in the heat of their game, focussed on each other, she took the risk. "Is that really… Hiroko at _better_ times?"

"Well, she is a bit held back because she is in unknown company now, but for the most part, I would say yes, this is one of her better days," Ami replied sincerely.

Rumiko gulped. "What are the worse days like then…?" She whispered.

Ami had to think, since Gravitas had always been kind of open around her, straight from the beginning, mostly thanks to the discovery of books. "Well, in her worse days, she's very reclusive and silent. Her face blank, her eyes blank, and so silent, and still she watches you. It's… unsettling, to say the least. I'm sure you remember how she glared at you and how that felt… well, add that to it… And you should have a good picture…" It made Ami a bit uncomfortable to speak about Gravitas like that, but she had to be honest. The girls looked at each other and agreed that was indeed very hard.

"Kira says she had it even worse before moving to Japan." Minako added.

Everyone stared at her. "Is that even possible?" Miyuki wondered.

"Apparently." Minako sighed.

"It's a sad story…" Ami admitted, sighing as well. "Poor Hiroko had it very rough as a child… Her behaviour is mostly a result of that…"

"And not autism?" Miyuki asked sceptically.

"Well, you know that autism only sets a base." Ami explained. "Much of the progress and adaptation to society depends on surroundings throughout their lives, and those with better life conditions fare much better than those with poor, even if their level was the same at the beginning. And Hiroko had it rough."

"Just like Kira, and it showed in both of them," Minako added. Just as the girls were about to ask what exactly had been so horrible, Nightmare sent the ball into the net so hard that the ball tore it off the poles.

"Oops…" Nightmare said. "Guess the game's over." The other girls looked with wide eyes at the net and then at the two sisters. "What? That strap was getting weaker ever since we started practicing in this hall!" Nightmare defended herself.

"What about the other three?" Miyuki asked strictly, crossing her arms.

"Well, we needed a new net, anyway…" Rumiko said.

"And guess who's paying for it." Chiara looked at Minako.

Minako groaned. "Imouto-chaaan…!" she whined.

"Sorry…" Nightmare looked genuinely ashamed. "But you'll still buy us cake, right?"

"It's okay, if she doesn't, I will." Ami smiled.

"We're sorry," Gravitas said, her voice having a tone that didn't make it sound at all as if she was sorry.

"Nothing you can do now." Minako shrugged. "Let's wrap this training up and go home." It made Gravitas feel somehow bad that she had ended the training of her sisters. That hadn't been her intent.

"Well, it's about time anyway." Miyuki shrugged "So come on, let's go take a shower." Still, Gravitas was not entirely convinced, but she didn't know how to properly apologise. She wondered if she should make up for the net somehow…

"_Maybe you should, but not for now. I can't think of anything._" Ami commented.

"I'm sorry," Gravitas said again, still sounding as if she wasn't sorry one bit.

"Technically it's Kira's fault, so you're forgiven." Miyuki smiled.

"I'm sorry, too," Nightmare apologised, bowing like she had been taught to.

"You're also forgiven." Miyuki nodded. "As long as you two do buy a new net."

"Of course we will!" Minako assured her.

Nightmare looked at her sister. "_We and what of that weird money I don't have?_"

"_Doesn't matter, I'll be the one paying, anyway._" Minako smiled. "_But it's your fault, so saying you'd pay too is fair._"

"_I didn't do it on purpose! That net was just way too weak_!"

"_Doesn't change the fact we need to get a new one._"

"_I guess…_"

"_Now let's stop bickering and go take a shower, then we'll buy a cake, and then I'll tell you the awesome idea!_" Minako grinned. Nightmare agreed, but went over to her sister to thank her for the fun time first. Ami smiled and went to exit the hall with the rest of the girls, so that the two sisters could get some privacy. She wanted to rise to her feet, when she suddenly noticed she couldn't move.

Something had wrapped itself around her and hauled her up in the air before Ami was even aware of it. Her eyes widened in shock and she looked down at whatever was holding her. Her face paled to a ghastly shade of wide, and her brain immediately started screaming that it couldn't be true, that this couldn't be happening. It had happened in the past, it was over, Usagi had made sure of that! There was no way Sailor Aluminium Seiren could be holding her in her iron grip again!

And yet, somehow, it was possible, and in a flash the memories of their previous encounter appeared before Ami's eyes. With dread and sheer horror, she realised what was going to happen, and there wasn't a single possible thing that she could hope to do about it. The shock hit her body, her eyes widened as she felt her Sailor Crystal, her Star Seed, her core, be so brutally ripped from inside her. She felt her body disintegrate, turn to dust, vanish, done away with as easily as one steps on an ant. And there was nothing Ami Mizuno could do about it.

Nothing, except scream as she was killed.

Ami's terrifying scream ran through the building, reaching the ears of Minako and the volleyball team. Gravitas and Nightmare were dumbfounded at first by what happened, but when she saw Ami collapse, the Saurian of Gravity didn't waste any time and rushed towards her friend, concern clear on her face. At the same time as the Saurian knelt down, the others burst into the training hall again, bewilderment on their face.

"What's going on?" Miyuki demanded while rushing towards them together with the rest of the team.

"I don't know…" Gravitas said quietly, her voice filled with dread. "She just collapsed…"

"Could it be a seizure?" Rumiko wondered.

"No way, Ami's not epileptic!" Minako argued.

"Besides, nothing happened that could cause it… right?" Takako asked.

The situation took a turn for the worst, however. Minako, who was standing near the back of the group – having nearly been trampled earlier by the stampede of her teammates – was trying to get closer to her dear friend when she froze. She couldn't explain why, but suddenly she was filled to the tips of her hair with dread and horror, cold fear seeping deep into her bones. Her eyes widened slightly as memories flashed before her eyes. A fake Senshi from Shadow Galactica attacking her and Rei, but Usagi had arrived in time to save them, no? Yes, yes, she had! She and Rei had been so overjoyed to see their leader and friend, and had run towards her and…

Minako froze completely, suddenly realising what was going to happen. She could even turn around as the power of Galaxia struck her through the back, piercing her heart and core, tearing her Star Seed from her just like that. The Senshi of Venus' eyes were wide with shock, and in a millisecond she remembered seeing Ami and Makoto be killed just like that before her eyes, and then Rei and… Her body disintegrated, her conscience faded as the laughing form of Death grabbed her and dragged her into the nothingness of death. Minako could do nothing, nothing at all.

Except scream as she was killed.

The others could only turn around and look at her in shock as she too collapsed in hysterics. They knew nothing of Ami, but Minako as sure as hell wasn't prone to such things! What was happening? Nightmare was at the side of her adopted sister in a microsecond, shaking her, grabbing her, trying to bring her to reason.

"Onee-chan! Onee-chan! What's wrong? What's wrong with you?" she asked, almost screaming. "Talk to me!" Minako didn't hear or feel her, trapped in the iron grip of her illusion. Nightmare was getting quite desperate and fearful herself. What happened? Why here, with all the girls of the volleyball seeing it? Why Ami too? How would they explain this, how would they get out of this?

Perhaps then it was for the first time since she hatched that Gravitas' lack of emotions were a good thing. She certainly felt genuine concern for Ami and her 'sister', but her lack of deep comprehension of emotions allowed her to keep her head on her shoulders and think logically. She went over to Nightmare and hauled her up by the shoulders and took her aside.

"We need to get them to Ignika," Gravitas whispered, sounding surprisingly calm for a dire situation like this.

"No shit, but how?" Nightmare whispered in a panic.

Gravitas looked at the bewildered team. "Can I use a… 'foan'? I need to call…" Gravitas paused, not knowing how to tell them who she would call. It would be weird if she called her little brother to help them, at least it would be for the volleyball team. Humans who got sick like this were taken to the hospital by calling an 'amb you lance', Gravitas knew. The team looked at each other, they left their phones back in the locker room. Gravitas then remembered Ami carried her mobile phone in her purse, and started rummaging through it. She found it, but it was turned off and Gravitas did not know how to turn it on.

"How… does this work?" she muttered. The Saurian girl also told her sister: "You and your friends should get them to lay down somewhere comfortable than here on the floor…"

"She's right." Miyuki nodded. "Come on, let's get those gymnastic mats from the storage room." The girls did as their captain told, and Miyuki herself turned Ami's phone on for Gravitas before following her teammates. Gravitas thanked her, then quickly dialled the number of the Outer Senshi.

"Moshi-moshi?" Michiru picked up the phone.

"Can you hear me?" Gravitas asked monotonously, wanting first to make sure she didn't have to speak louder.

"Yes, who's speaking?"

"Hiroko," Gravitas answered. "I need my sister, it's an emergency."

* * *

**Next chapter: Different kinds of help!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Gravitas tries her best, but she still has a lot to learn. Don't worry about not having reviewed in a while, no pressure! Thanks for reading!


	119. Different kinds of help

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**119. Different kinds of help**

Michiru listened patiently though with rising worry to Gravitas' relating the events of what happened at the sports hall to her. It had taken a bit of persuasion on her part to get Gravitas to talk, the Saurian seemed insistent on talking to Traveller, not to her. But Traveller was outside doing some weapon training with Hotaru at the moment, and Michiru wanted to know what was going on before she interrupted that. Yes, there was a great chance it was indeed serious, especially if it was Gravitas who called, but with Saurians, you could never be sure. Nightmare accidentally turning the TV channel to Death Note had been an emergency, too.

"I do not know what to do," Gravitas' monotonous voice came through the receiver. "At first, Ami and my 'sister' were screaming and twisting wildly, as if trying to shake something off, but now they are utterly quiet and do not move." The Saurian girl spared a moment to glance at her little sister, who was still sitting by Minako's side, face full of worry.

"My 'sister' has curled up, as if she is in an egg, and Ami has gone completely limp. They do not react to anything and keep staring into nothing. It is… unsettling," the Saurian of Gravity continued. "The girls of the 'volleyball' have gone to get something to lay them on, and my sister is at her 'sister' her side." There was a short pause. "There is a strange feeling in my chest now, as if I am cold, while I'm not. I do not know what it is, but I do not like it. I do not know what to do, and Ami is not here to help me now."

"I understand," Michiru said quickly, her brain working quickly to try and figure out how to solve this situation. First, she had to help Gravitas identify that feeling so she stopped being bothered by not knowing it. "The feeling you feel is undoubtedly worry, Gravitas. You worry for Ami, just like Nightmare does for Minako."

Gravitas looked at her sister again, especially at her face, and try to judge if it looked as if she was experiencing the same feeling she did. It was hard to tell.

"I need my sister," she repeated her first request, in order to change the subject. "I cannot see anything wrong with their bodies, so it has to be mental. Traveller has to bring Ignika."

"Ignika will not be able to help them, Gravitas," Michiru quickly informed the young Saurian. She heard the door to outside in the kitchen open, and a moment later Haruka poked her head in the living room, a frown on her face. Her gaze expressed her desire to know what was going on and what was taking her love so long on the phone. Michiru, still talking, could only give her dear Haruka a dark look to let her know it was something serious.

"Why not?" Gravitas asked sharply. "He _has _to, he _must_!" Gravitas frowned, not knowing why she said that like that. She knew Michiru was not one to lie, so logic dictated that if she said Ignika could not help, then it was so. And yet she had insisted Ignika would come to help. Was this what it meant to be 'worried'?

"There is little time to explain, so I'll try to be brief," Michiru said quickly. "Hotaru and Makoto-chan had the same thing happen to them, Gravitas. I do not doubt that Ami and Minako just now had a vision of the time when they were killed by Galaxia, one so lifelike, they now really think they are dead. When this happened to Hotaru and Makoto, Ignika could not help them, could not reach their minds."

"Then what should we do?" Gravitas snapped, surprised by the tone of her own voice.

"They have to be snapped out of it. With Hotaru and Makoto, we threw ice cold water in their faces," Michiru continued, urging the Saurian to remain calm. "Any shock will do, anything to break the illusion." She paused for a moment, remembering something else Gravitas had said. "You mentioned some other girls from the volleyball?"

"Yes, it was training of the team today, apparently, so my sisters came here to join. The girls saw what happened and are still here, equally worried about their teammate," Gravitas explained again.

"I see…" the Senshi of Neptune muttered, frowning. "This will be a problem… Gravitas, listen carefully. When you break the illusion, it is very likely Minako and Ami will break down crying, will be overcome by hurt and sorrow. And in such a state, I doubt they are aware of who is around, and might mention Galaxia, or the fact that they died, or even that they are Senshi. If those girls hear that, there will be trouble."

"That does make sense," Gravitas admitted from the other end of the line. "But I can hardly shove them out of the room, given that they are just as worried about their friend as I am."

Michiru clutched her forehead. The situation was complicated, and she sighed deeply. When she felt Haruka's hands on her shoulders for comfort, she was very grateful, and touched one of Haruka's hands with her free one and squeezed lightly. "You have to either remove them from your presence in a non-suspicious way, or prevent Ami and Minako from spilling our secret in their sorrow."

"They have to be taken away from here," Gravitas added. "One of the girls mentioned calling an 'amb you lance' and have them be brought to a 'hose pie tall'."

"You have to prevent that at all costs!" Michiru commanded urgently.

"I am aware," Gravitas droned. "So even if Ignika can not help them, Traveller should still come to retrieve them and bring us someplace safe."

The teal-haired woman almost agreed, but then realized something else. "Gravitas, if those girls are still there, Traveller can not teleport. Even if she knew where the sports hall was and did not teleport within sight, arriving so quickly after you called us would be suspicious. And even if it was _not_ suspicious, Traveller can not teleport them away as long as those girls are there."

There was a short silence as both women were deeply lost in thought, trying to come up with a solution. Finally, Gravitas got a light bulb over her head, signalling that she had an idea.

"I may know a way to prevent Ami and Minako from spilling the secret in their sorrow once we snap them out of it," she said. "But even then, they still should not remain here."

"I agree, but it is vital to snap them out of it as soon as possible. So try that idea you have. I have an idea for how we can bring them home," Michiru replied. She looked at her lover, who was listening intently to the conversation and had by now figured out what had happened. Her face, too, was full of worry.

"Listen, Gravitas. Me and Haruka will come and get you, and take Traveller and Ignika with us. While we drive, Traveller and Ignika will try and get the location of the sports hall in her head. Then she'll bring Ignika home and teleport back to us in the car," the Senshi of the Depths explained. "You and Nightmare meanwhile will try to bring Ami and Minako back from their illusion. Tell the girls from the volleyball that you called your sister, and that she is now being driven to you by me and Haruka to bring Ami and Minako to the hospital. While you wait for us to arrive, try and find a way to get the girls to leave somehow. If you succeed, call us again, and Traveller will teleport to you immediately. If not, we'll manage as well if your idea to keep Ami and Minako controlled works. Simply wait for us to arrive then. It should not take any more than half an hour, depending on traffic."

Though Michiru had said a lot, Gravitas had listened attentively and followed and understood every word. She nodded curtly. The plan was logical and simple, and they had a backup plan as well, just in case. "I understand, and will do my best," Gravitas said. "Though I urge you to hurry."

"We will," Michiru promised. "Oh, and Gravitas?"

"Yes?"

"It is not bad to worry," the Senshi answered, before hanging up.

* * *

"What? What did she say?" Nightmare asked her sister, sick with worry. Gravitas lowered the phone and put it back in Ami's handbag, then went over to her symbiosis partner and sat down next to her. Gravitas then proceeded to give her little sister a short description of what had been discussed over the phone and the next course of action they had to take.

"So how are we gonna prevent them from giving away anything?" Nightmare asked, confused.

"You will do that, of course, my sister," Gravitas said monotonously, as if it were obvious.

"Huh?" Nightmare blinked.

"If we shake them out of this, it is most likely that if they start crying hysterically it is because they are afraid of dying," Gravitas explained. "That is where you come in. You will drain their fear with your powers. Unlike giving fear, draining fear is not something the girls will be able to see." Of course, the silver-haired Saurian knew that Nightmare was the best in _giving_ fear, draining it from a person was a whole other matter, and not something she did very often, if at all. Thus, her experience in that field of her powers was small at best.

"I…" Nightmare gulped. "I'll try." She would try her best not to let her powers slip. She knew perfectly well that could be lethal for the two, especially if the fear was something as strong as the fear of death.

"You'll have to," Gravitas said. She looked up when the doors of the storage room went open and the rest of the team came back while dragging in a large mat. The Saurian girls hurried over to help, their great strength being very welcome. The girls then lay Minako and Ami on the mat.

"No signs of getting better, huh?" Miyuki frowned.

"I have called my sister," Gravitas said, trying to put some emotion in her voice, and she succeeded in getting a bit of her worry in there. "I did not know who else to call, and also, my 'sister' and Ami are friends of her hosts. So I talked to Michiru-san, and she and Haruka-san will come to bring them to the 'hose pie tall'."

"I see." Miyuki nodded. "That's good."

"Will they be alright?" Rumiko asked worriedly.

Gravitas looked at the two Senshi who were now being placed on the mat. "Michiru-san suggested we try snap them out of it… With water or something…"

"Wait, there's a medicine cabinet in the storage room, we could use sal ammoniac." Takako suggested.

"If it's there." Chiara corrected.

"Well, I'll check anyway, and you go fetch water then." Takako said.

"Anything to help my Onee-chan!" Nightmare insisted, having taken place next to Minako's still body again. She tried to shake her sister awake again, but the only response she got was that a shiver ran down Minako's spine, followed by the Senshi letting out another scream. The other girls shivered as well, because of how chilling the scream sounded. They could see now that Minako was crying and shivering violently, though she remained curled up, as if in an egg.

"What could it possibly be?" Miyuki wondered. She had never seen anything quite like it, not even heard of something like this. Though she didn't know Ami, she did know Minako, and that the blonde was a very healthy girl, not one to collapse in hysterics all of the sudden and then go limp as if dead.

"I don't know…" Gravitas said quietly, her eyes fixed on Ami. She took her friend's hand and held it gently. The aloof girl bit on her lip for a moment, then said quietly: "I am at loss… I have a feeling in me now, and Michiru-san said it was worry… But I do not understand it, I do not comprehend it… I… don't know how to deal with it… If Ami were here now, she would know… She would tell me what it is, what it meant… She would tell me not to be afraid of it, would teach me how to handle it…" Gravitas shook her silver-haired head slowly. "But she is not here now… and I… do not know what to do."

Miyuki sat down next to her and put her hand on Gravitas' shoulder. "Worry is when you are concerned for someone else's wellbeing. It's when you're afraid something bad will happen to them. Or that something bad will happen in general, not necessarily to them." She explained.

Gravitas gave the team leader a long, calculating look, for the first time today not glaring at her. "How do you deal with such a… confusing emotion?"

"Usually you make sure that everything is alright, or make yourself think everything is alright, or is going to be." Miyuki answered.

"But how can you make sure when you cannot be sure at all? It makes no sense," Gravitas objected, looking at Ami. "It is not sure at all it will be alright…"

"You have to believe in it, and do things to make it alright." Miyuki said. "Worrying for someone isn't bad, but doing nothing but worrying won't get you anywhere."

"Then what do I do?" Gravitas wondered aloud, so innocently naïve.

"Well, you already called for help, you told us what to do, so you did everything right." Miyuki smiled. "Now just wait." Gravitas nodded slowly, then returned her attention to Ami, waiting in silence for either the water or the medication to arrive.

Takako then came back from the storage room, her face in an annoyed frown. "Didn't find sal ammoniac. And half the meds I did find were expired." She shook her head. "Come on, what's wrong with this hall!"

"Well, let's try with water then," Rumiko said. "Just have to wait until Chiara comes back with some. Speaking of which, I wonder what's taking her?"

"Hey, gimme a break!" Chiara said just as she entered the hall. "I didn't have anything to fill with water, so I had to go to the shop across the street and buy a bottle of it!"

"Doesn't matter as long as it's cold!" Nightmare snapped. Not because she was angry, but because she was worried. And also, because she was nervous. If the water managed to do the shock part, it was up to her to take care of the 'do not spill the secret' part.

"It is, right from the fridge." Chiara said, opening the bottle. She then splashed the two dead girls with cold water, right on their faces. As with Hotaru and Makoto, the sudden change in temperature from warm to ice cold had a shock effect on the two girls, jolting their bodies and rudely tearing their minds back to reality, the illusion shattering like a mirror.

"Minako-chan, are you alright?" Rumiko asked, kneeling next to her. Minako's eyes blinked a few times and she sputtered to get the water out of her face, her mind reeling with suppressed images of her own deaths, fear and pain. Though the realisation that she was alive hit her almost immediately, so did the flood of emotions related to that. The fear, the pain, the feelings and the vision had been too real, too lifelike. She had truly thought she was dead, had felt herself die again, and such things left their impact. Her mind in shambles, Minako had no control over her feelings, and could only let her tears flow free, wailing, heart wrenching sobs and cries escaping her throat.

"Ami…" Gravitas called quietly, reaching to her through their bond which was no longer blocked by the illusion. She felt a slow tug at first, the soft feeling of emotions flowing from Ami once again. But then Gravitas had to quickly break contact because of the flood of negative, painful feelings she received from Ami's end, the Senshi of Mercury breaking down much the same way as Minako had. Gravitas looked at Nightmare, urging her to set to work before returning her attention to Ami again.

The Saurian of Fear went to work, not changing the way she held her body or how she looked, to keep it all very subtle. She reached out with her powers, to feel the fear, radiating from the two Senshi in gigantic quantities. Carefully, she lashed out with some fear of her own, mingling and mixing it with the fear and the Senshi, before pulling her own fear power back, dragging the fear of the two broken Senshi along. It was not easy, and the amount of resistance she received was enormous. Barely a few seconds after she had begun, she was already sweating profoundly from her efforts.

"Now that they're conscious, should we give them some calming medicine?" Rumiko suggested.

"The one in the med cabinet expired." Takako said.

"I always have some extra in my bag just in case," Miyuki said, once more proving how serious she took her duties as a team captain. "I'll go get it."

Chiara smiled. "That's our captain!"

"We're lucky to have her," Rumiko agreed, smiling as well.

"But she still went spying with you." Takako shook her head.

"To keep us in check," Chiara corrected her. Takako nodded.

"Does your sister live far?" Rumiko asked Gravitas. "Will it take them long to arrive?"

"Michiru-san said no more than half an hour," the Saurian girl replied, still holding Ami's hand and caressing it. The Senshi girl was still crying rather loudly, but it seemed that Nightmare's efforts were starting to pay off.

"Must be quite far then." Takako nodded.

At that moment, Miyuki returned with the medicine. "Alright, girls, let's sit them up so they can down the pills." She commanded. The two Saurians nodded, and tried to make Ami and Minako sit up, resulting in the two clinging tightly to their Saurian friends.

"Gravitas… Gravitas…!" Ami sobbed quietly, clutching fistfuls of Gravitas' shirt in her hands, seemingly still not quite aware of the company she was in. "Where are you… don't leave me…!"

"Who…?" Rumiko blinked. The other volleyball girls also looked at each other, confused. Gravitas, realising she could not answer lest she blew their cover, looked confused as well and did not reply.

"Ami, my friend, it's me, Hiroko…" she said, trying to sound warm and calming. "It's okay, you will be okay, you are safe…" Ami looked at her for a moment, as if recognizing, and then continued crying loudly. Gravitas embraced her and rubbed Ami's back softly, hoping she was doing the right thing.

"Ehm, Hiroko, we need to give her the medicine…" Miyuki said, though it felt very uncomfortable to interrupt such a heartwarming scene. After all, this strange, aloof, autistic girl was giving comfort to Ami, and something told Miyuki it was a rare sight. Gravitas wasn't insulted though, and nodded. She softly quit the embrace, though she kept holding her friend.

"We are going to give you a medicine now," she said to Ami. "And you'll feel all better…" Ami whimpered, but managed to down the pill Miyuki put into her mouth with water, although it was Gravitas who had to hold the bottle, because Ami was simply in no condition to do so. Once it was done, the Saurian of Gravity took her friend back in her arms and held her gently.

Miyuki went over to Minako then. "Minako-chan, we need to give you the pill, too." She said softly. The Senshi of Venus, who was clinging to her adopted little sister, only whimpered and let out another heart wrenching wail. Miyuki gave her the pill and made her down it with water. Nightmare patted Minako's back and comforted her silently through the bond. Minako continued crying, death was just too much to shake off just like that. Nightmare didn't mind, at least she wasn't spilling her secret as a Saurian or the fact that she and Ami were Senshi.

At that moment, a car horn was heard from outside. Nightmare gave a start, but Gravitas remembered that the same thing happened when a driver came to pick them up to go to Michiru's concert. "That must be Haruka-san and Michiru-san." She said. "Please meet them and lead them here." She asked the girls. It suddenly kind of hit the volleyball team just who they were about to meet in person.

"Come on!" Rumiko urged everyone else, and they all ran out of the hall to meet the celebrities. So that they could get the traumatized girls to the hospital, of course. The sisters watched them go, and then looked back at their symbiosis partners.

"Onee-chan, it will be okay now," Nightmare whispered softly.

"N-n-nightmare…" Minako whimpered. The Saurian of Fear smiled a bit and gently caressed Minako's cheek.

"I'm right here," she said.

"I don't wanna die…" Minako whispered before breaking down into sobs again. Nightmare hugged her.

"You won't, Onee-chan, your imouto-chan will make sure of that!" the Saurian of Fear promised. Minako just kept crying.

"G…Gravitas…" Ami cried. The Saurian in question hugged Ami in response.

"I am here."

"Don't leave me… I'm scared…" Ami whimpered, clinging to her. The Saurian turned human caressed Ami's back softly, and promised she would always be there for her. She didn't understand why Ami even thought her capable of leaving her at a time like this.

At that moment, Haruka and Michiru finally entered the hall. The volleyball team flicked around them like moths to a flame, and Traveller, who followed at a decent pace behind them, would have found it incredibly amusing if she weren't so worried for her sisters and their Senshi friends.

"Finally! What took you so goddamn long?" Nightmare shouted at them, though one could tell she was extremely relieved to see them. Gravitas wished her sister wasn't so rude, but couldn't help but agree somewhat. She there and then decided that worry was stupid since it made her do illogical things. There were probably tens of valid reasons why Haruka and Michiru had taken so long. That worry made her do a lot of logical things somehow escaped her notice.

"Sorry for taking so long, we got stuck in a traffic jam." Haruka said apologetically, then looked at the two hysterical girls. "Can they walk to the car?"

"They'll have to," Gravitas replied.

"Girls, help them get to the car, please." Michiru asked the volleyball team. They immediately rushed over to help and got the two girls on their feet together with the Saurians. As they did so, Traveller observed a bit.

"They seem like a nice enough group," she said to Michiru.

"Seems so to me, too." Michiru smiled.

"And now I know why people do not look at you both strangely when you walk over the street," Traveller added. "They all think Haruka-san is a man!"

Michiru giggled. "You noticed that only now? What about that poor government official who fainted upon discovery?"

"Ah, yes, how could I forget?" Traveller said, rolling her eyes. Then she sighed and shook her head. "It is not the time to jest, I suppose."

"Indeed." Michiru nodded, and looked at the girls who were slowly walking Ami and Minako to the exit. She patted Traveller on the shoulder and squeezed it assuringly for a moment, and then followed the girls back to the car. Traveller looked around the hall once again, then followed her. She glanced at her sisters, who were sticking very close to their Senshi partners, and she understood why. If this happened to Setsuna, she would be just as worried.

Finally, the girls were safely put in the car, and it was time to say goodbye to the volleyball team.

"Sorry for all the trouble," Nightmare apologised to her friends, bowing like her Onee-chan had taught her.

"No trouble at all, it was an emergency." Miyuki smiled and bowed as well.

"And sorry for the net, too," the Saurian of Fear added sheepishly.

"Ah." Miyuki, and the other volleyball girls, had forgotten all about it because of what happened to Ami and Minako. "Well, you promised to buy a new one anyway, so, no big deal."

"You'll keep us informed, won't you?" Takako asked, referring to the condition of the two Senshi.

Gravitas nodded. "We will. I'll make sure of that."

"I'll let you know when you can visit as soon as possible," Nightmare added.

"Okay." Takako sighed in relief.

Haruka, Michiru and Traveller were about to climb in the car then, and Nightmare made to follow, but Gravitas turned to face the volleyball team one last time. Her gaze settled on Miyuki, and she slowly walked up to the team leader, observing her with her usual empty gaze.

"Hiroko?" Miyuki asked.

"You… helped me," the aloof Saurian girl said monotonously. Miyuki nodded. Gravitas tilted her head to the side a bit, taking in Miyuki and her team from tip to toe. "You helped Ami, my sister and my 'sister'…" she added slowly. Gravitas paused for a moment and frowned. She wasn't good at this and she knew it, and she wished dearly Ami was here now to help her do this correctly. Eventually, all she could come up with was a toneless: "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Hiroko." Miyuki smiled. The Saurian girl nodded, then thought of something else.

"You asked me to forgive you for hurting my sister," she said.

"I did." Miyuki nodded.

Gravitas paused again. "I do," she then said simply.

Miyuki smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," Gravitas replied monotonously. She then bowed a bit. "And I apologise for the net."

"No big deal." Miyuki repeated with a smile.

"I can come back?" Gravitas asked, slightly curious.

"If you feel like it, then yes." Miyuki nodded.

"Good," the Saurian replied, and then she promptly turned around and walked away, climbing in the car next to Ami. Nightmare watched her sister, barely believing what she had just seen, and then turned to Miyuki, whispering a quiet 'thanks'. Miyuki nodded, smiling, and said:

"You're welcome."

Nightmare smiled and nodded back, then got in the car as well and closed the door. Haruka started the engine, and then they were gone, speeding down the street. The volleyball team watched them go, each of them thinking back to the strange events they had been witness to today.

* * *

**Next chapter: Hurt, confusion and worry!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Kuroui: I like to catch my readers off guard. =p Thanks for the review!


	120. Hurt, confusion and worry

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**120. Hurt, confusion and worry**

It took a bit of squeezing to fit them all in Setsuna's car. Haruka had taken that one because it had a roof, and she didn't think it would be wise to drive through the city with two broken down Senshi where everybody could see them. That still didn't solve the problem of space, however. Even with Traveller having teleported home as soon as they were out of sight of the volleyball team, Gravitas, Nightmare, Ami and Minako still had to squeeze to fit on the backseat. Nobody minded, however, for it gave the Saurians the chance to be in close contact with the girls and soothe them through the bond.

Nightmare was holding her dear Onee-chan close, hugging her, caressing through her hair, whispering softly, trying to calm her down. "Shh, it's okay, Onee-chan, it wasn't real… You're not dead, you're here, with me…"

"I… I… really?" Minako could only whimper.

"Really," Nightmare replied, as calm as she could. She nuzzled Minako's neck affectionately and tightened her hug. "All an illusion. As if I would let you die!"

"But… you weren't there…" Minako sobbed. "It was so scary…"

"And it's in the past," the Saurian of Fear said firmly. "And now it was just an illusion, a trick of the enemy to break you. No, I wasn't there then, but I am here now, and I promised I wouldn't let you die, didn't I? So how about having a little faith in your little imouto-chan to keep her promise, hmm?"

"Imouto-chan…" Minako said slowly and clung to her tightly. "I don't wanna die… Don't… let me… die…" Nightmare sighed and held the Senshi of Love close, cuddling her like a mother would cuddle her baby.

"Of course I won't, honestly, what are you thinking," Nightmare sighed again, shaking her head. Minako couldn't think, she was shaken with pain and fear, but at least she quieted down somewhat. Pleased with this small success, Nightmare continued to hold and comfort her blonde sister.

Next to them, Ami was shaking in Gravitas' embrace, the shock from illusionary death taking a great toll on the gentle girl. Gravitas did whatever she could for her friend, but felt so powerless by her lack of comprehension. She didn't know what to do or how to do it, Ami hadn't taught her that much yet. So, with no other option, she copied her sister's behaviour, holding Ami close, caressing through her hair and trying to calm her down with gentle words.

"G… Gravitas…" Ami whimpered. "Don't let me go… I… I'm so scared…"

"I won't let go," Gravitas promised calmly. "You do not have to be scared."

"Death… It's so cold there, Gravitas… So painful, so alone…" Ami cried.

"You are not dead," the Saurian girl replied, pointing out the obvious. "You are alive. And here, with me."

"I… yes… I wanna stay… I don't want to die…" Ami whispered painfully, sobbing. Gravitas hugged her tightly again.

"You will not die," she said quietly. "I am here now, am I not?"

"Yes…" Ami whispered, and her whimpers quieted down a little. Gravitas felt herself smile a bit, and she nuzzled Ami's neck as well, just like her sister had done to Minako. She hoped Ami didn't mind that. That calmed Ami a little more, and she leaned into Gravitas' touch. The Saurian girl made soft purring noises to further try and calm Ami down. It did work somewhat, but the shock was still too much to deal with at once.

"I will protect you," Gravitas promised. "It was not real, it was an illusion. You are safe with me."

"I hope so…" Ami whispered painfully and broke into quiet sobs.

"I know so," Gravitas said, even if she thought she was lying. She didn't know so, not for certain. But she knew it was what Ami needed to hear now.

"Thank you…" Ami whispered again, and almost quieted down. Gravitas merely nuzzled her again, and hugged her warmly, trying to give her as much comfort as she could, both physically and through their bond. It worked, and Ami finally fell silent. Gravitas let out a quiet sigh of relief.

"Good work, Gravitas." Haruka complimented with a smile.

"Thank you, I think," the Saurian replied quietly. She frowned in discomfort. "It was very difficult."

"Such things never are." Michiru frowned. "It was difficult to calm Hotaru-hime, too… But you managed." She smiled. Gravitas nodded quietly, looking at the still distraught, if now quiet, Ami. "She will recover, eventually." Michiru said assuringly.

"Will she?" Gravitas asked, uncertain and worried.

"Makoto and Hotaru seemed to do fine." Haruka said. "And… don't forget it's not our first death." She added quietly. Gravitas snarled angrily.

"That does not make it less painful!" she hissed.

"I know. But it does mean she will recover." Haruka explained her point.

"I don't know, manwoman," Nightmare muttered. "Did any of you have a breakdown like this before?"

"Hotaru and Makoto did." Michiru answered. "The rest have been spared it… for now." She frowned.

"I didn't mean that," Nightmare snapped, hugging Minako warmly again. "I meant before, before you met us, when you died previously. Did you have any then? And if not, how can you be so sure you'll recover? We have no idea if or when these attacks could return."

"We didn't." Haruka had to admit. "Because in our resurrections, we were always brought back by love and warmth of Serenity."

"Well then, I don't get why you're so sure of yourself," the Saurian of Fear scowled. "For all you know, your daughter is at your house at this very moment being a snivelling heap of sorrow once again."

Haruka and Michiru froze. They did not think of that.

Michiru then slowly shook her head. "No. Setsuna would have called us if this was the case."

"Maybe she is having an attack, too," Gravitas suggested.

"Then Ignika would have called, or Traveller." Michiru insisted.

"For your sakes, I hope so," Nightmare replied. She hugged Minako again and kissed the top of the Senshi's head. "Don't worry, Onee-chan, we'll get you somewhere to rest soon."

"Where are we… going now?" Gravitas suddenly asked. They could not go home with Ami in this state, or her mom would ask questions.

"To our place." Haruka said. "Ignika is there, and we do indeed need to check whether Hotaru and Setsuna are safe."

"That is good," the silver-haired Saurian disguised as a human said. "Ami's mom would be suspicious if I came home with Ami in this state."

"Indeed." Haruka nodded. Then she frowned. "Wait a minute, Ami's mom? She's home?"

"She is." Gravitas confirmed. "Ami and I were… surprised… too." She frowned a bit. "It is difficult to live now, I have to be careful not to tell my secret. Why does Ami's mom not know?"

"The Inners keep their identities as Senshi hidden from all, even from their family." Michiru explained. Nightmare recalled Minako saying the same before, but now she wondered why that was so, and she asked Michiru for an explanation. "Most of all it is not to worry them, and to not involve them into something that is beyond their understanding and ability." Michiru said. "The battles with the youma were done in secret, humans who were victims usually remembered nothing. Most of the world is oblivious of our existence, and it should have stayed that way for a long time still."

"Why?" Gravitas wanted to know.

"It is easier to fight that way." Haruka explained. "We, Senshi, possess great power, at least by human standards. And if we did not keep ourselves secret, eventually some human would most likely try to use our power for their own benefit."

"Then you simply get rid of that person," Nightmare shrugged.

"If there is only one. But what if armies try to use us for their benefit? Threaten our families, our friends, other innocent people and force us to wage wars?" Haruka pressed on. Then shook her head. "No. Let our power remain a secret until the world is ready for it."

"And when will that be?" Nightmare asked, while she caressed through Minako's hair.

"After the Ice Age." Haruka said firmly. "Or so Setsuna says, at least."

Gravitas and Nightmare shared confused looks. "What Ice Age?"

Michiru looked at them. "You do not know yet?"

"Know what?" the two sisters repeated.

Michiru was about to start telling, but Haruka shook her head. "Look, we almost made it to our house. Ignika knows what the Ice Age is and what it will bring, so let him tell you. I know there will probably be a lot of confusion if we do."

"Fine with me, Onee-chan's more important anyway…" Nightmare muttered, hugging Minako again. "Heard it, Onee-chan? We're almost there…" Minako nodded numbly. She was silent, exhausted from all the fear and pain she remembered. Nightmare kissed her hair again, wanting her to feel better, trying her best through their bond to comfort her and make her feel good again. It helped a little, and Minako relaxed. Nightmare sighed relieved, and she started to believe Minako would be fine. Gravitas hoped the same would be true to Ami.

Nightmare looked at her biological sister and saw her worry. It touched her, and she smiled encouragingly at Gravitas. "Don't worry, sister, they're strong. They'll make it out okay."

"I… want it to be so." Gravitas replied quietly, and stroked Ami's hair once again. She felt something strange in her chest. Was it relief for the fact that she had her sister's support? She wanted to ask Ami. Later. If… When she would recover. She saw her sister kiss Minako's hair again, and decided to do the same to Ami. She could feel Ami stir a bit at that, and relax a little more. It pleased the aloof Saurian girl, and she snuggled close against Ami. Ami let out a sigh.

Minutes after, the car reached the Outers' mansion, and Haruka deftly parked it front of the house. She'd drive it to the garage later, when everyone had gone into the house. The two Saurians opened the passenger doors and began to help their Senshi partners out of the car. The two were numb from crying and sitting still in the car, and yet slowly but surely got out of it. Nightmare and Gravitas supported them, and slowly made their way over to the front door with the two broken Senshi. Michiru went ahead and opened the door for them.

"We're home!" She said loudly as she entered. "With Ami and Minako!"

Her words weren't cold yet or Ignika and Traveller came running into the hall, worry on their faces. Setsuna and Hotaru followed at a calmer pace, the Senshi of Time having an arm around her daughter.

"Welcome home." Setsuna said. "Did everything go well?"

"The girls of the volleyball don't suspect a thing, they're just worried," Haruka reported. "Gravitas and Nightmare managed to calm Ami and Minako down enough, too."

"I think they need some calming tea and rest now, most of all," Michiru added.

"I'll check them just in case." Ignika offered.

"I would appreciate that, brother," Gravitas said quietly.

"But can we get them somewhere more comfortable first?" Nightmare asked, not feeling like standing in the hall with Minako leaning on her all day, no matter how much she loved her older adopted sister.

"Of course." Haruka nodded and led her guests to the living room. The Saurians followed them as quickly as possible while supporting their friends.

Ami and Minako were put safely in the couches, and Michiru went to make them some calming tea. The two girls were slowly getting out of the haze caused by the pain of dying, mostly thanks to the efforts of their Saurian counterparts. Nightmare and Gravitas didn't leave their sides for a moment, holding their hands and trying whatever they could to help. It did seem to work, because the girls weren't crying anymore, just sitting there and leaning back on the couch, exhausted. They simply didn't have the strength to cry anymore.

Hotaru looked at them sadly. She had gone through the same thing as them, after all. "Could you try to help them, Ignika?" She asked her Saurian friend hopefully. Ignika looked at the two hurt Senshi and frowned, sighing.

"I wouldn't be able to do much, Hotaru-onee-chan…" he answered sadly. "My mental capacities are primarily for giving myself information… I can read minds, I can ease and soothe and calm them a bit… But against hurt so powerful as this, that it has an effect on the body… I am powerless…"

"Well… you could calm me a little…" Hotaru said, looking at him. "Could you please try?"

Ignika nodded, not wanting to disappoint his new family-member. So he went over to the two Senshi and triggered his powers, trying to reach out to their minds and calm them. He met some leftover resistance used to block their minds, but got through it. Once that was done, his powers flowed through them, trying to soothe the damaged minds. It seemed to work. Thanks to all the calming down before, all that was left to do now was add some finishing touches. The two girls visibly relaxed as he used his powers. Still, even so little an effort used up a lot of his mental strength. Once he felt he couldn't do it anymore, he stopped, breathing heavily.

Hotaru came over to him and hugged the Saurian boy. "Thank you…" Ignika couldn't say anything, being out of breath.

"Everyone…" Minako said quietly. Thanks to Nightmare and Ignika, she was now fully aware of her surroundings. "What… What happened to us…?" Nightmare and Gravitas glanced at each other, having no idea themselves. Michiru had told them they had received an illusion of dying, but the Saurians had no idea what caused that.

"Same thing that happened to me… and Mako-chan." Hotaru replied quietly. "Something made us think we've died."

"It was more than that…" Ami whispered quietly, her eyes still a bit glazed and filled with hurt. "It was more than making us think… it was… _feeling_ it… _experiencing_ it, as surely as if it… really was happening…"

"I know…" Hotaru whispered back. "But it was an illusion. We're still alive, all of us are."

"And we won't let that change," Ignika said firmly, finally having recovered enough.

"Still… Does anyone know what caused it?" Nightmare asked. It became very quiet in the room, and their silence told the Saurian of Fear all she had to know.

"Well, Haruka-papa kept insisting it was an attack…" Hotaru said uncertainly.

"There are no Saurians capable of creating such powerful illusions," Gravitas rebuked that suggestion immediately, her face serious.

"Indeed… And they want us dead, not mind-raped." Minako said. Nightmare's face twisted in discomfort and her sister's choice of words. Minako noticed it and realized her mistake. "Sorry…" The Saurian girl shook her head, indicating that it was okay, and she hugged Minako tightly to prove it. Minako smiled, thankful for the hug.

"But… if not an attack, what could it be?" Ami asked.

"The truth is… we have no idea," Traveller admitted quietly.

"None of you?" Minako raised her eyebrows.

"Well I still say it's an attack," Haruka shrugged. "But if Ignika and the others say there is no such Saurian, we'll have to look elsewhere."

"Like where?" Hotaru asked. Her papa grimaced.

"Zyglak?" she suggested with a whisper.

"But… I thought he was still in another dimension?" Minako said, confused.

Haruka threw her hands in the air in exasperation. "Then I don't know. I really don't know!"

"Did you… consult Master Angonce on this matter?" Ami asked. Everybody shook their heads. They hadn't. "I believe we should, he could provide more insight on this than any of us could."

"You're probably right, Ami-san," Ignika nodded. "Though for that we must all go, so we'll have to bring Usagi-san and Rei-san up to date as well."

Everybody nodded, but then Hotaru exclaimed: "Wait! Usagi-chan and Rei-chan haven't been attacked yet! They might be in danger!" Realisation dawned on all present in the room, and their faces paled. How the thought of warning the two remaining Senshi had not yet crossed their minds, none of them understood, but they felt incredibly stupid because of it.

"We need to warn them." Setsuna said and went to get her cell phone to call the girls.

"We'll call the Princess," Michiru added, going to fetch her own cell phone as well.

"I hope it's not too late…" Hotaru said worriedly. Ignika took her hand and squeezed it gently, trying to ease her worry a bit.

"We'll know soon enough…"

"Hello? Usagi? Are you alright?" Michiru came back into the room, already talking on her cell phone. "Oh, you're with Rei? In her shrine, correct?" When she received a positive reply, Michiru nodded briefly to let the others in the room know so as well. "Well, I call to warn you of danger. The…" The next moment, Michiru's eyes widened as she heard the phone being dropped. "Usagi? USAGI?" She shouted into the cell phone, but the only thing she could hear were two shrill, horrifying screams.

"REI!" came Usagi's scream through the phone, and in the couch Minako flinched as if she was kicked in her stomach. In an instant she realized what had happened, for she had been there, right next to the Senshi of Mars, as Galaxia struck them down from behind while they ran towards their beloved Princess.

"Oh god…" Hotaru whispered. "Traveller! You have to get them out of there, now!" She cried. But her words were useless, since the Saurian of Teleportation had already disappeared from as soon as she had heard the screams. There was no time to waste, Ignika's sister knew. She had to retrieve the two fallen Senshi, bring them home so that they could be made to see that they were anything but dead.

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**Next chapter: Tales of servitude!**

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**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Thanks for the review! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. =)

Neanda: I'm not a fan of stories that add new Senshi or Knights either. Only a few do it well. So I tried to be original, and took some elements from a different fandom and mixed them with my ideas, creating Ignika and his family. I'm quite pleased with the result, and I'm glad people like them as well. Thanks for reviewing!


	121. Tales of servitude

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**121. Tales of servitude**

The evening had fallen over Tokyo, and people were hurrying home from work or school, going about their daily lives as if nothing out of the ordinary had been happening recently. But that was only the outward appearance. High above the streets, on the roof of one of these ridiculously tall buildings, hidden in the shadows, he could feel it. The anxiety, the nervousness, the fear of these fragile beings beneath him. The recent attacks made by his kin had disturbed them, shaken their normal lives, and they now lived in constant fear of another attack. Their fear was justified, for he knew it was coming, just not yet. No, his master needed a bit more time to prepare, but he was almost ready for the crossing. And until that time came, the servant would continue his subtle work.

His ears heard the disruption in the air long before he saw it, so he was not at all surprised when he heard the soft thud of two clawed feet hitting the cold stone roof. Wondering what this was all about, the being shifted his body. His eyes opened, two red glowing eyes in the shadow cast by the cabin encasing the end of the stairs leading to the roof. The shadow placed his gaze on his visitor, and waited.

"So this is where you have been the past few days," Avsa the Devourer, the shadow's visitor, said calmly, meeting the gaze of the red eyes evenly. "Days, and yet undetected by the Great Being's servant. As expected of the greatest of us all." There was a ripple of power in the air that made Avsa tense for a second. The shadows before her seemed to grow darker, and then suddenly, she stood face to face with the leader of the Phantoka, the greatest servant of Zyglak…

Kraahkan, the Shadow.

The greatest Immoral One calmly unfolded his four wings – skeletal arms with long fingers with wisps of shadow, which looked like smoke, clinging to them, forming the membrane of the wings – and stretched their aching muscles. "I can remain unseen and undetected, even from a Great Being and his shadow, if I so wish, Avsa," the Saurian of Darkness replied, as calm as Avsa had spoken to him. "And in turn, I can conceal others as well."

"Which I counted on when I came here," the female Immoral One replied. "So you are here, concealed and undetected, as a shadow should. To what end?"

"The destruction of our master's enemies, what else?" Kraahkan answered casually.

Avsa tilted her head sideways and looked at her fellow Immoral One curiously. "I have not been informed of any new attacks being planned or undertaken. And none of our brethren have gone missing."

The leader of the Phantoka chuckled. "I thought you wiser than that, Avsa. Do you see me as a fool?"

"I would never," the Saurian of Immoral Hunger said hurriedly, not wishing to invoke the other Saurian's wrath.

"Of course not," Kraahkan nodded sagely. "You were the wisest of us, after all, and would not make such a huge misjudgement in character." He paused for a moment. "A foe can be destroyed without physical attacks and invasions, Avsa. And given how three of my best men have failed employing that tactic, and Mohtrek is about as subtle as an axe to the head, I felt a change of pace was required. I have no desire to get hit by or awaken yet another symbiosis attack."

Avsa growled softly as she was reminded of her previous, painful, defeat. "You have a point," she admitted. "But what can a Saurian of Darkness do?"

"Quite a bit," Kraahkan smiled. He casually walked over to the edge of the roof and looked down to the city beneath. "Darkness is so much more than simply shadow, more than the absence of light… Darkness is fear, the shadow of courage… Darkness is hate, the shadow of love… Darkness is pain, the shadow of pleasure… Darkness is sorrow, the shadow of happiness… Darkness is I."

Understanding began to dawn on the female Immoral One. She raised an eyebrow curiously. "A mental assault?" she guessed. "Without even being in their presence? Is that possible?"

"Did you not hear me?" Kraahkan corrected her gently. "I am shadow. Every shadow in this city belongs to me. I feel their presence, and through it I can influence it. And if the shadow belongs to a living creature, I can influence that being as well." He smirked, revealing the sharp teeth in his jaws. "Shadow is such a peculiar thing… It is in all of us, even in the Senshi. And it only requires me to touch it, to bring it to the surface… And then the structured, ordered world of light they have convinced themselves to live in comes crashing down upon them."

"So you intend to drive them mad," Avsa concluded. "It could work. Every being has its weakness."

"Oh, be sure of that, my friend," Kraahkan nodded calmly. "It seems the Senshi's shadow of happiness is quite large. And I, being the compassionate being I am, merely freed that shadow, the sorrow, from its confines… Unfortunately, it seems our honoured adversaries cannot handle the flood once I break the dam…" The Saurian of Darkness chuckled softly.

"Sometimes I wonder if you're being honourable or are simply a sadist in a civilised package," Avsa noted dryly.

"I simply do as I must for the master," Kraahkan replied. "That will be honourable to some and sadistic to others. It bothers me not, I am still no Mohtrek."

"It surprises me you did not give him a chance to take on the Senshi before going in yourself," the Saurian of Immoral Hunger said. Kraahkan snorted, much to her delight.

"Please, if I sent forth Mohtrek, we'd no doubt be having a great deal of civilian casualties on our hands, which while amusing for him doesn't do anything for our mission to eliminate the Senshi or capture the Child," the leader of the Phantoka explained. "He is a mad beast, who needs to be turned loose only when there are masses you need to get rid off. Not when you require subtlety, or have a very specific target."

"I pity this world for the day when we find those masses," Avsa muttered, shaking her scaled head. She crossed her arms and looked at her leader expectantly. "What if this attempt of yours also fails, Kraahkan? Given our record, it is a possibility."

"If I succeed or not doesn't matter at this point anymore. The master only commanded me to buy time. And when it comes to that, I am succeeding very well," came the answer. The female Saurian nodded briefly, accepting that.

"At least one of us is succeeding," she hissed.

"Peace, my sister, your efforts were valiant, and provided us with more information, so they were not in vain," Kraahkan soothed her. "It allowed Felnas to earn us a temporary success."

"Key word being 'temporary'," the Saurian snorted.

"All the same, we have not yet tried our master's patience, which we should consider ourselves fortunate for," the master of Shadows explained calmly. "Very soon all that won't matter anymore, in any case. The time of the Crossing is nearby. I only need to continue to buy time until that moment."

"The Crossing, and after that, the hour of shadow falls upon this world," Avsa muttered, more to herself than to her leader. "Pity the fools who resist, for their efforts are futile."

"Futile, but honourable. What can be better than to die a glorious, honourable death?" Kraahkan asked in reply, smiling, almost dreamily. "I can think of no greater satisfaction, no greater pleasure, than the wounds of battle, or to fall in a fight."

"Honour is something I lost long ago," Avsa shrugged. "Often my… kindness is mistaken for it, but that could be no further from the truth. Avsa the Devourer has no honour."

"You certainly are harsh for yourself," Kraahkan remarked curiously. "Why so?"

"Have you never wondered why each of us serves?" she asked in reply. "Power, madness, genuine evil. It all flies for our brethren. My reasons are far more simple… much more basic." Seeing the questioning look in Kraahkan's red eyes, Avsa sighed in annoyance and explained: "For me it was self-preservation, brother. I was afraid to die, I did not want to die. The thought of staring in the eyes of death scares me witless. When the master came, I thought death was upon me. So when I was given the choice to die or serve, I didn't think twice. I became Immoral, out of fear. Fear for the master, fear of death. Call it cowardice if you will, you wouldn't be wrong." The Saurian woman paused for a moment. "And that is also why I can have no honour. A honourable coward does not exist, and a coward I am. It angers me when I am called honourable. It's such an insult to those who still have their honour, such as yourself, brother."

There was a short silence as the leader of the Phantoka stared thoughtfully at his underling for a moment. Then he shrugged and turned his gaze back to the city below. "So that is how it is, my sister," he said calmly. "Cowardice, you say. Perhaps. Yet do not think I now look down upon you. Survival is in our instinct, after all, and obeying it is not shameful. I still think you are being too harsh on yourself."

"Your kind words are welcome," Avsa replied monotonously, masking any feelings she might have felt. She looked at the back of her leader's impressive form. "You know of me now, and probably know of our brethren's reasons as well, brother. And yet, _your_ reasons for serving are as much cloaked in shadows as your wings and body are." She cautiously came to stand besides him. "So tell me, brother, why do you serve evil?"

Kraahkan chuckled softly. "Good and evil are of no concern to me, sister. I care not what people think of me or my actions. In another life I might just as well have been on the 'good' side as I now am on the 'bad' side. And yet I don't care for either ideals. I serve the Master, I serve evil out of… self-interest, shall we say. I care as much for the master's plans as I do for those of the Great Beings." Seeing Avsa's shocked face, Kraahkan was quick to explain: "Oh, do not take me wrong, I _will_ carry out the master's plans to the best of my abilities. But in the end, if they succeed or not, the reasons behind them, good or evil, I do not _care_. I simply serve the Master because of the offer he made to me, an offer that concerns only my own interests, and nothing else. Now that I think about it, I am quite selfish like this. I only care for myself, it would seem."

"You do not care for good or evil, you do not care for the Master's plans, you do not even care about self-preservation, and yet you serve so loyally. Consider me confused, brother," Avsa remarked.

"I serve the master because that way I hold up my end of the bargain, that is all." The Saurian of Darkness stared at the setting sun and smirked. "Long ago I was a simple Saurian of Accuracy. But I lived for battle. I thrived on it, craved it. I roamed over all of Voya searching for the strongest opponents to face and defeat in honourable, fair combat. I could simply not get enough of the thrill of battle, of ferocious fights to the death that took all of my skill. I need it as much as I need food and water." His dark smirk widened. "But eventually I ran out of opponents to face, and none could rise up to my level to offer me the thrill, the honourable combat… And then the Master came. If I followed him, if I served him loyally, so he said, then I would get even more power. If I followed and served, I would come across new, powerful opponents to face, be they good or evil. If I followed and served, my thirst for the thrill would be sated. So naturally I accepted. And thus Kraahkan was born, and I rose to be the top servant of our Master, and I have fought and slain and endless list of fantastic opponents. The Master has hold up his end of the bargain well, and so I do the same."

The Saurian of Immoral Hunger besides him looked decidedly unimpressed. "That is it? You simply joined and served Master Zyglak because you wanted powerful opponents to fight?" She shook her head and almost laughed. "That seems… underwhelming."

"Not quite," Kraahkan corrected her calmly. "I do not just want to fight, my sister. I do not just want the thrill of a fight… No, it goes beyond that… You see, I have a reason for wanting this thrill, a reason for wishing to find and battle all the opponents, regardless of the fact if it makes me good or evil. I have fought many battles under the master, many were thrilling, yes, but all of them fell short of fulfilling my ultimate desire. My desire to find this one special man or woman. None of the great foes I battled and slew ended up being this person, but I know that if I keep following and serving the Master loyally, I will find him or her one day."

Avsa looked now positively confused. "First you say you serve because you want to sate your thirst for the thrill of battle, now you say you have a desire beyond that. You are confusing me more and more, brother. Who is this person you seek?"

The Saurian of Darkness besides her grinned, a terrifying, haunting grin that walked the thin line between sanity and madness. There was a gleam in Kraahkan's eyes that Avsa had never seen before yet, and she involuntarily shivered. Suddenly asking for Kraahkan's reasons for servitude no longer seemed such a good idea.

"My dear sister," the Shadow smirked. "I am searching for the man who can kill me."

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**Next chapter: Descend into dream!**

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**Review replies:**

Bin82501: Thank you. And thanks for the review. =)


	122. Descend into Dream

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**122. Descend into Dream**

Meanwhile, at the Outer Senshi's house, everyone did their best to comfort Usagi and Rei. When Traveller brought them in, Rei was comatose, believing she was dead, like everybody else had been. Usagi, however, hadn't died. No, what she was experiencing was much, much worse.

In her vision, she saw her friends die right before her eyes, mercilessly killed by Sailor Animamates, leaving her with horrible pain of loss in her heart. Yet what she saw after it was something she never wanted to remember ever again. It was a memory only she had, and one that she had never shared with her friends, out of fear of making them feel hurt and guilty.

Her friends as Dark Senshi.

Dark Senshi… She felt immense relief the moment she saw them, she was happy to see them alive… Little did she know that these creatures were nothing more than twisted images of them, brought to life with corrupted power of their Sailor Crystals. They laughed at her, they attacked her… Even her beloved Mamo-chan… Usagi couldn't believe it, she couldn't bear it. She screamed and cried from mental pain. It hurt so much as to be unbearable. Never in her life had she felt so lonely as at that point, when all she had held dear, her friends, her daughter, her love, had all been taken from her, killed before her eyes.

"No… no…!" Usagi cried. "Don't…! Don't do it, Mamo-chan!"

The Senshi and Saurians crowded around her looked at each other worriedly and confusedly, not knowing what she meant or what she thought she was seeing.

"Everyone! No! Why are you…? Snap out of it!" She begged her friends in her vision, but it did not make them stop. They kept attacking her, they kept mocking her, Mamo-chan kept standing at Galaxia's side…

"We have to end this…" Traveller said quietly, her heart aching as she watched the Moon Princess.

"We do…" Her symbiosis partner nodded grimly. "Shall I fetch some cold water?"

"Will that help?" Hotaru wondered. "I-I mean… she doesn't think she's dead…"

"But the shock might still snap her out of it…" Ignika muttered thoughtfully. "It's worth trying."

Setsuna nodded, went to the kitchen and returned with a glass of cold water, which she promptly splashed on Rei's and Usagi's faces. It was oddly peculiar how such a simple thing could have such great effect, as the two traumatized inners spluttered and gasped for breath as the ice cold water hit their faces. The sudden shift from warm to cold snapped their minds out of the illusion, which dissipated, leaving them aware of where they were, with only the memory and the hurt of the illusion remaining.

Rei immediately began to cry hysterically from the pain and loneliness of dying that she experienced, but Usagi suddenly quieted down, looking at her friends in confusion.

"Everyone…" She muttered. The Moon Princess was confused, not knowing if the people she saw around her were real or just another illusion. How could they have been attacking her one moment, only to see them here standing around her worriedly the next? "Where is Mamo-chan…?" She asked, dreading the answer.

"Studying abroad, of course, Usagi…" Minako whispered quietly.

Usagi shivered. "R…really?" She asked. The answer meant she was no longer in Galaxia's realm, but was her vision now before or after he died…?

"Usagi-san, whatever you saw, it wasn't real," Ignika interrupted, looking at her intently. "None of it was."

Usagi's eyes widened. "I… Ignika…?" She said in disbelief. Then, suddenly, it all fell into place. Her friends were killed by Galaxia, resurrected as Dark Senshi, killed again, then resurrected by her. Years have passed since then. "Everyone…" She said warmly, breaking into sobs again. She wasn't alone. It was all in the past, even if remembering it so vividly hurt her immensely still. "Don't leave me again…" She buried her face in her hands. "Don't leave me all alone again…"

"We won't, Usagi-chan!" Minako said readily, hugging her. Usagi clung to her blonde friend desperately, craving the comfort, wanting the contact, for feeling Minako was the only way Usagi could believe that she was really there.

"Usagi-chan…" Hotaru said quietly, hugging her as well. Ami, meanwhile, tried to comfort Rei who awoke from her death. The memory of running to Usagi only to be struck down from behind, feeling her Sailor Crystal be ripped out brutally, it was all still very fresh and vivid in her mind. The memory of how her body had disintegrated, her last expression before death being one of shock, sent shivers down her spine and made her feel sick.

"Rei-chan…we're alive… we're all alive…" Ami kept telling her quietly. It was a pity that Rei had no Saurian partner to comfort her through a symbiosis bond. Ami remembered well how much that had helped when Gravitas had held her… She looked at Ignika, hoping he could offer the girl some relief with his Life energy. The boy understood the silent request and went closer to the Senshi of Mars, placing his hand on her forehead and activating his power, using it to send a soothing kind of energy through her body. Rei's face relaxed a little.

"Ami-chan… I don't wanna die…" She whispered. Her hand tightened around Ami's shirt. "Don't let me…"

"I won't, Rei-chan…" Ami promised.

"We all won't." Michiru said, coming over to hug her as well. She was glad she and Haruka hadn't had such a vision of their latest demise yet. It was a memory neatly suppressed within them, and not even their closest family knew how it had transpired. It was good, Michiru supposed, that Usagi had not been there then. But it hurt the Senshi of Neptune as the thought of how, having been stripped of her Inner Senshi and confronted by Galaxia, Usagi had called upon her Outer friends for aid, not knowing they had all already died at the evil Senshi's hands.

"Everyone… what… what happened?" Usagi asked, though she wasn't sure she wanted to know. Whatever it was, it had been utterly devastating for her, forcing her to live through the most awful moments of her life all over again.

"We don't know for sure." Haruka sighed. "But we all seem to agree it's some kind of an unknown attack." She folded her hands together and rubbed them nervously. "No idea what causes it, what triggers it or when… All we know is what it does…"

"Oh?" Usagi whispered.

Haruka looked at her Princess, and then at all the others who had already suffered an attack, and she felt a shiver run down her spine, afraid she would be the next. "You already experienced it, Princess…" Usagi bowed her head. She guessed it, and winced painfully.

"Everyone…" Hotaru said, letting go of Usagi briefly. "We need to contact Master Angonce now! I don't wanna see anybody else…" She almost said 'die', but stopped herself. "…attacked." She looked at Ignika desperately. "I think he's the only one who can help us now…"

"I agree." Setsuna said quietly. "But we need to take Makoto and Chameleon with us as well." She remembered well how Makoto had suffered an attack as well, on the same day as Hotaru.

"I'll get them." Traveller nodded, vanishing in thin air. Ignika watched his sister go, then went over to Usagi to see if she needed a touch of Life to recover, too. She didn't look as hurt as Rei, but it would do her good in any case. So he placed his hand on her head and triggered his power again, bathing her briefly in golden, soothing light. Usagi relaxed and sighed. It eased her. She didn't dare close her eyes, though, for fear of seeing the images flash before her again.

Nightmare looked at the two, then sighed. "I wonder what's taking Traveller so long?"

"Give me a break, sister," Traveller replied as she promptly reappeared with her brother and his mate. "Did you really want me to teleport our brother while he was using the bathroom?"

"That'd be… embarrassing?" Gravitas guessed, looking at Ami to see if she was correct.

Ami blushed. "Yes, very much so." Gravitas beamed, happy she had been right and had not said something that would embarrass her human friends for a change.

Nightmare rolled her eyes. "Useless brother is useless. Anyway, let's go!"

"Go where?" Makoto asked, not quite catching the situation. One look at a crying Rei and Usagi told her everything however, and she gasped slightly. "Oh no… Not you too, Usagi-chan, Rei-chan…"

Usagi nodded slowly. "Yes. And we want to find out the reason…"

Chameleon put his arm around Makoto, hugging her close to offer her comfort when she remembered what had happened to her some days before. He looked around worriedly. "Aside from Usagi and Rei, have there been other attacks?"

"Me." Hotaru raised her hand. "And Minako and Ami, too."

Chameleon rolled his eyes. "I know about you, Hotaru. I actually meant other attacks _after_ Makoto's. Sorry." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"No, I'm sorry." Hotaru smiled shyly. "I misunderstood."

"In any case," Makoto interrupted quietly. "I suppose we all agree that we have to find out what is causing it, and stop it, before more attacks follow?" She looked intently at Setsuna, Haruka and Michiru as she spoke, the only three who had remained unaffected for the moment.

"We do agree." Michiru answered for them all. She glanced at her daughter. "Hotaru suggested that we speak with Master Angonce, and ask for his help…" Her gaze now drifted from Hotaru to her newly adopted little son. "Seeing as none of us know what to do…"

"Why do we keep wasting time then?" Nightmare demanded, clinging to Minako's arm. She was impatient to get help, for she didn't want to risk her beloved onee-chan having another one of those attacks. One had been devastating enough.

Gravitas nodded. "I agree. We should make haste." She shifted a bit closer to Ami subtly.

"Then let's go." Traveller nodded. "Do I have to take you all, or you're capable of your own teleporting thing?" As she asked this, her Saurian family already moved over to her, ready to link hands.

"I'm not sure, to be honest." Usagi said, looking at Rei worriedly. Her beloved miko friend still looked shaken, and tears still ran quietly down her cheeks.

Ami nodded. "Best not to risk it…" She said, not quite sure of her own mental capacities at the moment. Only a few hours ago she too had suffered an attack after all. She looked apologetically at Traveller. "I fear you'll have to take us, Traveller."

Traveller frowned. "It'll also be risky taking you all at once… But I'll try."

Setsuna shook her head. "You can take us in turns, my friend. Take your family first, and then us."

Traveller smiled at Setsuna. "Which family, though?" she teased.

Setsuna chuckled. "The Saurian one." Her Saurian partner laughed, and then the five Saurians joined hands and vanished before the Senshi's eyes. Only five seconds later Traveller was back again, looking at the Senshi expectantly. They readily gathered around her, even Rei, and held hands, standing in a familiar circle. Traveller closed her eyes and breathed in and out deeply. Teleporting ten people at the same time, while possible, took effort and concentration, especially since she had to cross dimensional borders to reach Angonce's mansion.

Ignika's oldest sister triggered her power and focussed, concentrating on the image of Angonce's house. She felt it tug at her body, attempting to take her away. With a push of her mind, she let this power flow through her into the Senshi connected to her, as if they were a part of her, and let the power tug at them as well. Then, with a final push of her mind, she opened the floodgates of her power and it swept them away.

* * *

When the Senshi opened their eyes, they found themselves standing in the garden before Master Angonce's mansion, their Saurian friends waiting for them at the front door of the Great Being's house. Traveller was shaking a bit, and taking deep, careful breaths to steady herself. She was sweating from the effort that teleportation had taken.

"You alright, sis?" Chameleon asked worriedly. The Saurian of Teleportation turned to look at her brother and smiled weakly.

"I am fine, thank you, brother," she replied. "That teleportation just took a lot out of me, that is all."

"Auntie…" Hotaru said timidly, coming over to her and trying to ease her a little with her powers. Traveller was surprised at first, startled even, but that quickly went away and she smiled, putting her arms around her little niece warmly.

"Thank you, Hotaru-chan," she said gratefully.

"No, thank _you_." Hotaru smiled innocently, hugging her Saurian aunt back. Traveller frowned, confused.

"For what?" she asked.

"Ehm…" Hotaru blushed. "For taking us here safely…" Understanding dawned on the Saurian woman, and her face brightened. She patted Hotaru lovingly on the head.

"You're welcome, my dear," Traveller said kindly.

"Wait, wait, wait," Nightmare interrupted the warm scene, looking at Traveller with a frown and a hint of dread. "_Auntie_?"

"Ehm, we couldn't leave Traveller out of the family once Ignika was adopted…" Haruka said sheepishly. "It was Hotaru's idea." She quickly added, though.

"Wait, wait, wait," Nightmare repeated, now whirling around to look at her little brother. "_You_ were adopted by _manwoman_ and her mate?"

"Umm… yep." Ignika said sheepishly. He blushed under her staring gaze, and blushed even deeper when he saw all Senshi aside from his parents and Makoto stare at him surprised as well.

"Oh, come on, you all look as if it was something bad." Michiru rolled her eyes.

"Ehm, try surprising, Michiru-san…" Ami muttered shyly.

Haruka sighed. "Ami-chan, here you have a kid who in his thousand years of life has never felt parental warmth. That kid lives in your house and is almost like a son anyway. Wouldn't you do that?"

"Ah, I, ah… Think I am a bit too young to be a mother, Haruka-san," the Senshi of Mercury replied.

"Yep, but we are, so we did it." Haruka finished with a smile. Ami nodded, as did the others.

"Well I think it's great!" Minako cheered with her typical sunny smile.

"I think so, too." Usagi smiled.

Gravitas looked from Ignika to the Outer Senshi, back to Ignika and back to his new parents again. Her face betrayed confusion and she scratched her head, something she rarely ever did. "We have parents now?"

Haruka sighed, came over and put a hand on her shoulder. "Sorry, but our family can't possibly fit four more children. We adopted only Ignika."

The Saurian let out a sigh of relief. "Thank the Great Beings," she muttered. "I have seen thanks to Ami what a mother is like, and I do not ever want one. Ami is enough." She looked at Ignika strangely. "You are odd, little brother."

"Am I?" He blinked. Gravitas nodded. "Why so?"

"Mothers…" Gravitas repeated, frowning. She thought of Ami's mom and shook her head in disapproval. "He is odd, is he not, Ami?" she asked her friend quietly, certain she was right.

Ami smiled sadly. "Gravitas, not all parents are the same. You've seen my mother, but you can tell she's different from Michiru and Setsuna, no?" The Saurian looked at the two said Senshi thoughtfully.

"I… suppose…" she said slowly.

"So Michiru and Setsuna won't be the same as my mother when it comes to children and how to treat them." She explained.

Gravitas seemed to understand that, but still said: "I still do not want a mother… I just want you… And my family."

"You'll always have me." Ami promised with a smile. Gravitas looked at her gratefully.

"I hate to interrupt this interesting topic and heart warming scenes and all," Chameleon said carefully. "But I don't think Master Angonce's front door is the place to do it…"

"Yes…" Ami nodded shyly. "Sorry, everyone."

"No problem," Ignika smiled back. "I think it had to be said. So now that we did, let's ring the bell." He turned to the beautiful door of the mansion and pressed the symbol of the Great Beings that was imprinted on it. Upon touching it, the symbol turned golden, and hauntingly beautiful, melodious notes rang through the air softly.

Michiru laughed softly. "Great Beings… Even a doorbell melody is genius!"

"If only the one opening the door would be the same…" Hotaru muttered, closing her eyes so she wouldn't have to see the one who would inevitably open the door and let them in.

"He is a genius, alright, but from the other side." Rei sighed.

"Why thank you," the horrid voice of Crast the Repulsive cackled as the hideous head of the insectoid appeared straight through the front door. "But flattery will not gain you anything, primate." His blood red eyes scanned the entire group of Senshi and Saurians before him. "So the entire useless bunch is here. What will you bother the Master with _this_ time?" he snarled.

"Something beyond our comprehension, as usual." Setsuna muttered.

"Well _that_ goes without saying, doesn't it?" the Repulsive spat. His head disappeared through the door again, and moments later said door opened, and Crast mentioned them inside. "The Master awaits. Mind your manners, you useless primates…" He then turned his back to them, nearly hitting them in the chest with his tail as he did so, and skittered away, cursing all the while about useless primates and dumb reptiles.

The Senshi followed him into the mansion, admiring their surroundings once again. Crast awaited at the entrance of the living room, which he had opened, and he blocked the hall with his form, so they had no choice but to enter that room or go back. The Senshi, of course, entered the living room. Angonce was there, sitting in his usual one-person couch, a book laying open in his hands.

The Senshi and Saurians bowed respectfully before the Great Being. "Master Angonce, we have come to seek your council." Usagi said, curtseying like a real queen. The divinity nodded and closed his book, placing it carefully on the small table. It had a silver cover and the symbol of the Great Beings, so it was one of their works.

"I was expecting you all. Please do come in," the divinity said kindly, welcoming them. The Senshi obeyed his invitation and sat on the other couches in his living room. Those who couldn't find a seat remained standing, while the Saurians settled on the carpet on the floor. Angonce looked at them all, one by one, thoughtfully. "One is missing," he noted, looking at Usagi. "The Small Lady will not be joining us today?"

"She has gone to Elysion to solve an important matter." Setsuna replied. Angonce closed his golden eyes for a moment, then nodded in understanding.

"So I see," he said calmly. The Kind then looked up and smiled as Crast entered the room as well, closed the door and took his usual observing spot in the shadows. "Then we are all gathered. Please, do tell me why you have come seeking my aid. All of you together, even."

"Six of us have suffered from an attack by an unknown force. A mental attack." Haruka explained the situation. Angonce waited calmly for them to give him more details.

"The attack… it forced us…" Ami shivered. "To relive our most horrid memories…"

"And it was real… um, I mean, as if it was for real." Hotaru explained. She shivered as she remembered feeling, thinking, believing she had died, shivered as she remembered the feeling of her Star Seed being ripped from her body, even if that feeling was just an illusion.

"To be precise, our final battles with the forces of Sailor Galaxia." Usagi whispered. She closed her eyes and tried to suppress the memories.

"The darkest days of your lives," Angonce said quietly and seriously.

"Yes…" Everybody agreed.

"Is there anything else?" the Great Being wanted to know.

"It really tricked us into believing we were… dead." Makoto said quietly. "And it took some effort to make us come to…"

"Their minds repelled mental contact, and the symbiosis bond, too." Ignika said. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I think this was because they believed themselves to be dead, like Makoto-san said, so didn't see themselves capable of mental contact or symbiosis." The boy shook his head and sighed. "But Master, I know of nothing that is capable of creating such powerful illusions!"

"None of us know." Usagi said. "And so, we have come to seek your aid."

Angonce nodded quietly, seemingly deeply lost in thought. After a few moments of silence, he looked at the Senshi. "I would like to read the mind of one of you who was attacked. Any volunteers?"

"…Me." Hotaru decided, getting up from the couch and coming over to the Great Being. Angonce smiled kindly at her, having somewhere expected that she would be the one to volunteer.

"Very well. Please come stand beside me, Sailor Saturn," he requested gently. Hotaru obeyed his request, trusting him completely. She shyly stood at his side, and Angonce turned to her. He took one of her hands in one of his, and placed his other hand on her head. Hotaru gasped slightly as she felt the Great Being's touch. She then relaxed and opened her mind to him, ready. Angonce closed his eyes and brushed her mind with his, letting her feel his mental presence, as if asking for permission to enter. Hotaru welcomed him, allowing him to scan her. So the Great Being entered her mind, and for him it was like stepping into a large library while having the keys to every section of it.

He scanned the endless lines of bookcases, scanned every title of every book, sometimes stopping to pick one out that seemed peculiar and read it. Hotaru sat quietly and tried her best not to think of anything. This was the strangest mind reading she had ever experienced. When Ignika did it, it was subtle, she didn't even feel him. But she could feel the Master, feel him walking around inside her mind so carefully… It was kind of scary, but she knew she was completely safe.

Angonce, meanwhile, had found a lot of information, but it wasn't what he was looking for, and he didn't seem capable of finding it… Until he noticed something. There was a hatch in the floor of the library, and when he tried unlocking it, he met a lot of resistance. There was something in the depths of this mind that tried its utter best to remain hidden.

"_Saturn… open your mind…_" He called, for he knew that what he sought was here, hidden in this dark, forgotten corner of her mind.

"_I… I'll try…_" Her voice rang from everywhere and nowhere at once. She was afraid, for some reason and no matter how she tried, she couldn't let go of that fear. Then suddenly she felt Master Angonce's mental presence, like a glowing, gentle golden light that illuminated the dark. That relaxed her, and the hatch in her mind slowly, slowly opened. Angonce took the opportunity and descended into the darkness, his golden light illuminating it, and bringing to light many secrets. But he respected Hotaru's privacy, and looked only at what he had come to find: answers. Hotaru hoped that he could find them.

After a few more minutes of tensed silence, Hotaru could feel Master Angonce calmly coming back from that dark corner, closing the hatch again before leaving her mind completely. His golden eyes opened again, and he looked warmly at her.

"Did… did you find what you were looking for?" Hotaru asked, looking back at him.

"I did," he confirmed, squeezing her hand gently. "Many thanks for your trust."

"You are welcome, Master Angonce." Hotaru smiled shyly.

"Thanks to you, I have learned what I needed," he told her gratefully. "And now I understand the problem, and what has to be done."

"Tell us, Master Angonce, please!" Hotaru begged then.

Angonce caressed the top of her head gently to calm her down, smiling kindly at her, before turning his attention to his dark side, which stood quietly but observantly in the shadows. "My friend, I believe that this matter will require your attention, for it falls in your domain." A collective shiver ran down the Senshi's spine, and they wondered what the Master meant. Why did Crast have to help them, and not the kind Master himself?

"The cause of these attacks can be found within yourselves," the Great Being said calmly but seriously. "The attacker is without a doubt a minion of Zyglak, but he only takes advantage of what already lies buried within you. Such lifelike illusions as the ones you suffered through can't be created by an outside force, not unless we are speaking of levels of power equal to mine, which only Zyglak is and surpasses, and he has no need for such subtle tactics." Angonce sighed and shook his head. "No, my friends, these illusions and attacks, though invoked by an outside attacker, in truth come from within yourselves."

"And… how do we deal with it?" Rei asked hesitatingly.

"The attacks use your inner fear, your deepest, most repressed and safely sealed away memories. These assaults force you to confront them, to see them, to experience them all over again and suffer because of it, because you have not managed to overcome these memories and feelings yet. You repressed them, tried to forget them…" Angonce sighed and shook his head. "But if you are to prevent such things from happening ever again, this cannot be allowed to continue…"

The Senshi nodded in understanding. Yes, something had to be done about it if they did not want to become victims of such attacks anymore. But what could be done?

"You have to face your inner fears and overcome them, or you will never be free," Angonce finished firmly.

"But… how do we face them?" Hotaru asked quietly.

"There is a way," Angonce said. "It lies not within my power… But someone else can bring you to the place where you can face yourselves."

"Crast?" Ami guessed.

"I would have you all descend into a deep slumber, and once there, Crast's powers can take your minds from your individual dreams into a united consciousness. A dreamland, you could say. And it is there that you would be able to confront yourselves, together…" the Great Being explained.

Everybody nodded, even if a bit uncertainly. After all, to face their greatest fears they would be subjected to Crast's power. Haruka noticed that, though, and assured her friends:

"Don't worry, Crast-controlled dreams aren't harmful in the least. Me and Michiru already experienced one of those together."

Michiru smiled grimly. "Not harmful, true… But taxing, yes."

"Well, that's to be expected." Minako shrugged. "I think we should go for it anyway."

"Don't be so sure about yourselves, silly primates," Crast cackled. "If the dykes already found their dream taxing, I don't even want to imagine what you will find the one proposed to you." The horrible creatures skittered out of the shadow and came over to stand behind his master. "You do not understand, do you?" Not waiting for an answer, he immediately continued: "Of course you don't, that requires intelligence. The dream I gave before was one coordinated by me. I controlled every single aspect of it, it was my design. The one given to you now will not be as such. It's design and form shall be created by yourselves only. So I cannot assure your safety…" He chuckled darkly and looked at them with his blood red eyes. Naturally, that made them shiver in pure dread, but the Senshi looked determined to solve their problems and face their fears even if it was risky.

The Saurians looked uncertain about it all, however. "Master, what does Crast mean? What could go wrong during this voyage?" Ignika asked, rather fearfully.

"The experience, the things they see and do, it will be as if it was really happening, as lifelike as the illusions they suffered through, if not more so. Seeing how that was enough to break their minds so briefly… You must realise the risks in undertaking an experience that goes much further than a brief vision, Ignika…" the boy's 'father' explained seriously.

"The choice here is between going through it and become immune to the attacks, or not going through it and risk being broken at any time." Rei said determinedly. "I think it's worth a shot."

"After all, we're in Master Angonce's presence." Ami added. "Recovering will be easier than before." She paused for a moment. "I hope…" she added in a whisper.

"I also think that gaining immunity is worth the risk." Usagi said. "Because if such an attack happened during an invasion, we would die both in dreams and reality." The other Senshi agreed with her.

"Of course, it speaks for itself that you and your family will accompany them, Ignika," Master Angonce added calmly.

"Really?" Hotaru's eyes widened.

"Naturally," the Kind replied. "They are as much a part of this now as you are, Sailor Saturn."

Hotaru sighed in relief. Ignika's presence in this seemed comforting for some reason. The other Senshi also looked at their respective symbiosis partners with a small smile, knowing that their bond would be a great aid in this nightmare. Said Saurians looked back and nodded, accepting the invitation quietly.

"So, um, how do we do it?" Haruka asked.

"I have a place down below where I have studied dreams in the past…" Angonce answered quietly. "I shall take you there, and all you will have to do is lay down on the beds and let me make you fall asleep. Once that is done, Crast will bring you all to this 'dreamland', and then it will be out of our hands, and into yours. I will be able to follow your dreams, but I will not be capable of interfering. You will be on your own…"

The Senshi nodded. "We are ready, Master Angonce." Usagi said.

"No, my friends, I fear you are not, and I doubt you would ever be," the Great Being said, dark and serious.

* * *

**Next chapter: A while in Dreamland!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Rizwan Fariz: Oh, Kraahkan is certainly evil, but he's not a traitor. He's probably the most loyal of all of Zyglak's servants.

Kuroui: No worries, it'll become clear what he meant by that, all in due time, of course. ;) Thanks for the review!

Fatal Mars: I'm glad last chapter was so well received by my readers. I like Ami and Gravitas a lot, too, especially since I can identify with Gravitas. Thanks for reviewing!


	123. A while in Dreamland

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**123. A While in Dreamland**

Deep below Angonce' mansion, in one of the many chambers of his great laboratory, the Senshi and there Saurian friends were laying, rather nervously, on beds in a circular room. The beds were the same as those Rei had been placed on during her recovery, only this time, they all had a pillow and a soft white blanket. They had been told to make themselves as comfortable as possible. Even the room itself was adapted to help them relax. It didn't look as highly technological as the other rooms of the laboratory the Senshi had seen. It was cosy and warm, and, aside from being round, looked like a typical bedroom, and soft, gentle lights. The walls were a soothing blue, there even were windows with red curtains, and outside of those there was a beautiful night sky, with pretty, twinkling stars.

It was all an illusion of course. In all actuality, the room was as white as all the others, with the glowing golden glyphs of the Great Beings all over it. Angonce could merely project illusions to hide this appearance, as he had done now. The Great Being himself sat in the centre of the room, where the only visible technology stood. It was as if he were seated on a throne, surrounded on all sides by holograms that for the moment were just like blank, white screens.

The Senshi were looking at him and at each other nervously, wondering what awaited them now. Surely they would just fall asleep, but what would they find on their way to dreamland? Will all of them be together, or each shall face their own demons? Can they overcome their fears?

The Saurians were no less nervous, though their nervousness came partly from once again being exposed to alien technology. On the other hand, they also feared for their Senshi friends, they didn't like it that this 'journey' would be far from safe for them. But they did realize it was a needed risk. So they waited, patient but nervous, for whatever would happen next.

Crast appeared behind his Master, his red eyes scanning the group of guests. He shrugged and made an annoyed sound, but said nothing. Angonce smiled gently at his dark half, as if to comfort him or calm him down. "Know that it is much appreciated what you will do, my friend." Then, to the Senshi, he said: "Well now, are you all ready?"

The Senshi looked at each other one last time and nodded. "We are." Usagi replied for everybody. The Great Being nodded once, sighed sadly, and then did something the Senshi couldn't see. It didn't matter, for they surely felt its effects: almost right away they started feeling drowsy.

"Do not resist the sleep," Angonce said, his voice sounding as if it came from afar. "Let yourselves go with it, join its flow… Good luck."

The Senshi obeyed, letting their eyes close and their minds drift away. And after casting one worried glance at their friends, the Saurians did the same. Before long, all fourteen of them had drifted off into an incredibly deep sleep. Angonce and Crast watched them for a few moments. Then the Great Being looked at the holograms that surrounded him, which were now displaying something. He studied it and nodded.

"Good, they are deeply asleep, and no oddities are happening," he declared. "Crast, I now leave it in your hands."

"And I, of course, shall not fail," the monster replied. Then his form faded, and he became like a shadow, only with two glowing red eyes. He seemed to split into fourteen different tendrils of shadow, which soundlessly slipped into the shadows of the fourteen sleeping people. A small shock went through their bodies, but Angonce knew it was normal, and he did not worry.

"_And now, my petty little primates,_" Crast thought with a smirk. "_We begin…_"

* * *

Hotaru opened her eyes, knowing that she was supposed to be sleeping, but found herself surrounded by nothing at all. Besides herself, everything was pitch black. "Huh? Why is it so dark in here?" Hotaru thought aloud. She was startled when her words sounded distorted and wrangled and had a weird echo to them, as if they had been pushed through a bad sound mixer. She frowned, then yelped and jumped aside when something shot straight past her. The young girl looked at it, and saw that it was nothing but a normal falling star.

"Umm, I should make a wish." Hotaru thought. "I wish I was somewhere!" She said aloud. Her eyes widened when the dark around her seemed to _melt_, and suddenly, she found herself falling! Hotaru shrieked, it was scary to fall, but then again, maybe she'll land on something soft? She looked below her, and saw the 'somewhere' she had wished for approaching quickly. A weird landscape that couldn't possibly exist, with right under her, at the spot where she would crash, a large bowl filled with feathers. "Oh, this works nicely!" She thought, and landed in the bowl with a big 'poof!' and a huge cloud of feathers. Giggling, Hotaru crawled up and looked around. The landscape was quite pleasant, and would almost seem normal if not for the blue grass. The fact that the sky was orange also didn't help much.

She wondered where she was, and where the others were, and what this landscape had to do with her fears. Maybe she landed in a wrong place… Looking around once again, she noticed a few buildings in the distance, and a path leading to them. Having nothing else to do, she went down the road. After a while of not paying attention where she was going, she suddenly noticed that the blue grass was gone, and instead there was a desolate wasteland all around her, for as far as the eye could see. The road was still there, but now it was dusty, and seemed to go on forever. The buildings did get closer, however. Or did they? It was weird, it was as if they suddenly started to melt. Hotaru frowned, then she suddenly shivered, but it wasn't cold. She had the feeling something was behind her.

Sailor Saturn turned around, but there was nothing there. Uncertain, she continued on, but the feeling of there being something behind her returned. She looked again, but saw nothing once more. She looked down at the road, at her shadow. It didn't look strange in any way. Hotaru's eyes then suddenly flew open in shock and fear. Her ears had picked up a sound. A chilling, horrible sound that terrified her: breathing. Harsh, chilling breathing, that sounded like it was coming closer. In panic, Hotaru ran down the dusty road, convinced the evil one was behind her, but the breath seemed only closer the further she ran. Besides, there was no place to hide. Steeling herself, she stopped and turned around.

There was nothing.

Cursing, not liking this game one little bit, she looked around, brandishing her Silence Glaive, confident there was something out there. But she couldn't see anything. There was just the endless, empty wasteland. There wasn't even a cloud of dust. Hotaru looked up, and for the first time noticed that the sun was black. Hotaru sighed, but did not turn around this time. If evil was so determined to get her from behind, she'll just walk backwards. There wasn't a single stone on the road, it shouldn't be a problem.

For some reason, she felt the urge to look up at the sun again. She did, and noticed that even its rays were black. It looked a bit like a ball with black tentacles now. Hotaru frowned. In fact, that's exactly what it looked like, she realized. The rays weren't even going straight anymore now, but were wriggling all around like true tentacles. Her frown deepened when the ray-ish tentacles seemed to change. They became smoother, longer and finer, getting a shine to them like… hair? Yes, it was hair. The rays of the sun had now become long black strands of hair. Hotaru felt herself grow nervous. The long black hair seemed so familiar… She looked at the 'sun' again…

And screamed.

The sun was no longer a sun. It was now a head, a head to which the hair was connected, with a face that haunted her nightmares. There was more than just a head with hair in the sky now, but the image of a person's torso, gigantic, stretching her long arms and hands with long sharp nails out over the sky, as if wanting to grab it. Hotaru fell on her back and screamed again, trying to shield her face with the back of her hand, trying to block out that image of Mistress Nine's figure in the sky, looming over her, threatening to devour her.

"_You are here to fight your fears._" A voice reminded her.

True as that might be, Hotaru couldn't stop trembling, as fear overtook her, and memories, hundreds of them, flooded her mind and appeared all around her. Memories of her former life mostly, but also from ages ago. Dying, dying, dying, again and again and again whenever her previous incarnations had used her powers. Never wanted, never loved. The nightmare of her previous life, the death of her mother, the demonizing of her father, the hell of life as a cyborg, the torture of her seizures, her loneliness, her fear of whatever there was inside her that was clawing at her chest from the inside, made her want to hurt the only friend she had…

"It's in the past…" Hotaru whispered desperately. "It's in the past, it's not real, it's not that way, it won't be…" She clutched her head between her hands and shook it wildly, begging the memories to go away, but they didn't, they kept piling up, more and more were coming… Galaxia, trying to help her Setsuna-mama, failing, dying, dying with her mama, and falling, falling into the abyss of death… The ground beneath her crumbled, and Hotaru felt herself falling away into the darkness. A scream escaped her lips.

She seemed to fall for ages, alone in the darkness, the sound of the events she had just witnessed again still echoing in her ears. Then suddenly she hit something, and Hotaru opened her eyes. Everything around her was still dark, aside from the giant white spider web, in which she was now stuck. She tried to move, but couldn't, trapped like a fly. Her struggle sent a tremor through the web, and to Hotaru's horror she could see the hairy leg of a gigantic spider appear out of the darkness. It was a horrible monster, a giant, hairy spider, but with the head and the long hair of Mistress Nine. Hotaru screamed, now she will be eaten like a helpless butterfly!

Then, suddenly, she could hear a voice. Horrible, like bones cracking, but so relieving in its familiarity. Suddenly, Hotaru saw Crast skitter out of the darkness, looking very much in place on that giant web.

"_Little, little fly… Why do you cry? Caught in a web… Soon, you will be…_" The monster smirked and looked at Hotaru, whispering on a horrendously frightening tone: "_Eaten._" Hotaru shrieked in fear, much to his delight. The monstrous dark side of Angonce rolled his eyes in amusement, but didn't move.

"_You Senshi truly are…_" he shook his head and sighed in exasperation. "_Pathetic. If this is all it takes to make you wet your fuku, my, then don't bother little fly, and just wake up. You are too weak to handle this dream, and it is obvious you don't have what it takes to proceed to your inner fears._" Crast laughed, a horrible, mocking laughter that turned Hotaru's blood to ice. "_Wake up, wake up, little fly, and be forever a slave to your fears, for you are too weak to conquer them!_"

"I don't want to!" Hotaru protested. However, she screamed again when the terrifying Mistress Nine-spider loomed over her, the hairy eight legs greedily starting to encase the Senshi of Saturn in a spidery cocoon, making it easier for her to be devoured. Desperately, Hotaru tried to use her powers against it, but with her arms tied to her side, it was hard to summon them. Crast watched, utterly bored.

"_Farewell, little weakling,_" he said, almost cheerful now. "_It's a shame you'll never be able to share with me what it feels like to be digested in the stomach of a spider._"

"NO!" Hotaru cried desperately, closing her eyes and gathering all the power she could. Fueled by her desperation, her tiara disappeared, replaced by the shining sigil of Saturn. Her powers flared to life, and suddenly, Hotaru felt very angry. With a roar of fury she released the full devastating might of her powers, unleashing a shockwave of energy that destroyed the web and the ugly spider, and illuminated the dark.

Crast watched, seemingly annoyed. "_I'm not impressed,_" he deadpanned, not wanting to give Hotaru a compliment. That would be entirely wrong, he knew. Compliments were poisonous to his tongue.

"Me neither…" Hotaru muttered, her cheeks flushing with shame. She had allowed her fears to control her, to overwhelm and paralyze her. And this had been only the first test. It was indeed far from impressive. "I'm sorry…" She sighed.

"_Fear is a power, little weakling,_" Crast said tonelessly from behind her. "_In the right doses, it is a very useful feeling. It tells you what you can or cannot do, it keeps you alert, it heightens your senses… Have too much, and it'll paralyze you, kill you from inside out. Have too little, and you'll be reckless and retarded._" The monstrous creature started to fly in lazy circles around her, pretending to be a little bird. "_It's all about balance._"

"I… I guess…" Hotaru said quietly.

"_Balance!_" Crast chirped with a horrible laugh, trying to sound like a cute little singing bird, and failing miserably at it. In fact, he threatened to ruin Hotaru's view of little birds forever if he didn't quit. The monster ignored her and made another chirping sound. A huge old-fashioned scale appeared, with two plates that hung in balance. Crast flew towards Hotaru, grabbed her, and promptly dropped her on one of the scale's plates.

"_The weak little fly goes there…_" he hummed in a singsong voice. Then he grabbed the shadows, and lifted something above his head. It looked like a sphere of glowing red light, about the size of a house. "_And her fear goes here,_" he finished, plunging the ball of fear on the other side of the scale. Immediately, the scale tipped towards Hotaru's fear, which far outweighed her normal self.

"_Balance, all about balance! Weak, weak, weak. So weak, so weak, not worth my time!_" Crast went on, and on, and on. The monster spiralled high into the darkness, then flew past Hotaru again like a blazing red comet. Then suddenly, he was right in front of her, his face mere inches away from hers, and Hotaru felt all blood drain from her head as his red eyes stared into hers. "_What is it you came here to do, little weak fly? What is it you hope to achieve like this?_"

And then he was gone, as was the scale, and Hotaru was all alone again, alone in the darkness.

"So… I… do I start over now?" She wondered aloud. There came no answer, and Hotaru felt uncertain again. Crast's last two questions echoed through her head. "I need to fight my fears…" She nodded grimly and summoned her Silence Glaive again, holding it firmly. Determined, she called out to her fears. "Come out and fight!" The scenery around her started to shift, the Darkness melting away to reveal a new landscape to her. Hotaru charged her glaive the way Ignika taught her, prepared for the fight. Her confidence swayed a little, however, when her eyes took in the sight of the dark rooms underneath Mugen Academy. She didn't let it get to her, however, observing the room.

She bit her lip to try and keep her mind to it, but had to admit that it had something unsettling to stand in the room where her late father had worked on his vile experiments again. She knew it was in the past. Her father had long since passed away, at the same time as her mother as far as she was concerned. She had bid her farewells, had said her final goodbye to him long ago, in a previous life. And yet…

She shook her head. She shouldn't be dwelling on it! She knew it, but failed to bring that into practice. It couldn't be helped, for here in the depths of her memories, in her deepest, darkest dreams, farewells didn't matter.

"Come out!" She called again, her voice a little desperate. But no reply came. All she heard was her own echo, ringing ghastly through the empty halls. It was maddening. Shaking her head, she decided to search through the laboratory. It seemed empty, unstirred and untouched by anything, with nobody there except for her. Did it mean that she had to face herself? She frowned, and began to understand that this journey wouldn't be easy indeed. She was all on her own, deeply lost in memories and dreams, with no clue as to what to do.

Quietly, she did a few more steps, nearly bumping into a low table. She noticed a picture laying on it and, driven by a sudden impulse, picked it up. A soft gasp escaped Hotaru's lips. It was her, as a young, happy child, smiling brightly from atop her father, her _real_ father, his shoulders, her _real_ mother standing next to them, holding her little hand…

She was happy back then. Yes, that was true. She was. But it was gone… for a long time before her rebirth. Hotaru suddenly felt angry, and before she knew it, had crumpled the photograph in her fist, furiously throwing it away. Clutching her glaive tightly again, she looked up at the ceiling and shouted: "What is it you want from me?"

She heard a chuckle, not too different from her own. "Why, nothing." A familiar voice said. Hotaru whirled around, ready to strike down whatever it was, but when she saw who was talking, she nearly dropped her Glaive. In the dim light of the room, she suddenly could see a big, cosy green armchair appear, surrounded by various plushies and dolls piled on and next to it. And in the armchair, obscured by the darkness, was none other than herself. "Recognize me?" The girl wearing the lilac frilly dress and thigh-length black boots said in a mellow voice, a little older than her own, petting the teddy bear she held playfully.

Hotaru, staring, could only mutter something incomprehensible and swallowed in disbelief. It amused her other self, who chuckled. "W…wh… what… why are you here?" Saturn finally managed to exclaim.

The older Hotaru giggled. "Silly me. I _am_ you." She said quietly, sounding almost friendly. She hugged and cuddled one of her plushies, almost cutely. "Why did you ruin my picture?" She said, referring to the portrait Hotaru threw away. Her face now looked sad.

Hotaru was startled by the question and gasped, her eyes looking in incomprehension at the apparition amidst the plushies. "W… what?"

"The picture. Such a nice picture, was it?" The older version explained. "Me, mama, papa…" She said, raising three ragged plushies with her psychic powers and making them cuddle each other. "Why did you ruin it?" The young Senshi of Saturn still looked confused, not understanding what this other self meant or was referring to, and she said as much. Her other self rolled her eyes. "Am I really such a fool?" She wondered, lifting the now-empty picture frame from the table and dropping it on Hotaru's head.

The gesture, coupled with the words and the meaning behind them, rekindled Hotaru's previous fury. "JUST TELL ME WHAT YOU MEAN!"

"Fine." The other Hotaru snorted. "Why did you just crumple and throw away that photo of my mom, dad and me?"

"Because it's the past," Hotaru replied immediately, firmly. "That belongs to a previous life, a me I no longer am." She thought for a moment, then added. "It belongs to _you_, and you're not me."

"Too bad. Because this." She gestured to the room around her. "Is all your fault." She nodded with her head at the crumpled picture of the happy Tomoe family. "That could have been you. _Would_ have been you, if you hadn't misbehaved."

"But… but it was an accident!" Hotaru protested. "I… I didn't know that explosion would come!" She clenched her jaw and glared at the other girl. "You're just trying to… to demoralize me, to break me… By saying things that aren't true!"

"Don't be a fool…" The other Hotaru smirked. "You had this power in you all along. And you were eavesdropping on papa's experiment, were you not?" She chuckled. "If you were a little smarter… you would have run for it. You could have told mama to get out of the building. But you haven't. Papa had to shield you from explosion. And you…" She slowly began to rise from her armchair. Hotaru felt herself grow doubtful and uncertain again. She tried to raise her Glaive, but strength failed her.

"It's not true…" was all she could whisper.

"You, my sweet little girl…" She whispered bitterly, coming into the light. "You condemned yourself to _this_!" She shrieked with utter hatred, ripping the dress off herself in one fluid motion. Now Hotaru really screamed, as she placed her gaze on what had previously been hidden _under_ the other Hotaru's dress. The beauty of the girl's body, too frail for her fourteen years, had been distorted by machine parts that replaced her entire right arm and almost a half of her torso. The boots she had on also mysteriously vanished, exposing her legs, the left being mechanical from half her thigh length, the right being machine down from her knee. Eyes filled with horror, her chest being squeezed by fear and dread, Hotaru backed away slowly, shaking her head, too filled with painful memories and horror to say anything comprehensible.

"A wondrous sight, is it now?" The other Hotaru spat at her.

Hotaru shrieked, dropped her Glaive and sank to her knees, clutching her head between her hands. "No! No! NO! NOO!"

"You stupid bitch." Her older self snarled, coming over to the cowering Senshi. "YOU should be fucking GRATEFUL for what you got!" She shouted at her, kicking the younger girl's face with her metallic foot.

"Grateful…?" Hotaru whispered, so quiet it was barely audible. The kick had knocked her on her side, and her lip was bleeding, but now the young girl quietly got up, clutching her mouth to cover her bleeding lip. In her eyes shone tears, tears of sorrow, but also of anger. "Grateful?" she repeated, her voice trembling with sadness, and she sobbed. "For living through hell?" She looked up at her older counterpart and glared, tears leaking down her cheeks. "For endless years of pain and seizures…? Grateful for papa who was no longer himself, and seeing him drift away from me…? For having nobody there to help me, to comfort me after my nightmares, to help me come to terms with mama's death…?" Hotaru bowed her head and sniffed. "I should have died that day, not be kept alive unnaturally like that… That's what should have happened…"

"Indeed, it should have…" Her other self said darkly. She came over to the fallen girl and grabbed her by her throat with her machine-enhanced hand. "But that can easily be fixed, don't you think?" She said, grinning madly and lifting the girl off the ground.

Hotaru's head was still bow, her black hair casting a shadow over her eyes, hiding them. Her gloved hand grabbed the machine hand of her cyborg counterpart. "You're right…" Hotaru whispered quietly. "All it would take…" There was a sudden spike of energy in the room, and the next moment, in the blink of an eye, cyborg Hotaru had been blasted into a wall, Hotaru standing firmly on her own two feet again, her Glaive held loosely in one hand. Finally, she looked up, her purple eyes filled with fury. "Is getting rid of you!"

The other self closed her eyes, then opened them, revealing a sick purple glow that replaced them. "Bring it on." She whispered, her psychic powers gathering in her, creating an astral wind around her and causing the black star to appear on her forehead. Hotaru would have none of it. In a flash, she saw the image of herself with her Haruka-papa, Setsuna-mama and Michiru-mama in her head, and it suddenly gave her courage. She moved so fast her counterpart didn't realize it until Hotaru was upon her. The girl swung her charged Glaive like Ignika had taught her, and struck her opponent down with her unparalleled might.

An explosion of power rocked the laboratory, and destroy nearly half of it, but Hotaru ignored it. Her attention was focussed entirely on the other her at her feet, and she stood over the cyborg, face grim but determined. "You're nothing," Hotaru growled. "You're just a ghost of my past, of my previous life, brought to life by the dreamworld. You're just a figment of imagination based on memories I kept repressed within me. But we can't change the past. What's done is done!" Hotaru's hands gripped her Silence Glaive so tightly her knuckles turned white. More tears were flowing down her cheeks, but they didn't stop her. "The past was painful, but nothing I do or you say will change it! And because of that, I don't have to fear you, or the past! I live in the now. And I'm alive, and I'm healthy, and I'm not alone, and I have mama and papa and mama and I'm loved!"

Hotaru spread her feet a bit so she steadied her stance, then prepared herself while charging her Glaive once more. "Let the past be painful. I live in the now, it cannot hurt me. Let the memories emerge in my nightmares, I can go to Michiru-mama and be comforted." The Silence Glaive glowed brilliantly purple with the great energies charged in it. "I'm not afraid of you or these memories. And if you come to haunt me, I'll strike you all down! Learn to stay where you belong… IN MY MEMORIES!"

"I will not… become a mere memory!" Her other half croaked, lunging herself onto her again. She might as well not have bothered, for before she even came close to hitting Hotaru, the Senshi of Saturn had already struck her with her full-powered Glaive, unleashing the energy within, letting it go. The great force of the planet Saturn utterly destroyed the ghastly dream Hotaru, but it didn't stop there. Hotaru let her power surge forward, and destroyed all that was left of the laboratory, the memory, until nothing remained but her and blissful white all around her.

Hotaru looked around her. "I… I did it?" She shook her head almost immediately. "No, it was just the first step… One of the memories inside me that one day could have attacked me… But not the one that did." The young Senshi still managed to smile and wiped some of her tears away, though new ones still flowed. Regardless of the fact that she still had a way to go, that the most horrible memory and pain was still ahead of her, she still managed to feel somewhat triumphant and relieved. She had freed herself of her own past now, or at least had begun doing so. She wasn't the same Hotaru Tomoe as the one who had taken down Pharaoh 90. She knew that now, understood it. That had been a previous life, and this was a new and different one. The memories, though dark, sad and painful, of that former life no longer had any influence over her. And even if they still did, after all of this, she could deal with it. Of that, she was certain.

Smiling confidently, Hotaru readied herself for whatever would come next. She knew what awaited her at the end of this journey. The memory of Galaxia would be more than just a memory, Sailor Saturn realised that. If it was just a memory, Hotaru could do away with it as she had with her sorrowful past… But Galaxia, no, her _death_ at the hands of that woman, was more than just a memory. It was a symbol, more than a memory, a representation of her inner fear of something. Hotaru knew what it was now, and knew it was the same for her fellow Senshi, her friends, comrades and family. That would be another battle, but she would not run. No more. She had done enough running.

Determined, Sailor Saturn dove forward into the next dream.

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**Next chapter: Dreambound!**

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**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Oh, I don't think any of us have problems with homosexuals. It's just that Crast adresses everyone in insulting terms, except for Angonce, of course. Calling Michiru and Haruka 'dykes' is just his way of speaking. He'll use every insult he can think of, dyke just being one of them. It makes him feel good about himself or something. Thanks for the review!

Bin82501: Glad you still like it. Thanks for reading!

Neanda: Oh, if you like Crast, the following chapters will be a gold mine for you. Crast is unleashed, and he'll use every moment he gets. ;) Thanks for the review!

Rizwan Fariz: Crast and Kraahkan are completely unrelated. The former is Angonce's dark side, the latter is an immoral Saurian. And I can safely say Crast isn't a traitor. It's not even a spoiler to say so. Thanks for reading! =)


	124. Dreambound

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**124. Dreambound**

When Haruka opened her eyes to take in the dreamland around her, her immediate reaction was that she had taken the wrong turn and had wound up in nightmare land. Everything around her was pink. Various shades of pink from pearly-pink to bright pink to magenta. After the horrible colours stopped swirling before her eyes, she realised that she was, in fact, in a room. Though by the colours of it and the ridiculous heart-sprinkled designs, it might as well have been a dollhouse. Maybe that was exactly what it was, she thought, this being a dreamworld where everything was possible.

"Ugh, I need to get out of here…" Haruka muttered, utterly disgusted by it all.

"Oh my, but why leave so soon? Tea is ready," a horrendous voice that was all too familiar said. Haruka, with dread, turned towards it, expecting to see the monstrous form of Master Angonce's dark side. What she saw, however, convinced her that she had indeed missed dreamland and wounded up in torture-to-insanity land instead. The sight was so horrendous, she couldn't turn her eyes off of it.

Crast was sitting there, behind a tea-table on a chair (how he managed to sit down on that while being a quadruped was everyone's guess), wearing a pink frilly dress, holding a porcelain cup of tea delicately in his pincer, now and then sipping politely from it.

Haruka couldn't do anything else but shriek and run for the door. However, for some reason, she found it difficult to run. She looked down to figure out why that was, but couldn't see much because the view was blocked by her… huge breasts?

"WHAT THE?" Haruka shrieked. Not only that, apparently Crast wasn't the only one who had decided to put on a pink frilly dress.

"Awww, useless primate, don't you like the make-over?" Crast chimed, sipping from his tea again. "Why, I thought you'd _like_ looking less like a male specimen."

"No I don't!" Haruka cried again, only to find her voice a few pitches higher than normal. "What have you done to me?"

"Nothing," Crast replied calmly, pouring himself more tea and adding a cube of sugar. He looked at her with a smirk. "This is _your_ dream, after all." He picked up a hand mirror with his free pincer and stared at his reflection. "Hmm, do you think I should have put on lipstick?"

This was too much for Haruka, and she dashed out of the room. Dear lord, that room was the _embodiment_ of what she feared. But the final blow came when she ran across a mirror.

Long hair, huge breasts, slutty make-up, high heels, PINK FRILLY DRESS! Haruka felt physically sick as she looked at herself. The proud masculine racer had been twisted into a Barbie look-alike!

Her reflection giggled at her. "Hi, Haru-chan!" It said, waving cutely at her. Haruka could barely resist the urge to throw up. "Aww, what's the matter?" The other chimed, leaning against the mirror's glass surface. "I think you look amazing!" Haruka started hitting herself on the head. If it weren't for the fact that this already was a dream, she'd probably be muttering over and over how she had got to be dreaming.

"Hey, Haru-chan, sorry to keep you waiting." Another voice sounded. Startled, Haruka looked in the mirror and had to scream again. What was a male doing in her reflection?

"Shino-kun!" Her other chimed happily, bouncing up and looking at him with starry eyes. Haruka was sure by now that she wasn't dreaming, but had in fact died and gone to hell. Her last restraint was broken as the male put his hands around the reflection's waist, and pulled her close, planting a kiss on her lips, which the mirror-Haruka clearly enjoyed. The real blonde couldn't watch it anymore and turned away, retching. She couldn't escape the vision, however, as another mirror popped up in front of her. She froze in her tracks, horrified, then turned around and ran away again. The new mirror had just shown the same scene again. Another mirror blocked her way again, and another, and another, until Haruka was completely surrounded by mirrors with no way to escape.

She clutched her head between her hands as her girlish giggling echoed from all around her, trying to block it out. She could feel her knees grow weak, and then decided she had had it. "ENOUGH!" she roared. The sigil of Uranus flared to life on her forehead, and her girly appearance disappeared, replaced by her trusted normal body and Sailor Uniform. With a raw unleash of power, she shattered the mirrors and the world around her. Haruka panted heavily, the horrors still playing before her eyes despite the blackness surrounding her. She angrily clenched her fist. "Damn it all…"

"I told you, pathetic primate, you should have stayed for tea!" Crast's upper body appeared behind her, looking normal again, and quite clearly annoyed. "Spoilsport."

"Don't tell me that! You enjoyed it all, didn't you!" Haruka glared at him.

"Like I said before," Crast snorted. "This is _your_ dream. And I simply take advantage of what I've been given."

"Well, it sure was a nightmare!"

"Blame yourself," came the reply.

"Ugh." Haruka shook her head. "Aren't there supposed to be others here? Shouldn't we be off fighting Galaxia and all?"

"I warned you before you all plunged into this. And I'll say it for the final time now, and _get it in your head_, retarded dyke: this is _your_ dream. If you are alone here, it is _your_ fault. If you don't see that overconfident piece of galactic Senshi-shit here, it is _your_ fault," Crast hissed darkly, making Haruka's blood freeze. "I'm only here to watch and amuse myself. This dream isn't my design or mine to control. If it doesn't go like you want, blame yourself, as I said."

Haruka sighed. She had to admit the atrocious monstrosity was right. "So what do I do now?" But it seemed she would get no answer, as Crast had vanished without a trace. Haruka sighed again. "It seems like I need to start over…" She clenched her jaw, looking around. Everything was white now, and she didn't know what to do. She summoned her sword and tried to rip through the fabric of dream-reality to get out of there. To Haruka's surprise, it worked, she made a cut in the whiteness, through which she could see another world now. Curious, she went through the cut. At first she was blinded by golden light, though she did immediately feel the welcome presence of the wind. That soothed her, and she opened her eyes to see the world around her.

She was standing on top of a tall rock spire now, watching over a grand, brown-red and desolate canyon, through which the wind howled. It was a welcome change after all the atrocious pink. A soft smile appeared on her face. That canyon would make a nice racetrack. She thought of maybe exploring it, but first she had to get off the spire. Luckily, a spiralling staircase seemed to have been chiselled out of the rock to the ground below. Content with that, she began her descent. For some reason, this whole area, the view she had as she walked down, the wind on her skin, it made her feel relaxed and at peace with herself. What could possibly go wrong in such a place?

Maybe it wasn't supposed to, Haruka mused. Heck, after that atrocious previous experience, she needed a break. The stairs ended soon enough, so she was free to go and explore that canyon now. It was dusty, as expected, and there was no vegetation whatsoever, but Haruka didn't mind, as long as the wind was there. Smiling, she went down the road to the bottom of the canyon. She raised her eyebrows when she looked at the canyon walls. At first they had seem like normal stone formations but… She now frowned and looked closer. Was the part of the wall next to her changing?

She closed her eyes, rubbed them, and opened them again. She hadn't been imagining it. The wall had indeed changed. Instead of a normal rock formation, it now had a carved out scene depicting Haruka's birth. "Whoa." The racer blinked at the image. It was a very detailed carving… A soft smile came to her lips and she carefully touched the little stone baby that was her. She, naturally, had no memories of this moment… But apparently, her dreaming mind did. And she didn't doubt that this was her, and she did recognize her parents… Against her will, Haruka could feel tears of being moved welling up. Gods, it was so long ago. She admired the carving for a while before deciding it was time to move on. She wondered why her dream had decided to show her this. She went further down the canyon, expecting another carving to appear.

Her expectations were met. She had set only a few steps, or another part of the wall shifted and a new scene was depicted. Haruka couldn't help but chuckle as she looked at herself, maybe four or five years old, ignoring the dolls gifted to her and instead playing with toy cars. Now if only her parents didn't insist on her wearing dresses, that picture would have been perfect. She sighed a bit. Her early childhood had been fairly normal, all things considered. But she guessed that's where her dislike of all girly things started. But still, that wasn't _that_ unusual. You always had tomboys, who rather wrestled with the boys than do rope skipping with the girls or something. Her parents probably had thought she was just like that. Sighing, she moved on to the next carving, to see what was there.

The next canyon wall showed her in her early teens, twelve, maybe thirteen. She frowned, recognizing what was depicted. It was her on the schoolyard, from afar watching with something of a blush at her first crush. She didn't blame herself for it – that girl was pure eye-candy. Haruka sighed again. She remembered how she had, with a beet red head, told her mother about her, only to be told friendlily but firmly that she confused a crush with a best friend. Which didn't make any sense, seeing as they weren't even friends. Haruka never even dared to approach her company… It was but the first of many signs that something was wrong… No, not wrong, _different_ about her. Shaking her head, Haruka moved on.

When she reached the next carving, Haruka _had_ to gasp softly, she couldn't stop or prevent it. For she remembered this scene vividly, as if it had happened only yesterday. There she was, age sixteen, having gathered inner doubts and questions about herself throughout the years. And next to her was that other girl, a classmate of her. The two of them on a bench, Haruka looking confused as to why that girl was sitting next to her, the other young woman looking up at the sky with a knowing smile. In her head, Haruka heard those words again: "_You too, right_?" A smile, a pause and a quick confused glance. It was as if the carvings were moving, replaying a movie, while in fact it was just happening in Haruka's head. "_The way you look at girls… You're like me, no?_"

"Hanako…" Haruka sighed. Her hand trailed over the carving of the other girl, and Haruka could feel the tears of emotion well up again. Even though the girl was beautiful and feminine and dressed in the normal school uniform instead of a boy one, somehow everybody in class knew she's a lesbian. Haruka laughed softly. She'd been the only one to not get it. And her, in her boys' uniform, nobody had suspected. How strange the world turned… But at least somebody had breached the subject to her. She blushed as she remembered what a fool she had made of herself during that first conversation. It was surprising Hanako hadn't thought her an idiot. But anyway, Haruka was forever grateful to that girl. Thanks to her, Haruka had understood who and what she was. That girl had lifted an enormous weight off her heart… Still smiling, Haruka went to the next carving.

The next carving was a simple continuation of the last one. Only a few weeks after it, in fact, and Haruka felt the breath get stuck in her throat. She swallowed hard. Again her and Hanako, on that same bench, with her, Haruka Tenoh, receiving her first kiss… It was an amazing experience for sure, one that was burned in her memories. Hanako had called her to the park to tell her something. After more than half an hour of awkward silence Haruka snapped and asked what it was, and this was Hanako's response. A bit of an unexpected confession of love, to be sure, but gods had it felt right, even if she had been too startled to properly respond… But that was to be expected, and Hanako didn't blame her for being unsure. But Haruka hadn't been unsure at all. As soon as she had recovered, just as Hanako had started apologising, she had returned that favour with a fiery, inexperienced but well-meant kiss of her own. Her first kiss, her first love…

She looked at the carving for what seemed to be an eternity, but she knew it was time to move on. She didn't really want to, that was true. This was a very precious moment in her life, one of the few of her childhood she really looked back upon with a smile. Casting one last glance on the scene, she moved on. The next image was just as beautiful. How could she forget her first date, after all? Hanako took her to an amusement park, so it was really fun, too. Haruka remembered she had, much later, taken Michiru there on their first date, too. Michiru had commented of it being a little childish, but very cute, and they enjoyed their date a lot. There were no secrets between them, so of course Michiru knew all about Hanako. She was the only one who did, though. Not that others needed to know about her first love, anyway. Smiling, Haruka passed on to the next carving.

That one, however, did anything but make her smile. In fact, it felt as if someone had grabbed her heart and squeezed it until it burst. Haruka clenched her jaw as she studied the carving that depicted the day her parents had found out the truth about their daughter. By walking in onto her and Hanako kissing, no less. Suffice to say it hadn't gone over well. Her mother was seriously pissed off at this. After Hanako had been unceremoniously and rather rudely thrown out, Haruka had had to face the Spanish inquisition, and it had been brutal, she remembered with a sigh. More so because of her mother than her father. Her father, a normal, sensible man who didn't mind what his daughter did or who she loved as long as she was happy (and as long as it didn't interfere with her studies, it had to be said). It was a miracle that her Senshi powers didn't manifest themselves right there and then, feeling so enraged and hurt and betrayed by her parents as she was. Her mother didn't approve, never had and probably never would, to this day. Haruka was grateful for her father, who accepted it almost with a shrug, as if he didn't care either way, and he had since that day kept an uneasy peace between mother and child, probably the only thing preventing them from never seeing each other again. Though it had been a while, Haruka had to admit. Her parents didn't even know they were grandparents yet.

"Maybe I should invite them for tea or something…" Haruka muttered. Not that she wanted to see her mother _that_ badly, but, maybe Hotaru could soften her up or something… and Ignika as well. Though she'd probably be frowned at for Setsuna's presence along with Michiru's. Haruka groaned. Yeah, that would be just like her mother, to draw the wrong conclusions and stick with it. Then again, Traveller could influence the situation, make her think that she and Setsuna were a couple. Or maybe it'd have the opposite effect… "Goddamn it, I'll visit them myself!" Haruka declared in frustration. "With kids." Though Michiru might not like that… She still hadn't quite forgiven Haruka's mothers looks at her when they had been introduced… Setsuna might be needed to keep the Senshi of the Ocean calm… "Ugh, this just hurts my head…" Shaking it, she decided to move on.

Haruka recognized the next carving, too. It was her, in her bed, having her first dream – or nightmare – about the oncoming Silence. Her family had just moved to Tokyo, because of her relationship with Hanako, no less. It was the first sign of her future awakening as Sailor Uranus, though at the time of the dream it was only a massive heap of confusion that she blamed on the break with Hanako. Though the break-up hit her very hard, in hindsight she was sort of thankful for it, because it was the break-up that brought her into racing. She always liked cars and speed, and her dad just happened to be good friends with a racing club manager. Luckily, she already knew how to drive, thanks to her dad again. It also helped her get her mind off the dream. Working out till you barely have the strength to fall down on your bed proved to be a lovely remedy against bad dreams, and dreams in general. Yet somehow they made it through. It was a period of loneliness, for sure. Her mom now worked in the very same school that she studied in, so getting a relationship within school walls was absolutely impossible. Yet all her time outside of school belonged to racing, where she was surrounded by guys.

Maybe that's when she really started to pass off as a guy. She had always worn boys' clothing, but now seemed to do even more of an effort for it besides just her clothes, nearly completely masking her true gender. The guys at the race track found it great, though, and often had a good laugh about it. And yet at home it led to even more conflicts with her mother. Haruka remembered that it was around this time that she separated herself from them more and more as well. As her racing career improved and began to take off, her confidence and independence grew as well. It didn't take long for her to move out with Shino, who was in the same club as her and now worked in her mechanic team. To Haruka, it was no big deal, after all, both of them knew she couldn't be anything but his friend. Yet the idea proved to be ingenious, because her mom thought she was finally getting 'normal'.

Suddenly, Haruka's eyes went wide and she gasped loudly. Her reflection! Her reflection in that pink girly nightmare was ogling Shino-kun! She quickly placed her hand before her mouth and suppressed the urge to throw up. No frigging way! Why him, of all the people? He was a friend, and nothing more. She shivered, the idea making her ill. She quickly thought of Michiru to make herself feel better. Michiru… She probably guessed what the next carving would depict.

And indeed, Haruka hadn't guessed wrong. There her beloved Michiru was, in all her divinely beautiful glory, on their very first meeting. Haruka remembered every single moment of it. She had just won a running race for her school and was about to go home when one of the girls she competed against just came up to her and introduced her to Michiru. The teal-haired woman had mentioned something about the wind, and Haruka remembered how in that instant, for some reason, she knew the woman before her knew of that reoccurring dream of the Silence as well. Moreover, _she_ was the one who told her in the dream they were the only ones able to prevent it. Haruka had shrugged it off and tried to ignore the feeling, and Michiru as well. She didn't even know why, her heart almost screamed at her to stop, but she ignored it, she just walked away. Haruka smiled sadly. Good thing Michiru was persistent, despite Haruka being cold to her afterwards during Michiru's performance on a restaurant ship.

A soft sigh escaped the Senshi's lips as she thought back to those days. How lonely they had been then, as Senshi. How lonely Michiru must have been. How… sad their existence, their duty and lives seemed to be. It was as if they were fated for loneliness. So much had changed since then. Perhaps it had been a karmic lesson from their former lives, when all of the Outers were forced to defend their kingdom in solitude. But not anymore. They will never be alone again. Because their Princess wouldn't have it. Because their _friends_ wouldn't have it. Because their _family_ wouldn't have it. And most if all, because they _themselves_ wouldn't have it.

Haruka smiled and went on to see if there were any more carvings on the walls. The next one showed her becoming a Senshi for the first time. She remembered that as well. It happened a few weeks after their last meeting, at the race track. Haruka had won the semi-finals and was heading to the locker room when she heard a voice calling for help in one of the garages. She rushed inside only to witness a young boy turning into a monster. She was completely caught off guard, having naturally never witnessed something like that before, except for in her dreams. She tried to defend herself, but the monster lunged at her, causing her to fall. This could be the end of her, but the monster hesitated, and she could somehow hear the boy calling for help. It was then, in the moment of her doubt, that her henshin wand appeared. She was about to take it, feeling an inner urge to do so, when Michiru called out to her to stop her.

She warned that once Haruka takes that wand, there was no going back to normal life. After that, she did the thing that spoke of her ultimate trust… She took her own want and willingly revealed herself as Sailor Neptune. Haruka would never be able to forget the moment she witnessed that, either. It was as much burned in her memory as her first kiss was. With her enhanced strength, Neptune knocked the monster into some shelves, causing them to collapse on top of it. She was about to come and finish the job, but Haruka shielded the wreck.

"_Stop! It was a human just a few moments ago! This is murder!_"

Michiru responded that Silence was approaching, and more people would become victims if they don't do it. Haruka remembered her shock. She said it openly that it didn't it matter to Neptune what means she used. The mission came first, no matter what.

Haruka chuckled. So hypocritical of her, to be shocked like that. But the battle didn't end there. The monster burst from the wreckage, right behind Haruka's back, and she was completely helpless…

"_Watch out!_"

Michiru knocked her off her feet, holding her close and shielding her, receiving the hit of the monstrous claws in her steed. Shock was probably the only thing Haruka was capable of feeling then. Sheer, utter shock. Michiru didn't have time to be shocked, though. With a Deep Submerge, she finished the monster off. The boy came out of it unharmed, however. Exhausted, Michiru passed out.

Haruka remembered holding her, not really knowing what to do, still not over her shock. Michiru… Haruke vaguely recalled how she felt in that moment. Holding Michiru like that was nothing short of surreal. As if she had known her, and the feeling of holding her, for all her life, and yet at the same time she was a complete stranger. A thousand questions and thoughts stormed through her mind about all she had just witnessed, but it all seemed to fade when holding that beautiful, but sad and troubled woman. She lost track of time, but Michiru woke up. Her first question was about the monster. Haruka told that it turned back into a human. Michiru, in a shaking voice, told her she might have killed him, and was afraid she would kill the next one for sure. She didn't want that, but couldn't avoid it, because she chose to be a Senshi. Haruka felt her heart wrench, so sad it sounded. Haruka asked why she had shielded her.

Michiru… She said she didn't just learn about Haruka because she was a Senshi or because she was the one in her dreams. It all started back then, when she took part in her first race, and Michiru was watching from the crowd. She dreamed of cruising along the beach together in her car, just once… She watched Haruka from afar, ever since then. And when she realized Haruka was the one… She didn't want Haruka to take the same path as her, and yet… she was happy.

"_I'm sorry… I shouldn't have told you that… I'm sorry…_" Michiru whispered, tears welling in her eyes. Haruka didn't reply. She held the other woman, tightly, realising, in that one moment, that this was the woman she loved. There could be no doubt about that. Her past, childhood, even Hanako… It all seemed so far away now. There was only her, and the woman in her arms. The sad, lonely woman she held… No point in denying fate.

Haruka gently lay Michiru down and took the wand. As soon as she did it, she felt it. The wind, the power pulsing deep within her. Words came out of her mouth on their own, and Haruka Tenoh faded away, to be replaced by Sailor Uranus, Senshi of the Wind.

Haruka grinned sadly and bowed her head, turning away from the carving. "_And then there were two,_" she thought. Two loners learning not to be alone… And instead being alone together. Well, it _was_ better, just, not that much. After all, how fully could they bask in each other's presence, when both of them were ready to kill the other should the mission require it?

The Senshi of Uranus sighed again and sank to her knees, feeling sadness overwhelm her. She didn't want to continue looking at the carvings… This trip through 'memory lane' as one could call it only got sadder the further and further into her life they went… She had always been convinced she had changed, that she no longer was like that, alone and ruthless to the point of it hurting the Princess… She thought it no longer necessary… But now, as the walls of the memories loomed over her, seemed to close in on her, she wasn't so sure anymore. What was her life but one heap of loneliness and sadness, filled in with committing heinous acts, hurting friend and foe alike with her ruthlessness?

The walls indeed were closing in on her. The wind blowing through the canyon had lost its welcoming feeling, instead gathering strength to begin a sandstorm. Haruka didn't bother to get up. Let them close in, let the loneliness claim her, it was all she was. Loneliness embodied her and Michiru and Setsuna. What did it matter if there were friends, family or a Princess now? Those were only temporal periods in the endless cycle of Sailor Uranus' rebirth. What did Haruka Tenoh matter? Haruka Tenoh didn't exist. Michiru Kaioh didn't exist. Useless personas, futile, fleeting identities that would be forgotten forever once their miserable, lonely life was over. There was only Sailor Uranus, doomed to stand from afar, be lonely, ruthless and be scorned for it.

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**Next chapter: World of fantasy!**

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**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Well, as you can see, this chapter wasn't about Hotaru. We'll switch around between Senshi during this Dream-arc. Thanks for the review!

Neanda: I hope you enjoyed Crast this time around as well. He's having the time of his life, let me assure you! As for Hotaru, in the manga, she was indeed a cyborg, and her seisures were caused by it, if I remember correctly. The parts never really fit well and often had to be replaced, causing her a lot of pain. It was quite dark and tragic. Thanks for reading!


	125. World of fantasy

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**125. World of Fantasy**

Rei awoke all on her own to find herself surrounded at all sides by fire. The flames seemed to come out of the scorched, split black earth, reaching up to the sky blackened by smoke. Rei coughed from the smoke and ash that surrounded her. She was frightened at first, and frantically looked around for an escape. There seemed to be none. She was all alone, dressed in a spotless white robe, sitting on a white marble bench amidst the flames. The flames didn't seem hostile, though, they didn't do harm to her, so Rei slowly calmed down.

"Why am I here?" She wondered. There seemed to be nothing threatening her, but at the same time it didn't seem as if she could leave here. Wherever here was. She could only sit there and watch the flames. Maybe she was supposed to get a vision, like when she meditated next to the Holy Fire. As if to confirm her thoughts, a brief image appeared in the flames. Rei concentrated, trying to make out what it was. The image shifted, seemed to move, and Rei focussed harder, sweat pearling on her brow. The flames flickered like the beating of wings… A bird…? As if on cue, a bird indeed flew out of the flame, soaring sky-high.

"A crow?" she muttered softly. She frowned. That reminded her of her dear guardians, Phobos and Deimos… She hadn't heard any news of them since she returned home from her recovery in Master Angonce's medical wing. That probably meant there was no improvement in their condition. She sighed. Phobos, Deimos… Now that they were gone, she could no longer feel their ever-present mental presence with her, and it was lonely. The miko pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, sighing sadly. She buried her head in her arms. Why… why did they have to sacrifice themselves for her?

With a bitter smile, she guessed the answer herself. "_For the same reason I have just as easily sacrificed myself for Usagi in the past, and would again if need be in the future_," she thought. It was unavoidable, they could not ignore the one they've sworn to protect. No matter the price or the method. Even if it meant driving the one they protect to commit bloodthirsty acts…

She shivered as she remembered what she did to those Saurians in her bloodthirsty frenzy. She felt the flames shift immediately, now attacking her with visions of that particular event, in all its gruesome details. Rei turned away quickly, it was sickening. Doing so didn't help, though. The image simply reappeared in other flames. She closed her eyes to block it out, but the fire seemed to pass straight through her eyelids and burned the images in her mind. She screamed, clutching her head, not wanting to see it. Because of this, she didn't notice the crows made of flames that burst forth from the fire until too late. The fire birds circled around her, screeching, pecking her with their flame beaks, scratching her with their talons, beating her with their wings.

"No! Leave me alone!" She cried, trying to beat them off. Rei climbed to her feet and tried to hit them, swat them away, but the birds would not be deterred, and kept circling around her and attacking her head. Blinded, Rei ran, not noticing until too late that she ran straight into the flames. She screamed as the flames started burning her, consuming her, out of her control. And they were everywhere now, she couldn't even see the bench she had sat on anymore. She ran, hoping she could get out of there somehow. The Senshi of Mars noticed an open place in the inferno, and blindly headed towards it.

It was a small, round clearing, free of flames. The ground was covered in layers upon layers of ash, and in the centre of it sat a bird. A grand, majestic bird, terrifying in its beauty, its feathers made of the purest, most beautiful, colourful, lively flames. A phoenix. Reaching the clearing, Rei tripped on something, and fell into the ashes at its feet. The phoenix heard it, and raised its head from under its wing on its elegant neck, looking around for the source of the disturbance. When it caught sight of Rei, it looked at her with its sharp, golden eyes. Rei looked back, frightened. The beak of the bird looked incredibly deadly, though she couldn't deny she was entranced by the beauty of the majestic being before her. After all, the Phoenix was the ultimate symbol of flames, the peak of the element she wielded. A being made of pure flame that would forever rise from its ashes. Even if it was dangerous, Rei felt great respect for it.

There was silence for a while, as the two beings gazed into each other's eyes. The bird tilted its head sideways and looked at her intently, as if it was asking her something. Rei was confused, she didn't understand the question. The Phoenix cooed softly, as if inviting her to come closer. Rei, of course, obeyed the invitation, if a bit hastily. The fire bird spread its wings and used one of it to push Rei closer to itself, until Rei stood in the bird's nest. With a bit of nudging from its head, the Phoenix pushed Rei down and wrapped its wing around her, warming her between its wing and body. It surprised Rei, but she soon relaxed and closed her eyes. It was so, so warm… Before she knew it, it was as if she had drifted off to sleep in her dream. Briefly, she wondered why.

Then there were images. Or were they? Perhaps it was a voice? Rei didn't know, all she knew was that, in the bird's embrace, as if asleep, she heard or saw something in her mind. She felt words form themselves in her head, and she frowned. "_The Phoenix flames… Shall resurrect them?_" she whispered, confused. Then it dawned at her. Her crows! "_How? How do I do it?_" She begged for an answer. But the voice in her head remained silent. "_Please, answer me!_" She got nothing but silence, and she felt as if something was fading. In panic, she opened her eyes, only to notice that the flames and the phoenix were gone. She was alone again, in her Senshi uniform, surrounded by white.

"The phoenix flames shall resurrect them…" Rei muttered again. "What does it mean?" She shook her head and sighed in frustration. Then she smiled a tiny bit. "But at least it means there _is_ a way to help them…"

She shook her head again and looked around, trying to figure out what to do now. "I wonder where the others are…" she said to herself. As if on cue, a door appeared somewhere in the white. For some reason, she found it amusing. This 'dreamland' certainly was a strange place. Rei went through the door. She arrived in a different place altogether. Instead of fire and smoke, here she found herself looking at a gentle lake in a mountain area, surrounded by a forest of pine trees and small clearings with tough grasses and shrubbery.

Rei smiled. "Now this is a nice place." She said. The door to the white closed behind her and disappeared, but it didn't matter. After the heat of her previous dreamland, this cool lakeside was very appealing and welcome. Smiling, she went down to the lake. Its smooth surface was shimmering in the sunlight. Maybe she could go for a swim, after all, there was nothing dangerous here. Rei nodded confidently, yes, that was exactly what she would do.

Rei removed all her clothing, but kept the jewellery on just in case. After all, the tiara was one of the most important Senshi items. Without any hesitation, she climbed on top of a boulder and from it jumped into the lake gracefully. The pure, cool water felt amazing on her bare skin. She swam around in the crystal clear water for a bit, content to merely soak in the water. She then took a deep breath and went under. The water was clear, so Rei tried opening her eyes underwater. She could see fish swimming around in the lake, all very colourful. Some even came up to her to greet her, and the bottom of the lake was littered with pretty stones and elegant water plants. Determined, she decided to swim to the bottom and pick up a stone. Briefly, she wondered what did this all have to do with fighting fears.

Her slim fingers plucked a red stone loose from the bottom of the lake, and Rei swam to the surface, both for air and to get a good look at it. She emerged from the blue liquid and eagerly sucked in air in her lungs, then took a look at the stone after wiping her eyes clear. It was just a normal pretty rock, with nothing special about it. Chuckling, she let it go, watching it drift back to the bottom of the lake. This place felt really relaxing to her mind and body, and she enjoyed it. However, she knew she couldn't stay here for long, after all. There were fears to be fought, though she loved it here. She looked around again, suddenly realising she had no idea how to leave, and this time, a door didn't just conveniently appear. She decided to get out of the lake, dress and look for an exit.

It was then that for some reason she was pulled underwater. She stifled a gasp, not wanting to lose air, and looked around frantically to see what pulled her. At first glance, there was nothing, since she couldn't see anything touching her body. But then she noticed a black hole had opened at the bottom of the lake, and the water – with Rei in it – was being pulled towards it rapidly. She tried to swim back to the surface, but it was impossible, the current being too strong for her to overcome. Quickly, she was pulled into the hole, and down into a dark underground, flooded tunnel with rapid currents. It was impossible to fight them, so she had to let herself be carried by the currents.

Luckily, the dream wasn't going to let her drown. The tunnel soon ended, and Rei splashed together with the water into an underground lake in a softly lit cavern. Not wanting the previous experience to repeat itself, Rei quickly got out of the water. Despite being underground, far from sunlight, it wasn't cold in the cave, even though she was wet and not to mention naked. She tried to catch her breath, looking around. Despite the unexpected entrance, she immediately had to admit that her new surroundings were rather beautiful. The cave walls seemed luminescent, giving off a soft, blue light.

Suddenly, a loud cry came from the tunnel Rei went through. "WOO-HOO! Wheeee!" Someone came flying out of the tunnel and landed in the lake with a big splash. Immediately the room was filled with laughter. "Man, that was fun!"

Rei's jaw dropped. "Minako-chan?"

Indeed it was the Senshi of Love, who seemed to have had the same idea as Rei and went for a swim, as aside from her Senshi jewellery she had also forsaken her clothes. The bubbly blonde sat in the undeep water, rubbing her eyes clean, looking around for the source of the voice. Her eyes widened when she saw who it was.

"Rei-chan?" She blinked. "Is it you, or am I dreaming?"

Rei sweatdropped. "Uhh… It is me alright, but you are dreaming. As are all of us."

"Well, yes, I know that, but are you the real you or a dream you?" Minako asked, wanting further clarification. Rei sighed, went over to her and hit her on the head.

"Does this confirm anything?"

"Ouch!" Minako groaned, glaring at her friend. "That wasn't necessary!" And she playfully pulled Rei's legs from under her, making the Senshi of Mars fall backwards into the water with a splash.

"Why you…!" Rei exclaimed and immediately splashed Minako with water. Minako shrieked and giggled at the same time, and right away returned the favour, laughing all the while. Rei didn't fall behind, and soon the two were engaged in a very fun splash fight. Sometimes Rei seemed to be winning, then Minako did something unexpected and regained the upper hand. In the end, the two girls just laughed together, glad for the fun they were able to have.

"AAAAH… That was fun," Minako sighed, pleased and with a huge grin on her face. She let herself fall on her back and drifted on the water.

Rei chuckled. "Yep." She laid back as well. "So, Minako-chan, where did you come from?"

"Uhh… First there was this very funky nightmare where I was a celebrity and got nearly ripped to pieces by rabid fans, then there was a dream… I was in a world where none of you awakened and I was all alone facing all our enemies as Sailor V… Then I ended up in a peaceful place on a beach. I decided to take a swim, and here I am." She sat up and looked at Rei. "What about you, Rei-chan?"

"I was in a place where fire was surrounding me everywhere. The fire showed me visions of my crows, and then suddenly crows made of fire attacked me, and I had to run away through the fire. And then there suddenly was a great Phoenix… It took me under its wing. Literally, heh… And in my dream, it showed me another dream, saying my crows can be resurrected. And after that, I was in the white place, then next to a beautiful lake. So I decided to take a swim as well." She smiled at her friend. "What do you think we have to do here?"

"Umm, no idea. Wait for others to come splashing through?" Minako suggested. She glanced at herself, then at Rei, then at herself again, and suddenly realized their nakedness. Flashing her eyebrows evilly, Minako teased: "Make hot steamy love?"

Rei blushed crimson, nearly jumping away from Minako. "W…w…what?"

Minako giggled. "Kidding, kidding!" she quickly assured her friend, rolling her eyes. "Jeez, I think the Saurians are getting to me."

"Well, can't blame you." Rei rolled her eyes. "After all, you live with one. Although I doubt Nightmare makes such jokes…"

"That's true," the Senshi of Venus admitted. She bit her lip. "I wonder where imouto-chan is… I hope she's okay."

"Yes… that girl has serious fears to fight…" Rei sighed.

Minako nodded, and got to her feet, the water running off her perfect body. "I think we've had enough fun here, Rei-chan, we need to find what to do next…" And as if on cue, her fuku reappeared on her body. She giggled. "I love this dreamland."

Rei's fuku appeared as well. "Indeed. Well, let's go." She smiled at her friend. "At least I'm not alone anymore."

Minako smiled back. "I'm glad for it, too." She looked around, hoping to find an exit. Her gloved hand ran over the luminescent walls. It wasn't so much the stone that was glowing, Minako noticed, but the cracks in it in which moss grew. It was the moss that gave off light. Maybe there was a hidden switch somewhere in the moss, so she tried looking for it. The only result was that she nearly broke all her nails. She swore and shook her hand, then looked back at Rei. "Gaah, you found anything yet, Rei-chan?"

"Nope." Rei answered, feeling the walls the same way as Minako. She glanced at her blonde friend. "Minako-chan… How… how did you beat it? The world where we were never awakened?"

Minako bowed her head. "I… I didn't…" She admitted. "I was trying my best every time, but always failed, and the world was destroyed. I became more powerful each time, yes, but it didn't help one bit. I couldn't do it on my own." The Senshi of Love rubbed her hands together nervously, fighting against the images of that world where she had been alone and couldn't win no matter how hard she fought. Rei frowned and came over to her, hugging her friend from behind.

"It's just a dream, Minako-chan, we have to remember that. It's all trying to teach us something…"

"Yeah…" Minako sighed. She smiled sadly. "That no Senshi but Sailor Moon can go at it alone, I guess."

Rei shook her head. "She can't do it alone, either. Even if we aren't around, she can do it because she has us. Even if we die…" She hugged Minako tighter. "It probably meant that none of us is meant to fight alone."

"I guess…" Minako nodded. She smiled sadly. "And what did your fire dream teach you?"

"I'm not sure…" Rei said. "But I need to remember what the Phoenix told me about my crows…" She frowned. "Whatever it meant by it."

"I see… Well, that is an important lesson, too." Minako said. She let out a sigh, suddenly wishing Nightmare was here to comfort her through their symbiosis bond. She looked around again, and suddenly saw a way deeper into the cave she hadn't seen before. "Ehm, Rei-chan…"

"Hmm?" She followed Minako's gaze. "Oh. Well, let's go then." She ran a hand through her dark hair. "It's amazing how these things always appear without our knowing."

"Well, can't be helped." Minako shrugged and went down the passage. She noticed it immediately began to grow pitch dark, and she hurriedly grabbed Rei's hand so as to not lose her friend. Rei squeezed her hand assuringly, guiding her through the tunnel. That made Minako feel more at ease, and together the two friends and Senshi walked through the dark.

The tunnel became wider and wider, until the girls realised they weren't in a tunnel anymore at all, but instead in an empty black space. It made them tense immediately. Such places usually didn't bode well. It could be a passage to the next dream, though, but they weren't sure. Rei bit her lip and looked around worriedly. "Do you see or sense anything, Venus?" she asked, using Minako's Senshi name to signify that she was serious and tensed.

"Not a thing…" Minako answered. Her fists were clenched, though, showing she was nervous as well, and didn't like this sudden shift in surroundings one bit. A movement in the corner of her eyes caught her attention, and she swirled around to look at it. At first she saw nothing, but then her eyes took in the sight of a small speck of light in the distance. "Over there." She indicated to the other Senshi. Rei nodded, and focussed on the light as well. In the short time it had taken to inform Rei of its presence, the light already had come closer, and now looked like a star.

The two Senshi stood still, waiting for the star to approach them. Minako got an uneasy feeling about it all as they waited, however. Images started to appear in her head, memories she tried to forget… A gasp escaped her lips, and suddenly Minako threw herself at Rei and knocked the both of them to the ground, but also out of the way of the attack that would have claimed their lives. The darkness around them shifted abruptly, changing into a scenery they knew all too well: it was the place where they had been killed the last time.

"This is it…" Rei whispered. They had reached the point where they have to fight the fear that defeated them. But how? The two Senshi scrambled to their feet and turned around, coming face to face with the monster that haunted their nightmares, the memories of which were repressed deep within themselves.

"Galaxia…" Minako whispered quietly, her voice strained, as she laid eyes on the evil Senshi.

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**Next chapter: Fairytale!**

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**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Don't be too hard on Haruka. She fears more than just being lonely, she fears the loss of her civilian self in favour of who she is as a Senshi, and the loneliness that results from it. Think back to the behaviour of Uranus and Neptune in Season 3. Haruka and Michiru only had each other, and even then they were prepared to kill each other should it be required for their mission. It's not only a lonely existence, but also a quite inhuman one. As Sailor Uranus, she couldn't afford to care, was basically but a tool in the hands of whatever her mission was, and everything had to be sacrificed for it. We know how it went from there. usagi showed them the light, they got friends, they started a family and were basically allowed to be human again. Haruka fears losing that, more than she fears anything. She doesn't want to go back to being a detached tool for 'the greater good' that isn't allowed to have human feelings. The dreamland confronts her with this, and does its hardest best to break her will and turn her down. If she gave in, that's more because her fears (and Crast's dreampowers) are so strong, rather than it is her being weak-willed. Thanks for the review!

Neanda: I'm glad you liked the Crast bits. More will be sure to follow! Thanks for reading!


	126. Fairytale

AN: My apologies for not putting up a chapter last week, I took an unexpected break. With that said, here is chapter 126._  
_

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**126. Fairytale**

Ami Mizuno arrived in the dreamland to find herself alone, surrounded by perfect silence. It was as if even the sound of her own breathing had been taken away. She stood on something in total darkness, lost and confused.

"_Where am I?_" She tried to say, but no sound came out of her mouth. She stumbled around in the dark a bit, until suddenly she was blinded when a single light switched on, beaming down on her. It was a spotlight, and Ami could suddenly see she was standing on a stage in a theatre. Ami gasped in surprise and stumbled back a bit. She didn't know why she was here or what she had to perform! She could almost feel the audience's cold, calculating eyes on her. Ami frowned. Was there even an audience? She looked at the seats, trying to figure out if there were people occupying them. A small light went on at the back of the theatre, lighting up the audience just enough so Ami could make out faces. The Senshi of Mercury's eyes widened and she gasped, her knees growing weak.

Her mother, and her copies, were occupying every single seat in the theatre.

"_No way! Mama!_" Her mind screamed. She was never fond of stage performances, and her mother as the audience made got her in a state close to panic. And she didn't even know what she is supposed to be performing here! Ami looked around frantically for help, but there was nobody. And yet she couldn't flee either, her feet were stuck in their place. What was she supposed to do?

The Senshi of Mercury could hear soft music began to play. There was a movement in the corner of her eyes, and though dread began to fill her, she didn't stop herself and looked. Thus she watched as Crast pirouetted onto the stage, perfectly in tune with the music. Wearing a tutu. She nearly screamed in horror, but her voice protested, refusing to kill itself by attempting to create the proper sound that would express all that Ami felt was wrong with this image.

"Don't just stare, useless primate!" Crast spat at her, all while performing graceful ballet moves all over the stage. "Ah, I always knew I could have made a great stage career." He did a perfect spin on top of one of his pincers. The audience seemed to agree with him as they cheered. Ami got the urge to throw up, and Crast laughed horribly. "Well what are _you_ waiting for, retarded mammal? Act! Act!"

"But act what…?" She asked meekly.

"Like you always act!" Crast mocked as he did a graceful leap over the stage and vanished in a poof of smoke, his voice now echoing hauntingly through the theatre. "_Yes mom, I'll get good grades! Yes mom, I'll be good while you're gone. No mom, I won't enter your bedroom unless to clean! Yes mom, I'll become a good doctor_!" The dark counterpart of Angonce laughed, horrifying, chilling laughter that froze Ami's blood. Tears formed in her eyes. She didn't want to act that!

"_Like you always act…! Like you always act…! Like you always act…!_" Crast's voice echoed, though Ami knew, somehow, that the monster had vanished, gone probably to harass one of her friends… She was alone again.

One of the mothers in the audience yawned. "This performance is boring." She said strictly.

"I… I'm sorry, mother…" Ami said fearfully. She was totally lost. What did she have to do? What did Crast mean? Some of the mothers began to get up from their places in order to leave. "I'll… I'll do my best, I promise you!" She exclaimed. That caught their attention, making them take their places again. Inwardly, Ami winced. It was always like this, wasn't it? She always had to do her best, and nothing but her best, and when she did, only got told that's what she was supposed to do. "I'll… I'll become a great doctor! I'll always be the top student! I will make you proud…"

As she said that, she noticed the audience seemed pleased. Ami sighed inwardly. Was it all she was good for? Making her mama proud? A slight frown appeared on her face as she felt as if something was scratching at her chest from the inside… And a voice that whispered in her head: "_Attack, attack…_"

"_No, she's my mother!_" Her mind screamed as her mouth continued to tell promises of how wonderful a daughter she will be, obeying her mother's every wish, fulfilling every desire she had for her daughter's future… This seemed to go on forever, until Ami's performance ended, and she received a modest applause. Ami bowed, and turned to leave the stage, feeling completely miserable. The voice kept bugging her. She ignored it, suppressing the urge to attack her mother.

"We would like an encore." One of the mothers suddenly said.

"Yes, it was a fine performance indeed." Another agreed. "We would like to see more."

"Encore! Encore!" The audience began to chant. Ami hesitated, feeling dizzy all of the sudden, as if she were sick. The chant didn't end, they continued to demand her to perform for them again. Ami got the urge to throw up again, but she suppressed it. Breaking under all of it, she pressed her hands against her ears and ran away blindly. When she opened her eyes, however, she was still on the stage. Only the audience was gone now. She sank to her knees and let herself cry. What did all of that have to do with her inner fears? Why did she have to think of her mother and herself on a time like this? Ami actually knew the answer, but was too afraid to admit it even to herself.

She was vaguely aware of the scenery changing, surrounding her with mirrors. She didn't care, she just wanted to cry. The mirrors shattered, and the shards rained down on her, injuring her with their sharp edges. Ami screamed from sudden pain, jumping up and looking around. The shattered mirrors were now like black holes, and Ami got a nervous feeling as she looked at them, feeling as if she was being watched, as if something could come out of those broken mirrors at any time. She could swear she saw something stir in one of the mirrors.

"Who's there?" she called out. Nobody answered, but the darkness stirred again. What was there? "Show yourself!" A soft gasp escaped Ami's lips as two red eyes began to glow in one of the shattered mirrors. For a second, she thought it was Crast again, but what stepped out of the mirror might as well be worse. It was her mother again, but the glowing eyes and that hideous expression on her face made her appear utterly demonic.

"Ami…" the demonic Saeko growled dangerously. She held up a paper and pointed at something on it. "You made a mistake on this test!"

"What?" Ami cried out, completely taken aback. "I would never…!" She started, but then noticed it on the paper – a miscalculation circled with a red pen. Involuntarily, the Senshi of Mercury did a step back and bumped into something. She turned around and saw it was another mother, looking just as demonic!

"You didn't get the best grades in the class!" this mother snarled, waving a score table around furiously.

"But… but I'm number two!" Ami cried.

"That's not good enough!" the two mothers roared.

"But… the difference is only two points…" Ami said meekly. Why did it matter so much? She still had a final score of 94%!

"You dare to say excuses?" A third mother appeared from the third mirror. "What inappropriate behaviour! If you fail, you should take responsibility!"

"But I didn't fail!" Ami cried. "I earned myself 94 percent! NINETYFOUR!"

One of the mothers slapped her. "Anything less than 100 is no good."

Ami stared at the woman with her mouth wide open. "Y… you're insane…" she whispered.

"Insane? Is that any way to speak to your mother?" The demon said, slapping her again. Ami caught the blow before it could hit her, however, and with a cry of sudden fury, threw the demonic image of her mother over her shoulder. Roaring angrily, the other mother attempted to slap Ami as well, but the Senshi of Mercury was quicker, and before she knew what she was doing, blew her mother back with a Shine Aqua Illusion. The mothers roared, countless copies of them sprouting from the remaining mirrors.

"JUST GO FUCK YOURSELF!" Ami screamed with pent up anger as the copies approached. The sigil of Mercury flared to life on her brow, and with one powerful Mercury Aqua Rhapsody, erased her mothers and the mirrors from existence. The next moment, Ami found herself in a white empty space. The Senshi didn't even notice it yet, still breathing hard from her anger and what had just happened. Her anger then turned into tears, and she broke down crying.

"What did I do…" she whispered tearfully. "Why… why is she so unfair…" She buried her face in her hands. "Doesn't she love me…? She has to! She's my mother!" The Senshi of Mercury sobbed again, feeling alone and cold. She wanted someone with her, Usagi, one of the other Senshi, or Gravitas, anyone… But there was nobody, only her. "Everyone…" She had to go and find someone. They were supposed to meet each other in the dream, weren't they? Didn't they have to face Galaxia instead of this? Still sobbing, she got on her feet, looking for an exit. To her surprise, a door appeared in midair. Ami went through it immediately.

She appeared in a strange place. Ami stood at the shores of what seemed a lake, but a great one, she could barely see the other side. Under her feet was white sand, and the water was still and seemed grey and lifeless. She looked behind her, but fog locked her view. She could only see a small stroke of sand, and the lake. Ami could also see one thing more. A bit further into the lake, not far from the shores, were two statues, facing each other. They were the two giant marble heads of two women, and from their sad eyes streamed tears, right into the lake. A lake of tears, Ami realised. She decided to take a closer look at the lake.

It was absolutely quiet here again, and the surface of the water was as smooth as a mirror. Ami could see her reflection clearly. She wanted to take a closer look at the statues, but was uncertain if she should enter the lake or not. As if on cue, a boat came drifting towards her. Ami got on board and set sail. She didn't have to do anything, she quickly learned. The boat moved by itself. She just looked around and took in the silent scenery. Ami couldn't see anything but the lake, the statues and a bit of the sandy shores. All the rest was clouded in fog.

"Why is it so quiet…" She whispered. Not that she really minded, but she was curious about it. The boat took her closer to one of the statues, and Ami looked at it carefully, trying to make out whose face it was. It wasn't easy, but then the fog helpfully lifted a bit so she could see the face better. She gasped as she saw it. It was her own face. Quickly, she turned to the other statue, wanting to know whose face that one had. The result shocked her. It was her mother's.

Ami clenched her fists in frustration. Why was she even here? But then she unclenched her fist a bit, realising that her mother's statue was also crying.

"Why is she crying…? The only thing I ever did was pleasing her!" The bluenette frowned. Maybe there was something she was missing. In any case, her time of studying the statues was up, it seemed, for the boat drifted away from them and took her further onto the lake. She had no choice but to let the boat take her wherever. Ami sighed and pulled her knees up to her chest, hugging them. So far, this journey in dreamland had been nothing but horror (Crast), sadness (her mother) and confusion (everything). She just wanted it to end, and to have some peace.

Gently, the boat drifted further on the still lake, the peace and quiet trying to comfort the troubled Senshi. It didn't help much… She didn't want to be alone here. The boat drifted further, until it got stuck in the sand on the shore on the other side of the lake. Ami got out of the boat and walked away from the lake. She didn't want to be here anymore. The mist parted before her, revealing green grass that it had dew on it. It was a welcome change after the dreary sand, and Ami went into the corridor of mist. The grass felt soft even under her boot-covered feet. She walked on for a while, the lake disappearing in the mist behind her. Ami never saw it again.

She sighed. Where was she heading to, anyway? The path behind her was swallowed by the mist, and before her, the mist suddenly parted. Ami gasped, for what she saw was breathtakingly beautiful. Before her laid another lake, but much smaller than the Lake of Tears. It was surrounded by walls of ice, sculpted to look like artistic wonders, depicting the most diverse of sceneries and events. In the middle of the lake was an iceberg, and spanning the lake, leading from the shores to the small island, were bridges of ice. And sculpted from that iceberg in the centre of the lake, was an amazing throne.

Ami looked around in wonder. She didn't dare to think that the throne was meant for her, and so she decided to take a look at some of the ice sculptures instead. Many depicted images of creatures made to live in cold weather, some even were made of ice, but none she knew or recognized. That was strange. She wondered what was the purpose of these sculptures, or why was there a throne in the middle of the lake.

"_Does fantasy need a purpose, or a reason to exist_?" a calm voice asked.

Ami gave a start. "Who's there?"

"_Well, I am _here_, on the throne, and you are over _there_, by the wall, though in the end I suppose I am there by the wall as well while you are also on the throne now,_" the voice replied with a kind chuckle. Ami blinked and looked at the throne, confused. There was a ball of glowing blue light there now.

"Huh? What are you?" Ami asked, mesmerised by the glow.

"_Come closer,_" the voice answered. Ami obeyed, heading towards the throne. Once she stood right before it, there was a flash of light, blinding her briefly, and then Ami found herself looking at another her, only this other her, seated on the throne, was made of blue-and-white ice and was nude. Though made of such a cold element, there was nonetheless a warm glow coming from where the heart would normally be. Ami frowned. Why was she made of ice now?

"You're… me?"

"_In a sense,_" the Ice Ami nodded.

"Are you… a manifestation of my powers or something?" Ami tried to guess. The ice being nodded enthusiastically.

"_That… and a bit more. I'm your powers, the manifestation of your Sailor Crystal, but I'm also… your subconscious, we could say,_" she chuckled again. "_It's kind of tricky to explain. I'm your powers, but also the answers and the knowledge that you didn't even know you had._"

Ami chuckled. "That's nice. I believe you can answer all my questions then?" The other Ami nodded.

"_As long as they concern you,_" the ice woman replied.

"Why is there so much of my mother in my dreams?" Ami asked.

The other Ami laughed softly, it sounding like the chiming of small bells. "_Why do you ask me questions to which you already know the answer?_" she wondered, before continuing: "_Your thoughts and troubles shape this dreamland. If your mother is in them, what does that tell you?_"

"… you're right, I know…" Ami sighed. "It's just… it's hard to accept that I'm so dependant on her opinion of me."

"_You want her love, her approval,_" the other Ami said calmly. "_And you try to attain this by meeting her standards and demands, hoping to please her and gain approval and affection in return._" There was a short pause. "_But sometimes, when you're alone, or under the cover of darkness, you wonder if this is the way, or if there even is one… No?_"

"I do…" Ami whispered quietly.

"_So your dream reflects that,_" the ice being explained simply.

"That's true." Ami nodded. Her other self said nothing, merely looked at her expectantly and waited. Ami smiled at her softly. "You already know what I want to ask, don't you? Tell me everything I need to know to go on."

"_But you already know that,_" Ice Ami laughed gently.

Ami chuckled. "_You_ do, I don't."

The ice being shook her head. "_No, I am serious, Ami, _you _already know. You're smart even without me._"

"Okay, okay, fine." Ami rolled her eyes. "So where's the way to the next dream?"

"_Further on,_" the ice being smiled.

Ami looked beyond the throne and saw a clear path there. "Heh, indeed… I should get going then."

"_Just remember, Ami-chan, that all the answers are already in you,_" Ice Ami said, calm but serious. "_I know you sometimes wonder if your mother loves you, if you could ever get her approval and please her…_" The ice woman gave her counterpart a comforting smile. "_You needn't worry, Ami… You already know the answer._"

"Yes… I know." Ami sighed. "Good bye then, me." She smiled gently.

"_Give me a hug before you go, I doubt we'll be seeing each other again, so let me savour this moment, too,_" the other Ami said playfully.

"Umm, won't you melt if I do?" Ami asked hesitatingly.

"_I'm more worried about you freezing,_" the ice girl laughed.

Ami smiled. "Then it's alright." She said and hugged her icy self. The hug was returned with vigour, and despite her other self being made of ice, Ami didn't feel any cold. It was strange, for even as she embraced the ice girl like that, she felt a peculiar feeling come over her. It was hard to describe at first, and in the Ami could only put it as being calmed, because, as they embraced, she realized that she indeed already _knew_. That made her other self happy, and she kissed the top of Ami's head before letting go.

Ami smiled back at her. "Well, I'll be going now then."

"_Yes…_" There was another short pause, then the ice Ami sat back down on her throne and smiled happily. "_You are ready now… to go further…_"

Ami smiled at her one last time and went down the path beyond the throne. As she walked, the scenery behind her started to fade, until it was gone completely and only an empty white space remained, while before her, Ami found a staircase leading her up to somewhere she couldn't see, deeper and further into the dream.

* * *

**Next chapter: Monster!**

* * *

****Neanda: Hope this chapter made up for the lack of Crast last chapter. Thanks for the review!

Bin82501: Yes, Mamoru is alive in this story, he's just studying abroad again, over the seas. To be honest, I didn't really know what to do with him so for convenience sake he was left out. =p Thanks for reading!

Kuroui: Glad you understand Haruka's situation. Thanks for reading and reviewing!


	127. Monster

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**127. Monster**

Michiru awoke in the dream to find herself in an odd world, where nothing seemed… _right_, and nothing stayed the same for even a minute. She tried to understand where she was and to focus on her surroundings, but it was next to impossible to do. The colours shifted, the landscape changed, the mixture of it all threatened to give her a headache.

"What's going on?" She cried, hoping that somebody would answer. Even her own voice sounded distorted. She thought she heard an echo come from somewhere, and headed in that direction, hoping to escape from the mess of colours. But even that didn't go as she intended, for the floor seemed to turn and twist and suddenly she was walking upside down. She gasped, and hoped she wouldn't fall from the floor that was now the ceiling. She didn't, though she now found herself walking sideways. She shook her head and instead focused on the path, not wanting to look at the crazy world.

To her frustration, however, she didn't seem to be making progress, and when she looked at her feet she saw why: the floor was moving in the opposite direction she was going. She sighed, sitting down and letting it take her wherever. As soon as she did that, however, the floor stopped moving.

"Great…" Michiru groaned, trying to get on her way again. "What is the sense of this? The meaning, the reason?" There was probably none, she guessed. A deep sigh escaped her lips. Where were the others? And where was her dear Haruka? And how does she get out of here? As if to answer her question, a hatch appeared in the floor right next to her. "Oh, finally!" She praised the heavens and yanked it open. Without any hesitation, she dropped into it and let herself fall.

She was falling through pitch darkness, which was a welcome change after the random world before. She didn't notice the darkness that began to stick to her body. She could barely see it, after all. But the lack of a light at the end of the darkness did bother her a lot. Michiru couldn't see where she was going, or how long she'd be going, and that uncertainty wasn't pleasant. She didn't even realize that she was no longer falling, but _sinking_ through the darkness.

The Senshi of the Depths could suddenly feel currents swirling around her, as if the darkness were water. That eased her somewhat, yet alarmed her at the same time. Reaching within herself, Michiru tried to command the darkness to part with her powers, thinking that it might not be darkness but some kind of black water. It did work, although the darkness didn't obey her as willingly as water did. It didn't matter to Michiru, as long as it parted, which it did. She now stood in a free space, on a gray floor that she could see, surrounded on all sides by black.

"Where do I go from here…" She wondered. It was better here than in that weird world she had awoken in, but this one was still empty. She tried to make the darkness part again to show her the way. This time it didn't obey, for it was no longer black water. Michiru frowned. Was she trapped?

"Deep Submerge!" She cried, attacking the darkness. Her attack was merely swallowed by the black surrounding her. She then tried to use her mirror and find a hidden way out. Nothing happened again, but then she caught her own reflection in the mirror. A short gasp escaped Michiru's lips, thinking her eyes were deceiving her at first. She looked again…

And dropped her mirror in horror.

Her reflection looked like a monster, as horrifying as Crast, or even worse! That thought echoed in her mind, reminding her of a dream she and Haruka saw long ago. She could almost hear Crast's voice again:

"_You two are the greatest monsters here. And if I were to make you both look on the outside like you are on the inside, you'd look far more repulsive than me._"

A shiver ran down her spine. Why did she look like this? Did she really have this much darkness in her? With trembling hands, she picked her mirror up again. Her face was hideous, like that of a deep-water ocean fish, and her beautiful hair had become snakes. She wondered how the heck it was possible that the mirror didn't shatter from the image. Quickly, she put it away. How could that image be her? What was she supposed to do now? With nothing else to do, Michiru started to walk in a random direction. To her surprise, the Darkness parted before her, allowing her to pass. Pleased that at least something was happening, the Senshi of the Depths moved on. For a long time she walked on the barren grey bottom of the sea of darkness, and nothing seemed to change.

And just when this began to frustrate her, Michiru found something. Before her, appearing suddenly out of nothing, was a huge mirror, dwarfing her in size at least twice. And in it, she could see her reflection. Her terrifyingly disgusting reflection. It filled her with so much horror she couldn't bring up the strength to look away.

She was hideous, a monstrosity out of nightmares. She had no legs, but a poisonously green snake tail instead. Her hair consisted of many writhing, deadly snakes, her face was grey and her fangs sharp and bloodied, her eyes shimmered with bloodlust and insanity. Her humanoid upper body was nude, its skin grey, her hands with long skeletal fingers ended in sharp, wicked claws, and from each of her back bones erupted a long spike, the tips of which were smeared with blood. She tried to close her eyes and shield herself from the image, but could not. Michiru could only stare at that horrific image of herself.

"Why…?" She could only whisper.

"_Oh, I'm quite sure you know,_" her reflection replied gleefully.

Michiru did a few steps back. "Huh?" Her reflection just kept smirking at her. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

"_Don't play dumb,_" the reflection hissed, and her tongue flashed out of her mouth. It was forked, like a snake's.

"I'm not. What the heck are you, monster?"

"_You_," was the simple, short answer.

"Liar! I am not like that." Michiru objected.

"_Oh no?_" the creature in the mirror asked mockingly, amused. "_Ah, yes, you are still possessed by the delusion of being a beautiful, righteous, infallible Soldier._" The creature rolled its eyes, the words it spoke dripping with sarcasm. "_Do you think this mirror is lying to you?_" A chilling laugh came from the reflection. "_How amusing_."

"Don't play mind games with me!" Michiru demanded. "Why am I this way, creature?"

"_Because you made yourself this way, of course,_" the monster deadpanned.

"How?" She knew it was a dream, but there had to be a reason! The snake-Michiru rolled its eyes again. "Answer me!" In response, the demonic reflection moved aside, and new images began to appear in the mirror. Michiru could see herself, Haruka and Setsuna, as well as her dear Hotaru, confront Sailor Galaxia who was seated on a throne. They tried to fight her, but the evil Senshi shrugged them off easily, even breaking the Silence Glaive and Garnet Rod! The Senshi then did an offer: serve her and live on, or die. Of course Saturn and Pluto refused, Michiru was pleased to note.

But then she gasped when she and Haruka accepted the offer, despite Saturn and Pluto's protests! Their stars seed were taken, but Galaxia gave them bracelets allowing them to live on. And her first order to her new servants was to take Saturn and Pluto's Sailor Crystals… Michiru swallowed hard, fighting against the emotions welling up inside herself, but she couldn't suppress the cry of dismay that left her lips when she saw Haruka and herself kill their dear friend and their very own _daughter_ in cold blood, all for a desperate attempt at Galaxia's life… An effort that was futile, so the images told her, they even made their beloved Princess think they had betrayed her, that she was now all alone, since all her protectors had died.

The image faded, and the monster slithered back into the mirror, looking smug and pleased. "_There is your answer,_" she laughed.

"But… but it didn't happen!" Michiru cried. This was not what she remembered happening. She had been killed in her Castle, not by Galaxia, but by one of her minions. She did not betray Setsuna, she did not kill Hotaru!

"_You would have done it, _had_ this happened,_" the reflection said calmly.

"I… I would not…" Michiru said meekly. Hasn't she already proven that to Crast in the other dream? The response she got was long, harsh laughter from the reflection.

"_To Crast, maybe, but not to yourself._" It chuckled. "_You cannot change who you are, my dear, sweet little Michiru_." The eyes of the reflection narrowed coldly. "_You have no heart._"

"… I do." Michiru whispered. She did have a heart. She loved Haruka, Hotaru and Setsuna, she cared about her friends – wasn't it proof enough?

"_Only when your Senshi self allows it. As soon as Sailor Neptune thinks it necessary for whatever mission she gets to get rid of Michiru Kaioh's '_family'_, she will do it._ You_ will do it,_" the snake said.

"I… will…?" Michiru said hesitatingly.

"_Of course you will. Everything to save the world, after all, no?_" the monster smiled sweetly.

"I…" Michiru whispered. She didn't want to think of it. Yes, she and Haruka were willing to make any sacrifice necessary. But that was before they met their Princess and fought together to save the world…

"_You are a coldhearted monster, Michiru Kaioh, hidden behind the façade of a gentle, talented musician. Whispering sweet words in the ear of your lover, who you would kill should the mission require it, and she is no hair better than you. I guess that is why you are so sickeningly in love with one another. One cold hearted monster adoring another,_" the dreadful reflection spat.

"Haruka is not like that…" Michiru protested weakly.

The reflection cackled madly, as if that was the finest joke it had ever heard. "_Puh-lease! Who was it that attacked her fellow Senshi with a World Shaking, hmm? Let's think, hmm… It was a Senshi with short blonde hair whose civilian form is always mistaken for a man. Now who could that be…?_"

"But…" Michiru started, but couldn't say anything. It was true.

"_No buts! Who was it that attacked her fellow Senshi? You and the other dyke. Who was it that was willing to kill friend and foe alike for the mission? You and the other dyke. Who was it that had no problem whatsoever with the idea of killing innocents? You and the other dyke. Who was it that would hesitate not a single microsecond to kill her own children for the mission? You and the other dyke!_" the reflection nearly screamed it at her. "_Don't you dare deny your cold heartedness, don't you dare deny _me!_ I am you, this is what you look like inside, Michiru Kaioh, Sailor Neptune!_"

Every word her reflection said felt like a knife to Michiru. There was no point in denying the truth… She sank to her knees, tears welling in her eyes. It was true… She was a monster, a monster hiding behind the façade of a loving mother and friend. She did not want it… She did not want to be so, but couldn't deny it. In their conviction that nobody but them, and only them, not even the Princess or other Senshi, could stop the Silence, they had allowed themselves to become cold hearted, immoral monsters, stopping at and for nothing or nobody to achieve what they wanted, and thinking themselves right for it.

"… you are right… but… I can change…" Michiru said quietly.

"_No you can't. Duty is everything to you, there can be no limits for you as to how far you can go to complete it. You cannot change, you will _never _change, Michiru Kaioh,_" the reflection said.

"I will." Michiru promised herself.

"_No you will not. You are a Senshi, and you always will be,_" the reflection shrugged.

"Being a Senshi doesn't mean being ruthless!" Michiru raised her voice, glaring at her reflection. "The Inners are also Senshi."

The monster stared at its claws, bored. "_And are you an Inner? No you aren't. You are an Outer Senshi. Watching the universe from afar, a heart as cold as your planet and its moons_."

"It does not matter. The Princess proved that all of us are dear to her, no matter what we are!"

"_And how did you reward her? By letting your little dyke blast her, her Prince and her friends. Nice going!_" the reflection cheered.

"I have learned my lesson!" Michiru objected.

"_And yet you're still looking like this_."

"Wrong!" Michiru glared at her reflection. "It is _you_ looking like this. You are nothing! You are but a dream! And I'll make sure you don't come true!"

"_Oh really?_" the reflection laughed.

"Yes." Michiru said, her resolve strong. She got on her feet and walked over to the mirror, touching the glass surface.

"_Wrong answer,_" the monster smirked. And before Michiru realised it, the monster reached out to her, out of the mirror, its clawed hands grabbing her and pulling her into the mirror. Michiru did not want to give up without a fight, though. She blasted the monster with her power, wanting to get rid of her once and for all. The attack tore through the beast, and it seemed to break down into ash. Michiru finished the job, summoning all her power, making her sigil light up, and blasted the whole world away, leaving nothing but empty white space.

"Done…" she whispered, satisfied. She didn't notice the lingering ash of the beast before it was too late. It rose up, and before Michiru could so much as blink, it had rushed towards her and entered her body through her nose and mouth. Michiru choked, coughing violently, trying to get rid of the alien substance. It was futile, it had entered her and not even her power could purify it. She fell to her knees, her body searing with pain. She coughed and hacked, her entire body burning. "…no…" Michiru wheezed. "…get…out…"

"_Get out? Out of what belongs to me? I am you, you are me, we are one_," a voice in her head said. Michiru felt her body shake, her skin burn even hotter, and then everything was a blinding white hell of sheer pain. She coughed up blood, felt her fingers twitch. Michiru felt spikes erupt from each of her backbones, her hair twirl and writhe until it was no longer hair but snakes, her clothes burning away, revealing grey, ugly skin, her teeth sharpening, her legs painfully merging together until they formed one, long snake tail. "_Now we are one,_" a voice in the back of her head whispered.

"…no…" Michiru whispered. "…I don't want to… I deny you…" She coughed again, more blood landed on the white space she was in.

"_We are one,_" was all the voice said, before it grew dim and quiet. It was right. Michiru became a monster, despite her resolve, despite her will to change. She was a monster, a cold hearted monster. Only now, she looked the part.

And Michiru could only cry. From her cold yellow eyes, with pupils like slits, dripped salty tears. She didn't want it. She didn't want to be a monster. What would Haruka think of her? How would she face Hotaru, her dear girl, who would not become a monster even if her darkness was exposed? She clenched her skeletal fingers into fists, beating the ground, powerless.

"I don't want to… I don't want to…" Michiru kept crying.

"Can't help who you are, hmm?" a familiar voice said from behind her. Michiru turned around sharply, and saw Crast stand there, looking bored. He took in her new form with a critical eye. "Hmm, I have to say you look better. Quite attractive, if one is me."

"Crast…" Michiru sighed bitterly. "You're the only one in the right mind who can find _this_ attractive."

"Touché," the monstrous dark side of Angonce cackled. "So much for, 'what matters is the inside', hmm, if you think your little dyke won't like you anymore." Michiru shivered. She wouldn't even dare to face Haruka like this, because she knew she was hideous. "Though I do suppose it would be illegal for the two of you to make love now, since that would count as bestiality," Crast taunted cruelly. That worked, because Michiru nearly gagged and shivered even more – she wasn't even sure how such monsters were _supposed_ to make love. Or if they _were_ supposed to do so at all.

"Not to worry," Crast continued cheerfully. "You'll always have me." And he wagged the place where a normal person would have eyebrows suggestively. Michiru screamed at that thought, but her body wagged its tail lightly, and some of the snakes on her head hissed and snapped their jaws at Crast. Michiru felt tears of shame well in her eyes.

"Now you're just being offending," Crast snorted.

"It's not my fault…" Michiru said meekly.

"Then whose?" the monster demanded. "This is _your_ dream, after all."

"I can't control it!" Michiru snapped. "If I could, do you think I'd look like… _this_!"

"Dreams reflect who we are, creature," Crast said, surprisingly as little insultingly as he was capable of. "Directly controlled or not, this is still a reflection of what resides within you, in your mind, even if you do not know it is there."

"But… but I was willing to change…" Michiru protested.

"The very fact that you are like this now is proof enough that your conviction wasn't enough to convince yourself," the dark side of Angonce shrugged.

"I don't want to be a monster…"

"It's fun to be a monster," Crast replied with a smirk.

"You're used to it." Michiru sighed. "You like to see everybody cringe in disgust as they look at you, you enjoy torturing their minds with your monstrosity…"

"True, true," the monster nodded sagely.

"But I don't, can't and won't." Michiru finished.

"That's all fine and dandy, little monster, but despite your fancy words, let me point out that you are now, in fact, a monster," Crast chuckled. "An attractive one at that."

"I know, and I want to kill myself." Michiru whispered, bringing her sharp claws to her throat. Her snake hair bit her when she tried to slit her own throat, though, stopping her. Michiru smirked bitterly. Too bad they weren't poisonous. She didn't know what to do anymore. She had come here to fight Galaxia, not… not to be turned into a monster. "What do I do, Crast?" She asked the other monster.

"Seeing as this is _your_ dream, how should _I_ know?" he shrugged.

"You can influence them. We see this because of _your_ power."

"May I remind you, little dyke, that I warned you before you entered that this dream was out of my hands?" the monster hissed.

"You did say that, yes." Michiru nodded.

"So stop asking me," he concluded. "And even if I could, why would I change this wonderful little dream you've made?"

"Oh, _right_, you find this body _attractive_." Michiru rolled her eyes.

"And you have no taste if you don't," he retorted.

"I have no taste then." Michiru said flatly.

"And you wonder why I dislike you."

"Whatever." Michiru shrugged. "Just tell me how to get rid of this body!"

"No," Crast said simply.

"WHY?" Michiru cried.

"If I did, what would be the point of entering this land in the first place, you retarded piece of primate?" the monster sneered.

"But we were supposed to fight Galaxia, not turn into monsters!" Michiru glared at him.

"You are supposed to fight your repressed darkness here!" Crast corrected her, finding himself to be quickly losing his patience.

"So I fought, but it won! I don't know how to get rid of it!"

"You fought it the wrong way," was all Crast said, before glaring harshly at her. "You're boring me. Find someone else to direct your whining at." And with that, he promptly vanished without a trace.

Michiru stared at the space where Crast just was. What did he mean, 'fought it wrong'? How else was she supposed to fight it? She screamed in frustration, and began beating the floor with her fists, her cries of rage being mixed by big, salty tears of hurt, confusion and pain.

"What do you want from me?" She screamed at her other self. There came no answer, only silence. "I know you're here, don't be silent! Why must you torture me?" When the silence continued, Michiru buried her face in her grey, clawed hands and broke down crying again.

"_I want acceptance._"

"You won't get it!" Michiru hissed. "Ever! I refuse to be a monster! I am no longer like that!"

"_Oh yes you are._"

"No, no, no, no, NOO!"

"_Denying inner Darkness…_" The monster's hissing voice sounded almost sad. "_Pathetic. I hoped you'd learn from their mistakes._"

"Inner darkness doesn't mean I have to remain the monster I was, who would kill her own children, her lover, her friends, for a hollow victory in saving the world…" Michiru whispered.

"_That desire and danger is within you and you know it. Don't deny me. Accept me._"

"No," Michiru growled. "I accept that I have shortcomings, I accept my imperfections, but no longer will I accept the cold heart you represent." The Senshi of the Depths could feel tears run down her monstrous cheeks, as she remembered her early days as a Senshi, as she remembered the vision from the mirror where she had killed Setsuna and Hotaru for nothing, as she remembered all those things she had done as a Senshi that she regretted or would have done different now. "I will never be like that, be like _you_, again… Doing so would mean disgracing what Usagi tried to teach Haruka and me, would insult those who call me mama…"

Michiru felt the effects of her speech – her legs parted, no longer forming a tail, and the snakes hissed angrily. It encouraged her, but she didn't know how to press on and push back more of the evil within her… She could feel her legs itching, as if trying to get together again… Michiru bit her lip fearfully. She had booked a small success in battling for her freedom, but already she could feel the effects slip away, and she didn't know what else had to be done to reverse the transformation.

The clock ticking, her legs itching more and more, Michiru struggled with that one crucial question: what did she have to do?

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**Next chapter: Guardian of the Gates!**

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**Review replies:**

Bin82501: Thanks for reading and reviewing!

Kuroui: *checks* Hey, yeah, I guess she did. But she had a good reason to drop it. =p Thanks for the review!

Neanda: Well, as you could see, Crast had even more fun this time around than last time (and yes, that tutu was pink). Hope you liked it! Thanks for reading!


	128. Guardian of the Gates

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**128. Guardian of the Gates**

Setsuna woke up floating in an empty grey space filled with mist. It disoriented her, for there was no way to see the ground, if there ever was a ground. The situation was strange and new, but the feeling it gave her, especially the mist, seemed familiar. She found that she could sort of swim through the mist, and began moving in a random direction. The grey fog seemed to have scent nor substance, but it was there, she could feel it, and suddenly, Setsuna knew what it was. It was Time mist. That eased so somewhat, it meant that the Time Gates should be nearby.

The Senshi of Time could feel herself dropping gently to an invisible ground, and then the mist parted before her to show her the gates she had watched over for so many endless years. She waved her Garnet Staff to open them a little and see what was going on in the world, or if that even worked in the dream. Everything obeyed as it should, and Sailor Pluto found herself wondering if she had even entered the dream at all. The world she could see seemed safe, although the future was still uncertain because of Zyglak's disturbance. Relaxing somewhat, she tried to go home, to their mansion, to her friends and dear children. When she tried that, however, the gate home repelled her, knocking her back painfully. She couldn't pass.

Setsuna could only stare at the Gates. Time travel was impossible now? Not believing herself, she ran towards the Gates again, trying to pass. She got the same result, the gate blowing her back, refusing to let her past.

_Stay. Guard us._

Setsuna gulped. She had been all alone in solitude for many years and even eons, but the Gates never _spoke_ to her. A dream after all, then? That could also explain why she didn't pass. Frowning, Setsuna climbed to her feet, wondering what this was all about.

"Why can't I pass?" She asked.

_Stay. Guard us._

Setsuna sighed. There was no way around it. It was her duty, after all. Quietly, she positioned herself before the gates, as she had always done, the end of her Garnet Rod resting on the ground. She just had to relax her mind and let go of the thought 'time'. Then seconds, years, and eons she spends here wouldn't matter to her anymore. There would be only 'now'. Now, herself, and solitude.

Still as a statue, she stood there, almost frozen in time, forever on her watch. The mist started to close in on her again, and when she looked at it, Setsuna was surprised to find that it began to show her images. Images of Haruka and Michiru, and Hotaru, living together happily as a family, without her. Images of the Princess and her friends having a good time, laughing and having fun together, without her.

She bowed her head. Didn't they miss her? More images followed, Ignika spending time with his new mama and papa and Hotaru, going on visits to museums. Traveller laughing joyfully as she played music with Haruka and Michiru. Not with her. Never with her. Why? Didn't she exist there anymore? Why couldn't she be with them, and live the life they did?

_Stay. Guard us._

Of course, her duty, the Time Gates. She couldn't live that life, she had to stay here and guard the gates. That was her destiny. To be here at the Gates forever, without a soul at her side, never knowing comrades, friendship, family or love. It was her fate to be so.

But why was this fate kind to Haruka and Michiru? Their duty was also to stay in solitude and guard the Solar System… Why were they allowed better life? Why not her? Why did she have to waste away here at these forgotten gates, guarding them from threats that never came, enemies that never were? In all her time at these gates, the only living beings she had seen were the Small Lady, or the Princess and her Inners going to the future. She had chosen to abandon her post then, driven by a desire to join them, to stand with them. Why then, did she have to remain here, alone?

The images began to change then, the Senshi being under attack. She couldn't see the enemy, but what she did see was that they managed fine on their own, not needing her. It relieved her, but she did feel a pang of pain. Didn't they need her at all? Was there really no reason for her to leave this lonely place, this… this prison? Setsuna sighed. Maybe that indeed was the truth… But…

"I don't want to be alone…" she whispered to nobody in particular. She had experienced just how isolated she had been a while ago, when she, Haruka and Michiru had lost their powers and had taken in Hotaru and started raising her. Those few months of a normal, warm life had been a harsh confrontation with reality for Setsuna, who found living a normal life and adapting to it after thousands of years of doing nothing but her duty in solitude extremely difficult. She had felt lost, out of place, not knowing what to do with herself. She needed 'raising' just as much as Hotaru had at that moment. But she had pulled through in the end, and even though the results of her long solitude were still visible in her personality and attitude, she had thawed out considerably, and did not wish to return to that state of ice she had come from, or the solitude it brought with it.

But how else could she live through the eons of emptiness and solitude that awaited her now? Thinking about those normal things now seemed unbearable, because she could never experience them again. She didn't want to accept it, she didn't _want_ to be here. She wanted to be with her family, her friends, her fellow Senshi.

"Let me go…" She begged quietly. "My place no longer is here, the Princess relieved me of this duty…"

_Stay._

"No," Setsuna hissed. "I do not want to be alone!"

_Guard us._

Furious, the Senshi of Time did the unthinkable: the raised her Garnet Rod and fired her signature Death Scream at the Time Gates. The whole place shook in an earthquake, but the Gates weren't breached. The green-haired woman didn't let it discourage her, and attacked again.

_What are you doing…_

"Breaking out of here," Setsuna growled. "Going to where I belong!"

_You belong here. You belong to us._

"I belong with my friends, my fellow Senshi, with my family!"

_Guard us. It is your duty and destiny._

"I refuse!"

_You can not. As long as you have your powers, this duty is yours. Forever._

Setsuna froze for a minute, but then immediately reached her next decision, hesitating no longer: "Then I would rather give them up. Too long have we Outer Senshi given everything we had, our lives, our hearts, our morality, our conscience, _everything_, for the universe… If the universe will not even give me my family and friends… Then maybe the Saurians are right, and this is a universe not worth saving!"

Suddenly, the whole world shook. The earth began to crumble beneath her feet, and Setsuna fell into the abyss. She was vaguely aware of the Time Gates collapsing above her. For some reason, the sight pleased her. As she fell, the mist around her slowly began to dissolve, until she found herself in empty whiteness. Slowly, Setsuna relaxed. The whiteness was a welcome sight, but she did notice one spot in the distance, looking vaguely like a door.

"Right, this is a dream," she told herself, an eyebrow raised. She then headed towards the door. In her mind, she thought back to what had just happened. She had openly defied her duty to the universe in favour of having a normal life with her family and friends. No doubt the late Queen would be furious with her. Then again, according to her old regime, nobody was supposed to know about the existence of Outers at all. Too many things had changed.

The Outers were now together with the Inners to guard the Princess, _that_ was their new duty. She was a friend to Usagi now, and Usagi cared for her as she did for all Senshi, and she wanted Setsuna to be with her. The Outers now formed a family, Sailor _Saturn_ was awake and alive, and their beloved daughter. Indeed, they had come far from the Silver Millenium, too far to stay true to the duties and ways of then. Her place was no longer at the Time Gates, it was at her Princess' side. And that was a duty she was fully content about.

Setsuna approached the door in the white. It looked so ordinary, and at the same time so out of place. Curious, Setsuna looked behind it before opening. It was just an ordinary door. And behind it, there was nothing except for the back of the door. How peculiar. Setsuna opened the door. As she expected, she saw a whole new landscape when she looked through the door, but when she went around it, she just saw the door. "Only in dreams," she laughed quietly. Smiling, she went through the door. But unexpectedly, she just went through it, and ended up on the other side of the door, still in the white space. Setsuna raised an eyebrow. "I don't think that's how it's usually supposed to go."

Maybe the door was broken? She was about to walk through again, when Setsuna saw another door appear in the distance. Setsuna headed to that one instead. It looked just the same as the other one. Not wasting time Setsuna opened it and went through. The same as before happened, and another door appeared in the distance. Setsuna went over to that one.

"I'm starting to think this will get me nowhere," the Senshi of Time muttered. But checked this one door nonetheless. As she expected by now, it also took her nowhere. Setsuna went back to the first door, wanting to go to some other place.

"It's just like in those retarded 'cartoons' you silly little uncivilized creatures make," a familiar voice chuckled, amused.

"I don't watch cartoons." Setsuna frowned.

"You're still silly," Crast shrugged, popping up right next to her.

"Perhaps." Setsuna shrugged. "How do I get out of here?"

Crast snorted. "Do all of you primates share one brain, per chance? You keep asking the same questions. And I keep telling the same answer, which gets boring: this is _your_ dream."

"I see…" Setsuna said thoughtfully. "Wait, you visited others? How are they?"

"Let's see," Crast said thoughtfully, with a smirk. "Blonde dyke is lost thinking only her Senshi exists, teal dyke has been transformed in a monster, miko and sugar high are busy getting killed, the little twerp has failed to impress me and is pathetic, brainiac thinks she's making progress, and the remaining two I still have to torment."

Setsuna's jaw dropped. "Haruka and Michiru are…?"

"Kind of like you, only they failed were you succeeded," Crast shrugged. "Not that I find that at all impressive."

"Can I help them?" Setsuna asked, ready to jump into action and save her friends.

"Not a chance," the monster smirked.

"Why? Weren't we supposed to fight together?" Setsuna glared at him.

"Did I mention primate Galaxia anywhere?" Crast asked snidely.

"No."

"So where does the 'fight together' part come in again?" the monster sneered, as if speaking to a retarded walnut.

"Touché." Setsuna sighed. "Well, if there's nothing more for you to say, I'll keep looking for an exit."

"How boring," the dark side of Angonce sighed. "And here I hoped you'd amuse me a bit after seeing the dyke with a snake tail grew stale."

"I never was a fun Senshi." Setsuna shrugged.

"You could at least _try_," Crast retorted.

"What for?"

"A bit of _gratitude_ for taking you all here _should_ be quite a bit in order, as well as a proper reward," the monster said as an answer. He skittered to one of the doors and began toying with it.

Setsuna raised her eyebrow. "What kind of reward?"

"Like I said, you could at least _try_ and be amusing," Crast sighed.

"Umm... Like how?" But Crast had already vanished, having understood there was no amusement for him to be had here. No doubt he was off to torment the only two Senshi he hadn't visited yet. Setsuna shrugged and went to check the door Crast was toying with. Maybe the monster did leave some kind of aid for her. He was absolutely hideous and the most rude, terrible person to ever be around, but none could deny his loyalty to the master and his cause. So it would be in his best interest to help them, wouldn't it? That, or he could be trying to get some amusement she didn't provide. Nevertheless, she opened the door. Nothing seemed to have changed about them. Just to make sure, she went in. It didn't work again, though now a second door appeared right before her nose, this one looking different. Without hesitation, she opened it.

She went through it, and the white space around her vanished. "Finally." Setsuna muttered, trying to see what awaited her here. It seemed like a hallway, dimly lit. Setsuna went down the hallway and heard the door close behind her. As soon as it was shut, the door vanished, and there was no going back. But that was expected, and Setsuna continued down the hallway. It felt familiar to her, and she had a feeling in the back of her mind that she ought to recognize this place, but it was hard with the dim lights. She quickened her pace. The sound of her heeled boots on the floor was so familiar…

She approached one of the pillars that she could make out in the darkness, and reached her hand out to it, carefully touching it and examining it. So, so familiar… Suddenly, she recognized this place.

"Castle Charon…" she gasped, her eyes widening in shock. Then this must be… Setsuna gulped and held her Garnet Staff at ready. Time to die… She turned around quickly, ready to face her nemesis. She only hoped that Hotaru won't be here this time… By pure instinct, Setsuna managed to dodge the attack that would have taken her life, her hands gripping her Garnet Rod tightly. She clenched her jaws and looked right into the dark eyes of Sailor Galaxia.

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**Next chapter: The departed!**

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**Review replies:  
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****Neanda: As you correctly guessed, this chapter was about Pluto. Glad you enjoyed Crast, and as always, I hope he managed to entertain this time around, too. Thanks for the review!


	129. The Departed

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**129. The Departed**

Makoto wandered around in the dreamland, being utterly lost. She was walking through a seemingly endless plain with long grass that reached to her knees, and nothing else in sight. Above her, the sky was black, and no minute passed without a great amount of thunder and lightning passing by overhead. Yet for some reason it wasn't raining, and Makoto was grateful for that. She didn't want to be lost _and_ soaking wet, after all. As for the lightning, she wasn't really worried. Even though she was the tallest thing in the field and thus had the most chance to get struck, it didn't bother her. She had her tiara at the ready, so even if she got struck, she would simply convert the lightning into a Supreme Thunder and continue on her way. Wherever that was.

"Wonder where the others are…" she muttered. There was certainly nobody here, she could see the whole plain clearly. She looked up again, finding the pitch black sky unsettling. She wanted to get out of here or at least to find some sort of shelter not to have to look at this lifeless sky. The only problem was that there was nothing in the field, and no matter how far she walked, nothing changed. "Oh, come on!" Makoto cried in frustration. She wished that a path would appear, or any other object for that matter.

Just as she was thinking that, a lightning bolt struck down from the sky, missing her by a hair's width only. The explosion that resulted knocked her away and set the grass aflame. At first Makoto was glad that something was finally happening, but the fire spread quickly, igniting the whole plain. That was definitely _not_ good, the Senshi decided, already dreading the prospect of being roasted alive. Luckily for her, she could quickly make out a path amidst the fire that _wasn't_ ablaze.

"And there's my path," she smiled weakly. She ran down the path quickly, at all sides being surrounded by heavy, hot air, smoke and fire. Makoto coughed, she had to get out of there. So when a door appeared right in front of her path, she didn't take the time to be surprised and startled, she simply opened it and went through.

To her surprise, she found herself at Tokyo airport. The place was buzzing with activity, crowds of people passing by, yet nobody seemed to notice her. Confused, she began to look around.

"Auntie Mamiya, will they be coming soon?" She heard a voice of a little girl say. It was so familiar…

"Of course they will, Mako-chan." A woman responded. "The plane should arrive in ten minutes."

Makoto turned around and gasped at what she saw. It was herself, ten years old. And next to her, her aunt, whom she barely, if ever, saw. The Senshi's eyes widened slightly. It couldn't be… could it? Makoto frantically looked around the airport, trying to find a calendar or a clock that could tell her the date of the day she was witnessing before her. She found it immediately, the flight schedule. Makoto felt cold sweat form on her face, and everything seemed to grow cold and silent.

"No…"

"I can't wait for them to come back!" Her younger self chimed happily as they walked past her. "Look what I made for mama at summer camp!" Makoto couldn't see what it was, but she remembered perfectly: it was a cup for pencils, made of cardboard and decorated with a lot of pretty beads. She worked so hard on it… Had counted off the days until she could give it to her mother…

Suddenly, an alarm went off, followed by a loud announcement. "_Attention! Sector 5-B, evacuate immediately! Don't panic, head towards the exists! I repeat: Sector 5-B, evacuate immediately!_"

"What's going on?" Little Mako-chan asked, confused. The real Makoto could only stare, all strength having left her. Why? Why did she have to relive this? Wasn't it enough that this scene still haunted her nightmares at times?

"No idea, but we'd better get going!" Her aunt commanded, dragging the little girl away.

"But… mama and papa!" little Makoto protested.

"We'll meet them when the emergency is over." Her aunt promised her. Pouting, the younger version of the Senshi of Lightning relented. Her aunt didn't care, and continued to drag the young girl to the exit. The real Makoto watched her younger self go for a moment, her expression unreadable, her feelings in turmoil. She didn't move, it was her dream, she was like a ghost to all these people.

That's when she heard a loud, deafening noise of the airplane's engines. Slowly, as if in a trance, Makoto turned around to see it. She knew what happened to it, she had memorised every line of the newspaper article about this event. The plane's autopilot failed at a crucial moment, the vehicle crashed and one of its wings damaged the airport building's sectors 5-B and 6-B. Not that she was hurt now, even as the building seemed to be destroyed around her. She was but a ghost, a spectre in a nightmare. She could see a chunk of the ceiling fall on the plane, crushing the passengers under it. Including her parents.

Makoto wasn't even aware she was crying until the tears fell to the floor. She just kept staring, her eyes empty. "Mama… papa…" she muttered. Why? Why did they have to die? She could hear a cry behind her, and knew that her younger self was now asking the same questions in her head. How she managed to sneak past all the security guards and police, she didn't remember and it didn't matter. The gift for her mother now lay abandoned on the floor of the airport.

Makoto knew she should probably try to console her younger self and tell her to be strong, even though she was a ghost, but… she could not. She could only stand and stare at the wreckage. What would even be the point of trying to console herself? That wasn't how it had happened. Nothing had been able to console her back then, when her life had been destroyed. She wished she had died with them, and did in fact try to kill herself, but was stopped by the police. For the better, really, since otherwise she wouldn't have met Usagi and the others, or Chameleon… There would be no one to fight evil as Sailor Jupiter.

But what did knowing that future change about the past? Having a reason to live didn't make these losses any easier. She wished her parents were with her, she wished they were alive. Slowly, Makoto sank to her knees. What was the point, she wondered. Why did she have to witness this again? She knew the answer. The reason to be here was to fight inner fears. But what was there to fight here? This was not an inner fear, it was a wound in her soul. It could not be healed, no matter how she tried. So why?

"Perhaps there is no reason," somebody said from behind her, a voice she knew and despised, but which now sounded surprisingly… not insulting or spiteful. Makoto didn't reply, there was no point. She saw the pincers of Crast out of the corners of her eyes. "Sometimes, dreams just have a habit of reminding us of that which we need not be reminded of."

"I had more than enough of these nightmares even without this journey." Makoto said quietly.

"Maybe that is why you are seeing it," Crast suggested, his voice neutral.

"Take me away from here, I want to see it no longer."

A sigh of irritation went through the monster. "That's eight. Will the moonbrat ask me the same question, too, so I can have the complete set?" He shook his monstrous skull. "This is _your_ dream, Sailor primate, not mine. I warned you from the beginning it would be out of my hands."

"… I see." Makoto whispered, trying to will the world to go away.

"You surprise me. I didn't think you'd be so weak as to run," Crast noted with scorn.

Makoto gave a bitter chuckle. "You suggest I go over there and look at my parents' crushed remains? Death has taken them from me, there's nothing to do or change about it."

"And yet here you sit, complaining about the nightmares," came the reply.

"I'd rather forget all about this, but I can not."

"I fail to remember where I said you should, or, for that matter, _could_," the beast snorted, chuckling darkly. "It is impossible to forget death once you come in touch with it, think you I do not know that better than anyone else?" He laughed again. "All that matters is how you deal with it. And let me tell you, when you let it haunt your nightmares, you're doing it wrong."

"What is the right way then?" Makoto asked.

"I've killed more than you can count, primate, and it bothers me not one single tiny bit. For weak inferior creatures, taking a life leaves you haunted, dreaming of the dead their empty eyes. While I find it retarded, the master would say that is how it should be, as taking a life should not be done lightly and feeling conscious about it makes you humane and civilized," the monster shrugged. "But this," he gestured at the burning wreckage. "Was an accident. A quirk of fate. Fate may be many things, cruel being one of them, but it is not in anyone's hands. Letting its results haunt your nightmares, is foolishness at its finest. Not that I wouldn't expect that from creatures such as you."

"I can't control it…" Makoto protested.

"Says who?" Crast laughed. "Nightmares take from what you suppress, or haven't gotten over yet, or failed to heal. You say this is not an inner fear, but a wound in your soul. Well then, silly bitch, _heal_ it."

"I don't know how..."

"Not my problem," Crast shrugged. "It's fine to mourn. Losses such as these, feh, the master would say they have to be mourned as it makes you an intelligent thing. Highly debatable if one asks me, but then again, few reach my level of intelligence so even should they ask they wouldn't comprehend my reasons as to why. But you cannot let them haunt you, that makes you weak and pathetic." He paused for a moment. "Well, even more pathetic and weak than usual."

"I've been trying to cope with it for all those years…" Makoto said hesitatingly.

Crast glanced at the nightmare around them and snorted. "An intelligent one, such as me, will now say that obviously you haven't been having much success, given where we are at the moment."

"I know…"

"Well, yes, and so do I, thank you, Captain Obvious."

"But what can I do about this?" Makoto cried, frustrated with herself for being so weak.

"How should I know? I'm above things like this," Crast shrugged again. Frustrated, Makoto tried to get rid of the world around her again.

"Won't work," Crast commented gleefully.

"Why?"

"Because it'll just come back."

"I don't want to deal with it…" Makoto protested.

"Weak, weak, weak, isn't she so weak, precious? Yes she is, she is!" Crast cheered, hopping around from pincer to pincer, dancing a mocking dance around Makoto gleefully, amusedly. Makoto didn't react, but had to admit it was true.

"I'll give you a hint, little weakling," Crast smiled, a hideous sight. Makoto looked at him, waiting for him to continue. "Make peace with yourself," the monster shrugged, after which he promptly disappeared from her dream.

Makoto wondered what the heck he meant. Yet at the same time she had to admit that she had never seen Crast act so 'nice' before, so perhaps he really was trying to help her this time. Still, how does one make peace with themselves? Makoto wondered about it until she heard someone crying. Looking over her shoulder slowly, the Senshi of Lightning saw herself. Or rather, her younger self created by this dreamland. Makoto came over to her, the pieces of the puzzle slowly falling into place, a glimmer of understanding emerging in her mind. The girl didn't really seem to notice her, too devastated with her loss. Makoto remembered having done that, withdrawing within herself, allowing nobody or nothing in. Then again, she wasn't a nobody. She was herself. Kneeling down to the girl, she put her hand on her shoulder.

"Mako-chan…" She said gently. She got no response, but Makoto would have been surprised if it would have been so easy. "Mako-chan…" She called again, wishing the girl would at least look up at her. Maybe she should try calling out to her via her Senshi power? "_Mako-chan!_" She called, her voice calling from within the young girl's heart. Finally, she was successful, for at least the girl looked up. Immediately, she gasped.

"M… mama?"

That took Makoto aback. Some people who knew her parents did tell her that she looked a lot like her mother, but… "No… I'm not." She had to admit.

"Then… then who are you?" The girl asked. Makoto paused, not sure what to answer. Smiling a little, she said:

"I'm you." She reached out with her Senshi self again while she said this, to add proof to her words.

This did work on little Mako-chan, but she still was confused. "But why are you a ghost? Am I dead in the future?" The real Makoto shook her head.

"No, I'm just dreaming of you," she replied.

"Huh?" The little girl blinked.

"Don't you worry," Makoto smiled again, trying to sound confident and warm. "You aren't dead. We're just dreaming, and seeing each other because of that."

"O… okay…" Little Makoto slowly nodded and looked at the wreckage. "But mama and papa… they are…" Tears ran down the little girl's face, tears Makoto knew all too well. Gently, she hugged her younger self, crying as well.

"I know," she whispered, tightening her grip a bit. "I know… It hurts me too… But you have to be strong, Mako-chan…" Her tears flowed freely now, the grief of the loss welling up, breaking through the dam she had build up through the years. "Even though I know… it'll be difficult… beyond compare…" she sobbed quietly.

Her younger self looked at her. "You… you're crying…" She noted quietly. "You… you didn't get over it…" Makoto could only nod in silence, and hugged herself more firmly, letting her hands run freely through her own younger self's hair. The little girl frowned. "…is there any point to try at all?"

"Yes!" Makoto replied immediately, firmly, before she could even think about her answer.

"Why…?" The little girl asked.

"Because…" Makoto faltered here for a moment, but the answer came to her quickly, as clear as crystal: "Because otherwise, you'll become like me."

"Huh?" Little Mako-chan said, confused. Makoto smiled a bit and caressed her little self over the top of her head.

"Someone who couldn't get over it, who keeps having nightmares," she said quietly. "Who keeps letting it haunt her, instead of letting the departed rest in peace." She sniffed and tried to wipe her tears away, but it was futile. "What is the point of having nightmares, of seeing this again and again? It'll never change, nothing I or you can do will ever turn back the clock… Nothing…"

"I… I'll try my best then…" The little girl said, hugging her older self.

"I know you will," Makoto whispered sadly. "You're a strong girl, after all, Mako-chan… More than I could ever be…"

"But… but you're me! Surely you're strong as well." Mako-chan protested.

"Maybe if you are, I can be too, if only then," the Senshi of Lightning replied softly.

"I'll do my best." Mako-chan nodded, then looked at her thoughtfully. "Saaay, why are you wearing these clothes? Is that what they wear in the future?" Makoto chuckled softly and kissed herself on the hair.

"That would be telling, now wouldn't it?" she winked. "You'll learn in due time." Indeed she would, and despite the hardships and the deaths she would suffer, it would in the end be for the better.

Mako-chan smiled. "I guess…" Then she suddenly frowned again. "Will you leave me now? I don't wanna be alone…" The older Senshi shook her head.

"Of course not, I'll stay with you, I always will," she promised. "Just like you will stay with me. But, we won't talk very often. We seldom end up in the same dream." She put her finger to her lip in thought, then got an idea. Though it may be a tad cliché, Makoto didn't care. She placed her finger on the little girl's heart and smiled. "But you'll always find me here."

Mako-chan placed her hand on her heart. "Okay." Makoto nodded, and hugged her younger self once again, just for good measure.

"Mama and papa are in a better place now," she whispered, surprised by the calmness with which she said that.

"I hope so… They were good, weren't they…?" Little Mako-chan said, tears welling in her eyes again.

"Yes," Makoto nodded. She caressed her little self's cheek with her thumb. "It's okay to cry and mourn…" she whispered. "But don't carry it like a weight in your heart. The future will be worth living for, I know so."

The little girl believed her, but broke down crying still. Makoto smiled softly, and pulled the child to her chest, warming her, gently caressing her back, giving her the comfort she needed, the comfort she had rejected when it had been her back then. Maybe this girl would do so as well, if it wasn't her future self giving her comfort. It didn't really matter, as long as comfort was given and accepted.

"Shhh… it'll be hard, but life goes on. You'll be happy in the future." She thought of all her friends, and Chameleon, her lover. Yes, the future looked bright indeed.

"I… I believe you…" The little girl said. Makoto smiled, and kissed the top of the child's head again, patting her gently on the back. "I'll be strong…" She looked up at her older self and tried to smile confidently.

"That's my girl." Makoto smiled back, hugging her again. Her child self embraced Makoto again, and Makoto returned said embrace. So past and future met and comforted each other, and the both of them felt at peace. They continued the simple embrace, while around them, the nightmare faded to white. Makoto didn't notice her younger self fade as well until it was too late and the girl was gone completely. No, that wasn't completely right. Her other self hadn't faded. She had merged with it. And she could feel the warmth and comfort she had given herself just now. Somewhere, Makoto realized that she hadn't really merged with anything, that it was all a dream and that this new feeling was purely psychological, but it didn't matter. It didn't change anything. She had come to terms with her parents' death, or at least she wanted to believe so. Which meant it was time to move on.

Slowly, Makoto climbed to her feet. When this dream was over, she decided, she would have to buy some flowers, and take Chameleon with her to pay a visit to something, and place the flowers there. Then she would finally be able to let the departed rest in peace.

* * *

**Next chapter: Dreamland of knowledge!**

* * *

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Kuroui: Thanks for the review!**  
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	130. Dreamland of knowledge

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**130. Dreamland of knowledge**

Angonce was observing the dreams of the Senshi on the screens that surrounded him, as he sat in the centre of the room in his hi-tech chair. He could see the dreams every single one of the girls and the Saurians were having, but he couldn't interfere with them, he could only observe, and bring over his thoughts to Crast whenever it was required, which so far had only been the case for Saturn, Pluto and Jupiter. The forms of fantasy in the Senshi's sleeping minds were intriguing and sometimes amusing, yet he couldn't help but feel compassionate for the tragedies that had befallen them. They were slowly but steadily making progress, however. Uranus and Neptune seemed to have more difficulty with it, though.

"_They have always been troubled individuals,_" the Kind thought sadly. Their past lives and Senshi powers had been a great influence, no doubt. He had to admit their mission upon awakening again hadn't been the easiest one either, and it didn't surprise him in the least that they still had inner demons left from that period of their lives. The demons they struggled with now – loneliness and mercilessness. Something they both suffered from, it only represented itself differently with each of them. He didn't doubt that they will overcome it eventually – he had faith in their abilities as individuals.

He was about to observe the Saurians, when a ball of light appeared in the room, which quickly turned into the bewildered form of Chibiusa.

"Umm… Good day to you, Master Angonce." The small princess greeted the Great Being.

Angonce turned and smiled at the young girl, who now had taken on her true form as Small Lady. "Greetings, Small Lady. My apologies for your sudden transportation… I had willed it that once you left Elysium, you would be taken to me, for I feel this situation requires your presence." He paused, then added: "Though not so much that I wished to interrupt your mission, so I waited until it was completed, which it is, I hope?"

"Yes, it was." Chibiusa nodded. "What happened, though, Master Angonce? I tried to contact Plu before I left, but, she didn't answer…" The child asked, worry evident in her voice. Setsuna never left her calls without answers.

"Ah, she is currently sleeping, which is why," the Great Being replied, gesturing at the bed on which Sailor Pluto laid, deeply lost in the dreamland.

Chibiusa blinked, noticing the other Senshi asleep around her as well. "Why are they all sleeping?"

"Ah, yes, that is why I called you, Small Lady," Angonce answered. "There was a battle to be fought, and I felt that you should be here to witness it." The Great Being then proceeded to explain about the mental attacks the Senshi had suffered from while Chibiusa had been at Elysium, the nature of the attacks, their origin, and how they had to be fought. "And so here they sleep," Angonce finished. "Taken by Crast to 'dreamland', to face their inner demons."

"I… I see…" Chibiusa said slowly. To think that her friends were forced to relive their deaths… Chibiusa barely remembered her own death during the fight against Galaxia. When Mamoru died, Chibiusa just… ceased to exist. Faded away.

Angone looked at the Small Lady observantly. "Am I… correct if I say that I do not detect such… fear or repressed feelings concerning the events with Sailor Galaxia within you, Small Lady?" He paused for a moment again. "Indeed, I do not sense many inner demons within you. Even your time as Black Lady, you have forgiven yourself for and moved on from it."

"Umm, well… I didn't exactly die…" Chibiusa explained hesitatingly. "Just, when Galaxia killed Mamo-chan, um, I mean, Endymion, my future father…" She tried to find the right words to explain. "I just became unborn. It didn't even hurt or anything."

"I am aware," the Great Being nodded slowly. "But what matters is if that experience could wreck your mind, similar to what your friends experienced, or if you have found peace with it and no longer let the fear and the memory gnaw at you from within your nightmares."

Chibiusa shook her head. "No, it's okay. I don't fear fading away again…" She smiled a little. "Because I know that, no matter what happens, in the end we will all be together again, like it has been every time before. And that knowledge comforts me."

"I see." Master Angonce smiled at her childish innocence. Innocent or not, it was a healthy approach. "I take it you do not need to enter the dream, then?"

"Umm… I think no." Chibiusa said.

"For the better, in all honesty, Small Lady, for it means you are at peace with yourself," Angonce praised her with a smile.

"Yep." Chibiusa smiled. "It's all thanks to others, though. And… maybe my body is growing faster than my mind."

"Still, I felt you should be here, with your friends and fellow Senshi, to stand by their side, if only in body, whilst they confront their inner shadows in the dream," Angonce said.

Chibiusa nodded and looked at the screens curiously. Being taken from Elysium to the Master's mansion so suddenly and unexpectedly, being informed of dangerous visions her friends had been attacked by while she was gone, and then learning they had gone to a 'dreamland' to face these inner demons was all a bit much to take in. Especially since her trip to Elysium hadn't been for fun, but Senshi business. Tying the sword Ignika had given her to her Senshi self had been a lot of work, all things considered. The pink-haired princess could use some rest. But instead she looked in wonder at the inner demons her friends struggled with. When she saw Michiru's, she could hardly suppress a scream.

"W… what's _that_?" She asked in shock. Angonce looked at what she meant, and a sad expression was formed on his divinely handsome face.

"Sailor Neptune's inner demon: herself," he explained gently.

"Y-you mean… her darkness? Like Crast?" Chibiusa guessed. The Great Being nodded in confirmation. "I… I see…" She could never have imagined that Michiru could have harboured something so… hideous within her soul. The Senshi of Neptune had always appeared as perfectly graceful, beautiful, kind and gentle, the embodiment of everything a true Princess should be. "Why is it so… so monstrous?" Chibiusa wondered aloud.

Angonce thought about her question for a moment. "That is actually something I have wondered about myself, Small Lady. Why is it that our dark counterpart is always given form as a hideous beast?" the Great Being then began thoughtfully. "I think it is psychological, Small Lady. What do our minds think of, nearly automatically, when we think of the darkness?"

"Something… evil… dangerous… scary." Chibiusa said.

"Exactly… So when we have to give our inner darkness, which is a part of ourselves, a form, an image, it will look like what our mind associates with the concept, what we _think_ it will look like. In most cases, that means something monstrous," Angonce explained.

"I see…" Chibiusa nodded. "But why is it _that_ monstrous? Is there so much darkness in her?"

"Not quite," came the reply. "She is influenced by her past experience, by what she has seen and what she has done. I am certain you are aware of Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus' early years, as well as their first encounters with the Princess and the Inner Senshi. Though the Princess and the others have forgiven them and warmly pulled them in their circle of friends, a feeling of doubt and regret nevertheless remained within Sailor Neptune, which was fed by her uncertainty, her negative experiences, her fears and her doubts… Leading her to think that the reality was worse than it actually is…"

"Oh. So she _thinks_ she is that bad?" Chibiusa guessed. "But really isn't?"

Angone laughed softly. "Do you not know that better than I, Small Lady?"

"Tee hee." Chibiusa chuckled as well. "I guess." She then looked back at the screen. "Will Michiru-san realise it?"

"That is up to her," the kind being answered.

Chibiusa nodded, then looked around in wonder. "Umm, and where's Haruka-san?"

"In her own dream," Angonce said, after which he pointed at a different screen, showing Haruka still firmly trapped within the belief that there was only Sailor Uranus, and that Haruka Tenoh was a persona with little worth. Chibiusa barely noticed her, she was almost completely buried in the sand the wind brought to her canyon.

"What's wrong with her?"

"Unfortunately it seems Sailor Uranus has trapped herself within the belief that only her Senshi self matters, and that her civilian persona as Haruka Tenoh is expendable, and has neither point nor purpose," the Great Being explained.

"Huh?" Chibiusa blinked. "But it's completely wrong!"

"Certainly, but you have to understand, Small Lady. Especially for Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune, there always seemed to have been a great difference between their Senshi and civilian personas, surely you have noticed that. As Michiru Kaioh and Haruka Tenoh, they were kind and friendly, even to the Princess. But as their Senshi selves, how often have they not been called ruthless, harsh and cold? Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune were prepared to give up everything, even their humanity, for the universe, the mission and the Princess," Angone said. "Naturally this burden weighed heavily upon them, but they always felt it was a necessary sacrifice…" The golden-eyed man sighed sadly. "They take their duty as Senshi very seriously. But somewhere, they also fear it… Fear the duty, the sacrifices it imposes on them, they fear losing their humanity. And it is that which Sailor Uranus faces now: an existence where there is only her Senshi self, cold, ruthless and immoral if need be, an existence where there is no place for her civilian self, no place for Haruka Tenoh…"

Chibiusa frowned. "Poor Haruka-san…" She then looked at the two Outers' dreams again. "Can we help them in any way?"

"I fear this is something they will have to confront on their own… You, Small Lady, and the others, have already done as much as you could do: you befriended Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune, regardless of past differences," the Great Being said kindly.

"I… I see…" Chibiusa sighed, and looked at what was going on in other screens. She could see Rei and Minako were facing off against Galaxia, just like Plu… Makoto and Ami were wandering in the dreamland, searching for the right way, as was Hotaru. She looked at the screen that showed her future mother, and gasped at what she saw.

The entire battle with Galaxia replayed before her eyes. Every single battle, every single death. She clasped her hands before her mouth as she watched, wide-eyed. But… why? Why was she fighting it all now? Why wasn't she wandering like the others?

"I fear… That Sailor Moon's fears, may be the greatest of them all. For what could be worse, for a soul as loving and kind as hers, to see all those she holds dear die?" Angonce sighed.

"Y… yes…" Chibiusa squeaked.

"And that is what she fears… And it is that what Galaxia represents for the Princess as well."

"I… I see…" Chibiusa said meekly.

Angonce sighed again. "But for Sailor Moon to overcome that fear, she'll need the help of the others, and before that can happen, they will have to overcome their fears, and their fear of Galaxia in particular, as well."

"Will… will they make it in time…?" Chibiusa asked, worried.

"I have faith they will. For your Saurians friends have gone into the dream as well, not to face their fears, but to provide aid to your fellow Senshi." A small smile graced the Great Being's features as he looked at the screen showing the Saurians' dream. "In fact, I believe they are about to witness something interesting…"

* * *

Ignika walked with his family through what seemed like a museum to the white-haired boy. But not a museum of natural history. It looked more like a Senshi museum, showing everything about the Senshi of the Solar System they were in now, their history, their origin, the battles and lives they led (captured in wonderful paintings), artefacts taken from the Senshi's personal castles, and so much more.

"What's this boring place?" Nightmare asked immediately.

"A museum," Traveller replied. "It's a place where humans gather things and put them on display for visitors interested in those things to watch."

"It is not boring." Gravitas droned, looking a bit offended. "Knowledge is very interesting, my sister."

"Meh." Nightmare shrugged, not really wanting to argue for a change. "Why are we here, in this… 'moo zee um', anyway?"

"Because we need something from this place," Ignika responded, having already guessed the meaning of their presence here. "Information of a certain kind."

Chameleon scratched his head. "Too bad we can't read."

"I can," Gravitas shrugged, then looked thoughtful. "…As a good sister… Should I teach you as well?" She glanced at Nightmare, wondering if she had said the right thing.

"Well, eh, I dunno…" Nightmare shrugged. "It could come in handy, I suppose."

"Especially to read metal lyrics," Gravitas provided helpfully.

"YES!" Nightmare agreed readily. The rest of the family chuckled softly.

"Anyway, we should start looking." Ignika decided.

"Yes, but for what?" Traveller inquired. "What are you looking for, little brother?"

"The Sailor Galaxia section of this museum," the Child of Life replied simply.

"And whatever other interesting things we find." Chameleon grinned. The others looked at their oldest brother with a raised eyebrow. "What? I'm curious about Makoto's former life. And current one, if it's here."

Nightmare made a sound as if she was throwing up. "Love-sick hatchling," she growled.

"Says the sister of a love-sick twit." Chameleon rolled his eyes.

"I have a good influence on her," Nightmare retorted.

"Sure, sure. Anyway, let's get looking." Chameleon said and went down a random hallway. Seeing no reason to object, the others followed, paying close attention to their surroundings.

"Should we split up to look more efficiently?" Gravitas asked.

"That's a good idea, Gravitas," Ignika agreed.

"I'll head over there." Chameleon said, immediately heading down another random hallway. He was stopped in his tracks by Nightmare, though.

"Just a second, useless," she said. "Do you even know what to look for? You can't read. And as a matter of fact," she turned to Ignika and Gravitas now. "Neither can I or Traveller, so how are we supposed to look?"

"I think these paintings are quite informative." Gravitas said, pointing at one of them.

"Well, yes, but that doesn't fix anything," Nightmare objected. "We still don't know what to look for, because I sure as heck don't know what this Sailor Galaxy looks like."

"Umm… I think she's supposed to have golden armour…" Ignika said thoughtfully. "Although her legs are still exposed."

"Typical human impracticality, thus," Gravitas noted.

"Typical _Senshi_ impracticality." Traveller corrected.

"Point taken," the Saurian of Gravity conceded.

"Okay, golden armour, I got it." Chameleon nodded and tried to go down the hallway again.

"And red hair," Ignika yelled after him.

"Okaaay!" Chameleon yelled back. The others watched him go and sighed in exasperation. Some things just would never change, it seemed. Thus they could probably be forgiven for thinking they didn't have to expect much from him at the moment.

"We should get looking, too." Traveller said. The others nodded. "Though maybe we should go in pairs. We might want to read something, after all." She put her hand on Ignika's shoulder. "Shall you go with me, little brother? Then Nightmare and Gravitas can go together, and Chameleon can see how far wandering around randomly will get him."

"Sure!" Ignika agreed readily. He scanned around the hallway a bit, reading the plaques with directions. He saw one pointing to a section of the museum dedicated to Star Seeds, and suggested they check that out. Traveller agreed, and Gravitas looked at the plaque thoughtfully as well. Her eye felt on a section dedicated to 'Other Senshi'.

"We shall go look at that, sister," she told Nightmare, pointing at the plaque.

"Kay." Nightmare nodded. She didn't care where to go either way. "Not sure what good staring at a plaque will do, but you're the literate one, sister."

"I meant the thing that is written on the plaque." Gravitas explained. "It says 'other Senshi'."

"Oh," Nightmare muttered, feeling dumb.

"Let's go." Her sister said, heading in the said direction. The red-haired Saurian of Fear nodded, and eagerly followed her sister by blood, happy to get some alone time with her again for the first time in a long while. Gravitas, meanwhile, scanned every single object they passed with her eyes, absorbing the new information like a sponge. She was very interested in all that she was learning here, for while Ami was her best friend, as close as a sister, it had to be said that she didn't know that much about her, or about Senshi. Nightmare looked around mostly with a bored expression.

"Why be so bored?" Gravitas demanded to know. "Knowledge is a gift not to be taken lightly, my sister."

"Yeah, well, 'moo zee ums' are not my thing." Nightmare shrugged. "I can't read, and I don't see anything interesting so far."

"You do not want to learn of our 'sister', her past?" her sister inquired, a bit confused. Weren't sisters supposed to always be interested in everything about each other?

"I don't really see her here." Nightmare answered. "We were heading to some 'other Senshi', weren't we?"

"Those could also be part of her past," Gravitas retorted.

"You think?" Nightmare asked, a little surprised. This thought didn't cross her mind.

"Well, I would classify Sailor Galaxia as an 'other Senshi', but surely you cannot deny she is a part of our 'sister' her past?" her older sister explained.

"Hmm… Hey, you're right." Nightmare smiled at her sister. The silver-haired girl hesitatingly smiled back, thinking that to be the right course of action. She was glad she had made her sister understand the importance of information, though. Nightmare indeed started looking at paintings more attentively. Slowly, Gravitas took Nightmare's hand and squeezed it lightly, hoping that was good. She wished Ami was here to tell her what the right thing to do was. Nightmare squeezed her hand back and purred lightly, showing her appreciation. Gravitas smiled, relieved. Thus the two girls arrived to a big hall.

"Lots of ground to cover," Gravitas noted immediately, frowning. This would take a while.

"Yeah." Nightmare nodded. "But this looks like the right place." She said, looking at the pictures. She didn't recognize any of these Senshi. Her sister nodded, agreeing.

"Let us divide the tasks. You will check the pictures to see if there is a golden armoured, red haired Senshi between them somewhere, while I shall read the text for any information about Galaxia," Gravitas suggested.

"Okay." Nightmare nodded and began looking. Her sister quickly followed her example, scanning the texts of the museum with a speed that only she possessed.

Meanwhile, Ignika and Traveller reached the Star Seeds section. This section didn't consist of one big hall, like the one the two sisters were combing through, but ratter of many small halls that were interconnected, almost like a maze.

"We could get lost in here." Traveller noted.

"Indeed," Ignika replied, frowning. "I wonder if there's a map of this section here somewhere…" He muttered, forgetting for a moment Traveller probably wouldn't know what that was.

"A what?" She asked.

"A map," Ignika explained. "It's… ehm, a drawing of a place, only seen from above, as if you could fly above it, and as if you could see through the roof. It shows the layout of a building, or of an area or land."

Traveller slowly nodded. "I see. Is that it?" She said, pointing at one of the walls. "I thought this wall-painting looked strange." Ignika followed the direction her finger pointed at, and his face brightened.

"That is exactly it, sister," he said with a nod. Traveller smiled back, and looked at the 'map' curiously. Ignika stood next to her, and began to explain.

"This is our position," he said, pointing at the dot that had 'you are here' written above it. Traveller nodded. "Now we need to find out if there is anything about Galaxia here. I think there'll be something, since she was out to gather all the Star Seeds…"

"I see." Traveller nodded. "Does it say where we need to look?"

"I'm trying to find out…" Ignika muttered, scanning the list of exhibits. Traveller fell silent, not wanting to distract him. It wasn't an easy task. Ignika could read the alphabet of this world because he had taken that knowledge from the Senshi's minds, he hadn't learned it with practice and experience. So even though he could understand the symbols, deciphering them still took some time. And the list was long.

"Maybe you could try and find a golden armoured Senshi with red hair, sister? If you get lost, you can always teleport back," he suggested, his eyes still fixed on the map.

"Alright." His older sister nodded and went into one of the rooms. Ignika watched her go for a moment, then turned back to his deciphering task.

In the middle of the room Traveller came into was a beautiful hologram of a normal human Star Seed, floating above the yellow flower it came from. She found herself mesmerized by its beauty, and came closer to observe it. A system reacted to her approaching, and began playing the pre-recorded message explaining the Star Seed and its role. This startled Traveller at first, until she remembered having witnessed similar things in the museum of natural history.

"_This is a physical manifestation of a normal human Star Seed. A Star Seed, in essence, represents the human soul, as well as energy and the inner source of power. Upon extraction, however, the normal Seed soon loses its glow, which may cause the human bearer to turn into a youma._"

Traveller bit her lower lip lightly, processing the information in her brain. It was interesting, but not what she was looking for. Luckily, the room was connected to another, and Traveller went into that one. She saw another Star Seed hologram, but this one looked brighter, more powerful, more beautiful… And unlike the solid golden glow of the previous one, this one seemed to have a tint of colour.

"_This is a Senshi Star Seed, sometimes referred to as a 'True Star Seed'. The key difference is that upon extraction it does not fade or turn the bearer into a youma. Instead, if the link between the physical body and the Star Seed remains broken for too long a time, the bearer's physical form fades._"

The Saurian grimaced. So this was the core of a Senshi, the 'only thing that mattered'. She couldn't help but scoff. As if. The physical body, the personality, the character of the holder of these Star Seeds were far more important than the seed itself, as far as Traveller was concerned. What did it matter to her if Sailor Pluto existed as long as this little crystal did, but not Setsuna Meioh? Shaking her head, she went into the next room.

This room did not contain a Star Seed hologram, but instead a bracelet behind the glass case. Curious, she walked over to it, though as she looked at it, Traveller couldn't help but feel a feeling of dread build up in her stomach, unsettling her. Whatever that bracelet was, she didn't like it.

"_This artefact is a Chaos Bracelet, more commonly known as a Galaxia Bracelet, after Sailor Galaxia who made common use of them. This bracelet not only allows a Senshi to retain their physical form after the extraction of Star Seed, but also provides a source of power akin to their own. Galaxia also used them to grant Senshi powers to non-Senshi. Proceed to the left to 'Sailor Animamates' section for further information. Last, but not least, the bracelet is a weapon used to extract Star Seeds. Proceed to the right to the demonstration chamber for more information._"

Traveller's eyes widened slightly. Finally she was getting somewhere. Hesitatingly, she went to the right. As soon as she entered it, the lights in the room dimmed and a hologram appeared. Tensed, the Saurian hoped it wouldn't show anyone she knew… But no, the hologram depicted a normal human male dressed in shorts and a t-shirt, and a generic Senshi with a black-and-white colour scheme and grey hair. The only pinpoint of colour about her were the bright golden bracelets on her wrists. The lack of expression on the faces of the two indicated that they were mere models. Though Traveller was relieved, she still found their expressions unsettling.

"_Welcome to the demonstration chamber. This hologram demonstrates the process of extraction of a normal human Star Seed and the following transformation into a youma. If you are willing to skip this demonstration and instead view the extraction of a Senshi Star Seed, please proceed to the next room._"

Though she only needed information about the Senshi star seeds, Traveller still wanted to see what could happen to normal humans, too.

"_The demonstration shall begin in three… two… one…_"

The figures in the hologram seemed to come to life, the male backing away from the Senshi in fear. The Senshi simply and mercilessly turned to him, raised her arms and shot two circular beams of energy out of her bracelets. Upon collision, the beams were absorbed by the human, who first cried in pain, but then seemed to go limp and empty-eyed, staring upwards. A yellow flower bloomed above his forehead, revealing the Star Seed. The seed lost its glow in about half a minute, though, and the man was enveloped by the flower's petals and leaves. A vile youma burst from the cocoon, and the demonstration ended.

Traveller felt absolutely sick having witnessed that, and it bothered her a human and Senshi's life could be taken so easily. The narrator was unaware of that, however, and continued explaining:

"_The bracelet generates a beam of a certain frequency that disrupts the connection between a human being and its Star Seed. As a result, the Star Seed manifests itself. The disruption, however, causes the leaking energy of the Star Seed to transform the human being into a youma, upon which it is absorbed again. The human form can be restored, however, by re-energizing the Star Seed._"

Ignika's oldest sister wondered what set a Senshi Star Seed apart from a normal human one. Perhaps the next room would hold more answers? She proceeded there, only to find herself in another demonstration chamber with two generic black-and-white Senshi. Though her mind easily replaced those with the faces of the Senshi she knew, much to her displeasure.

"_Welcome to the demonstration chamber. This hologram demonstrates the process of extraction of a Senshi Star Seed and the following fading of the physical form. If you are willing to skip this demonstration, please proceed to the next room._"

Though Traveller longed to skip it, she willed her feet to stay still so she could watch.

"_The demonstration shall begin in three… two… one…_"

The holograms came to life again, the Senshi without bracelets backing away just like the human did. The Senshi with bracelets turned to her and fired the beams from them. Upon collision, the Senshi screamed in pain, but went limp as her Star Seed appeared. It didn't fade away and kept glowing with a bright, steady warm light. The bracelet-wearing Senshi came up to her victim and simply took the seed away with her hand. The victim collapsed, but seemed to remain conscious even as her body began to fade away. The Senshi faded completely, and the demonstration ended.

If Traveller had been sickened before, she now was utterly horrified. _That_ was what had happened to Setsuna? To sweet little Hotaru? To Haruka-san, Michiru-san and all the others? All but Usagi-san? With so much ease, conscious even as their bodies faded away, the full horrific realization of death fully settling in in their still conscious minds as they died?

The narrating voice was unaware of her inner turmoil, and continued its explanation:

"_The key difference between the normal Star Seed and a Senshi Star Seed is that the Senshi Star Seed has a much more stable structure and does not leak energy while containing greater power. As a result it remains stable even after the disruption of the link between the bearer and the Seed. The remaining energy from when the link was intact, however, allows the victim to stay conscious while the physical body, devoid of its power source, fades away._"

"Why can a body not sustain itself without a Star Seed?" Traveller wondered with a growl. "Saurians do not posses one, and we sustain ourselves fine, even before we gained Elemental powers."

The voice remained silent, it was not built for answering questions. Traveller hadn't really expected it, anyway. Furious, she paced out of the room to the next one, her blood boiling. She began to understand Ignika's anger back when Hotaru had suffered her attack.

The next hologram she saw depicted a transparent figure which she guessed to be a Senshi. The Star Seed was in its proper place, next to where the heart should be, the light of its power coursing through 'veins' in the Senshi body. Most of the power seemed to concentrate in the forehead area, as well as the Senshi's hands, although no body part was completely devoid of power. Traveller wondered why the forehead was so important, but then remembered the strange glowing symbols that sometimes replaced their tiaras. Still, aside from a temporal power surge, even that had little use.

As she approached the exhibit, however, the narrating voice explained it: "_Such configuration of Senshi power cycling system gives them abilities to manifest their power in form of attacks via their hands and/or tiaras. The power present in other body areas enhances Senshi's physical attributes such as strength, agility, speed, etc. The Star Seed, however, remains the key component to a Senshi's power, and their existence._"

"A power source, then, without which the machine can not run," Traveller muttered, thinking of the machines she had seen at the Outers' home and the brief explanation she had gotten of how they worked. "Yet we Saurians do not require one… I wonder… Maybe my little brother could alter this somehow?" She decided to ask Ignika as soon as she gets the chance. But first, she had a little more searching to do, though she was sure she was getting close to what she had to find. Traveller proceeded to the next exhibit.

She saw many Star Seeds floating here, each of them seemingly different from one another, even in colour. They were Senshi Star Seeds, that much she could see, but whose were they?

"_These are the Star Seeds collected by Sailor Galaxia during her crusade in the name of Chaos._" Traveller glanced worriedly at the holograms. "_In particular, these are the Star Seeds of the Senshi that guarded this Solar System and its planets and their moons._" The Saurian's eyes widened slightly, and she frantically looked around, trying to determine if it was truly so. And if yes, which one was Setsuna's? She had the feeling that she wanted to know, wanted to know what the essence of her best friend looked like. She did find it pretty quickly, for it glowed with a soft garnet light, like Setsuna's aura.

So there it was, then, the one and only thing that kept her friend in existence, the 'only thing that mattered' about the woman she held dear. A simple little glowing crystal. Of the kind that, had she come across it on Voya, she would have tossed it away with disinterest, as would any sensible Saurian. Jewels and the like held no worth to them. And yet it was the most important thing Setsuna possessed, her most precious treasure, one she was entirely dependant on. Take it away and she was nothing. _Nothing_. The very thought made Traveller angry. She couldn't accept that Setsuna's life depended on a shiny bauble. She could only hope her brother could correct this unfair quirk of nature. And if he couldn't, she wouldn't hesitate to take this to Master Angonce himself.

At this moment, Ignika's voice sounded in her mind. "_I found where the Galaxia section is! It's… umm… right next to where you're standing._"

Traveller cracked a small smile. "_I guessed I was close. Shall I come pick you up or shall I wait here?_" she replied then mentally.

"_Pick me up, please, I don't wanna be distracted by exhibits…_" Her brother said sheepishly. His sister nodded understandingly.

"_There is indeed a lot of interesting information here,_" she agreed, before she triggered her powers and stood before him in a split second. Ignika was startled slightly by her sudden appearance, and Traveller grinned a bit smugly. "I thought you'd get used to it after 500 years."

"It's instinct, that doesn't go away," her brother retorted.

"True." Traveller nodded. "Well, back to were I was…" She sighed and teleported her brother to that chamber. When they reappeared, Ignika turned to look at his sister curiously.

"You seem sad," he noted.

"Just look around." Traveller sighed. As she said that, the narrator repeated his message.

"_These are the Star Seeds collected by Sailor Galaxia during her crusade in the name of Chaos. In particular, these are the Star Seeds of the Senshi that guarded this Solar System and its planets and their moons._"

Understanding dawned on Ignika, and he muttered a soft 'oh'.

"These puny tiny crystals are the sole reason our dear friends exist." Traveller said bitterly. "Remove them, and they fade away, fully conscious until they die." The white-haired child of Life nodded slowly.

"I know…" he whispered. "I… I saw it in their memories… it's… it's… well…" He didn't finish his sentence, not able to find the right words. Instead he just clenched his fists, let out a deep sigh and shrugged.

"Can't you do anything about it?" His sister asked hopefully. Ignika looked thoughtfully, frowning.

"I'm not sure, sister," he replied. "I can't really answer that without some serious studying of the Star Seeds and their relationship to the bodies of flesh… Maybe if Master Angonce would be so kind to share the data of the previous research to symbiosis with me, I could tell you quickly… If not, I'll have to look myself, and that could take a while before I'm able to answer."

Traveller nodded. "I understand. Now, shall we move on?"

"Yes, let's," Ignika answered determinedly. "This way." He said and led his sister through one of the doors. They emerged in a new, large hall that looked rather strange, as if they had suddenly stepped into Outer Space, for there were no walls, floors or ceiling visible, just the black of space filled with stars, nebulas, planets and other cosmic wonders. The only thing that ruined this image were the three open doors, one across from Traveller and Ignika's, and one in between those two. From the furthest Chameleon wandered in, looking as if he had by total accident, and from the other came Nightmare and Gravitas. They were all rather surprised at having wound up in the same room like this, without any mental contact.

"Hey there, found anything interesting?" Chameleon asked with a grin.

"More than you at least, useless," Nightmare snorted. She glanced at her oldest sister and little brother. "We found some interesting facts about Onee-chan's past, and when we followed the directions to learn more about this Sailor Galaxy or whatever, it led us here."

"I found a lot of information about Star Seeds. Not a fun experience." Traveller sighed. "Ignika then found out that there'd be information about this evil Senshi in this room, so we came here."

"I wandered randomly and found a lot of neat stuff, including Makoto's former lives, and then I accidentally winded up here." Chameleon grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "Good thing there were a lot of paintings." The others just rolled their eyes.

"So what now?" Nightmare asked.

"We search this… room?" Gravitas said, glancing around with an eyebrow raised at their strange surroundings. "The information we seek is here."

"Let's stick together this time, though." Chameleon suggested.

"Seems best, because if we can't keep an eye on you, you just wander off doing dumb things," Nightmare smirked.

"Not that there's any place to 'wander off' here." Ignika added. He smiled a bit. "Still, maybe you should hold his hand, Nightmare, just in case."

"Hey! I'm not a hatchling!" Chameleon protested.

"That's a matter of opinion," Gravitas noted dryly.

Traveller chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Let's start searching already."

"I don't think that'll be necessary," Ignika growled softly. The others, confused, looked in the same direction as the Child of Life. He was pointing at something in the distance, and when they followed the direction his finger was pointing at, they growled as well and drew their weapons. For they were looking at a golden throne that stood there, lonely in the galaxy-ish chamber of this museum. But it wasn't the throne that bothered them.

It was the person seated upon it.

Golden armour, flaming red hair, eyes filled with naught but malice, a macabre smirk on her beautiful but cruel face. The conqueror of galaxies, the bane of all Senshi, the puppet of Chaos, the murderer of their friends:

Sailor Galaxia.

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**Next chapter: The power that burns even fire!**

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	131. The power that burns even fire

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**131. The power that burns even fire**

Sailor Galaxia, the most powerful Senshi in the universe, sat leisurely on her throne, looking at the Saurians with calm, if a bit intrigued, eyes. Though at the same time it seemed as if she couldn't see them, as if she were looking straight through them. She wasn't real, only an image, created by a dream not their own. That didn't stop the Saurians from their justified anger, though, or from being alert.

"I wonder if she sees us, or if she's just… an image," Nightmare muttered.

"Knowing Senshi, she'd probably try to make a speech if she saw us." Chameleon noted.

"And knowing villains, an evil one at that," the Saurian of Fear conceded. Her mind wasn't at insulting her brother for the moment, she was too busy watching the Senshi at the throne. So this was her, the one who had killed her Onee-chan and all her friends? She didn't look like much. Aside from the fact that she was sensible enough to wear armour, Nightmare saw nothing special about her.

"I think she doesn't see us." Ignika concluded. "We should try to come closer." His hand clenched tighter around his scythe. The others nodded and began to cautiously approach the figure on the throne, each of them forming their own first impressions about the evil Senshi. They agreed with Nightmare, this Galaxia didn't seem like much at all. Of course, they knew looks can be deceiving, but still, she looked far less impressive than, say, an Immoral One.

"I wonder what her power is," Gravitas noted with a thoughtful look in her eyes.

"I'm… trying to analyze it…" Ignika replied, focusing his powers on the armoured Senshi. "But it's difficult… It doesn't seem specific… More like, raw power… Perhaps energy…" There was also something different about her, something unsettling… The flow of her power was distorted, not clearly organized as with any other Senshi he met. It seemed to circle wildly, chaotically… And Ignika soon found out why. "She… doesn't have a Star Seed…" He muttered, astounded. The place at the heart of her power wasn't vacant though, she did have a power source. As he looked a little deeper into her, he gasped as he realized what that source was. "Chaos…"

"Chaos?" Traveller repeated, confused.

"Call me crazy, but her power source is chaos. That's what her element is." Ignika clarified, scratching behind his ear absentmindedly. "Though I do not understand how that works either."

Gravitas frowned. "I don't like chaos. Order is a lot more logical and necessary." She paused for a moment. "How can something so instable function as a power source?"

"Somehow." Ignika could only shrug. "I guess that's what makes her dangerous, she's different from all the other Senshi." He too paused for a moment. "Though I'm not sure why she could defeat our friends… She's powerful, yes, but nothing that can't be overcome, even by less powered beings, with some strategy and technique."

Traveller looked at her closely, and her eyes widened as she noticed something others missed: "Those bracelets…" She looked again to make sure. "Yes… Those are Galaxia Bracelets…"

"What about 'em?" Nightmare raised her eyebrow. Why was her sister suddenly paying attention to a fancy bit of jewellery?

"A beam fired from those bracelets extracts the Star Seed, which is every normal Senshi's power source." Traveller explained. "Take it away, and the Senshi simply fades from existence." Her face darkened. "It doesn't matter what our friends did or how powerful they were, Nightmare. One hit from those bracelets and they die. And they did."

"That… that sounds like cheating." Gravitas scowled. She hated cheating in any form.

"It is, sister," Chameleon assured his younger sibling. "One hit kill attacks, what a joke… A true warrior's disgrace."

"It can't even be used against her." Ignika noted, shaking his head. "She doesn't have a Star Seed, it won't have any effect on her." He studied Galaxia carefully still, examining every particle of her body with his powers. "It seems she wasn't even killed or destroyed by Sailor Moon… More like Chaos betrayed her, and Usagi-san protected her… And then she… just gave up on living and faded."

"One big cheater." Gravitas summed her up, not thinking much of the 'most powerful Senshi in the galaxy' at all.

"Kind of sad, in my opinion," Ignika said sadly. "She was deceived by Chaos, and in the end died betrayed by the one who made her what she is and saved by her enemy."

"If by 'sad' you mean 'pathetic', then yes." Nightmare agreed coldly.

"I can't deny it, sister," Ignika muttered. "And I can't forgive her either, and probably never will, but I do find her sad. Despite all her power, she was disposable from the start, always intended to be… Her existence truly had no meaning… It was as empty as her Senshi core that lacked its Star Seed. She's a sad person, Nightmare, despite her cruelty, and her crimes. I think Usagi understood that, too."

"I guess…" Nightmare sighed.

"Still, of course, if I met her for real I would kill her, and it would be a mercy to her to do so," the Child of Life added.

"You're not the only one, little brother." Traveller assured him. "Though I do wonder how powerful she really is now, compared to us, and how our friends would fare in a fight against her if we take away those bracelets of hers."

"I suspect she'd fade away if that happened… If we took the bracelets, I mean." Ignika said.

"In theory then?" Traveller pressed on.

"No idea, to be honest." Ignika shrugged. "Her bracelets won't work on our kind, I'm sure of it. Also… I don't think she's a formidable fighter, she seems to rely more on power and her bracelets… I may be wrong, of course." He put his finger to his lips in thought. "Though her power _is_ great, great enough to work away that handicap even against one of us…" He bit his lip a bit. "Not sure all of us could take her on, to be honest, Traveller."

"Jeez, wish there was a way to test it." Chameleon said, annoyed by all this guesswork.

"What I don't get is how only moongirl could beat miss pathetic over there," Nightmare sneered. "When for example that purple girl you're so fond of wields a lot of power, too. I mean, she could go up against a Saurian of Magma, who was an elemental at that!"

"She didn't defeat her." Ignika corrected her. "Chaos betrayed her. Besides, Usagi is in the same position as others, she can have her Star Seed taken away. As for Hotaru, well… She learned to use her power effectively only thanks to me, most of her attacks rely on raw mass destruction, and I think Galaxia could match her in that."

They were so caught up in their debate that they didn't notice that the dream Galaxia had moved. Only slightly of course, she merely had inclined her head, looking at something she probably found amusing. The creature was definitely not a human or a Senshi, it looked like a humanoid reptile. Galaxia assumed it was a youma of some sort.

"When I heard there was a Senshi greater than the others, one who had killed Sailor Saturn who defeated me, I had expected…" the familiar voice of Vulcan said, as the mighty Saurian of Magma approached Sailor Galaxia slowly, ash trickling down to the ground every time he breathed out. His reptilian eyes observed Galaxia keenly. "I had expected… well, more… Than what I see before me now."

Though it was without a doubt the Saurian of Magma which had been defeated by Sailor Saturn, he felt somehow strange to Ignika, and when he saw the eyes of the Elemental gaze right through him, the Child of Life realized that this Vulcan was just another image in the dream. It wasn't the true him. He let his family know that, too.

"Is that so?" Galaxia asked coldly, still sitting relaxed on her throne, eying him with an amused glance. "And who are you to judge me, youma?"

Vulcan tilted his head slightly. "Youma... A peculiar word. I know it not, I care not. I judge you because I can."

Suddenly, Galaxia fired a beam from one of her bracelets. It passed through the Saurian, but nothing happened. With a bored frown and one eyebrow raised, Vulcan looked at the Senshi. He hadn't even needed to turn elemental, the beam did absolutely nothing.

"And what, may I inquire, was that supposed to achieve?" the mighty Saurian demanded calmly.

Galaxia chuckled. "Now that's surprising. Usually this beam destroys any youma and renders any Senshi useless, so that I can take their Star Seeds and end their miserable existence. For that to have no effect on you…" Galaxia narrowed her eyes, sitting up straight on her throne. "What are you, creature?"

"A Saurian, until recently one of the mightiest," Vulcan replied with a small shrug.

"Is that so?" Galaxia raised her eyebrow. "I have not heard of your kind before, and I rule over the entire galaxy." She looked at Vulcan curiously. "Well then, 'saurian'… What do you want?"

Vulcan grinned, a dangerous feral grin, and he slowly clenched his fist and raised it. "Let's just say… If you are the one who defeated the one who defeated me, then you robbed me of my chance to regain my honour. And I, as a proud, good Saurian, cannot approve of that."

"Oh? Do you intend to fight me?" Galaxia asked, clearly amused by that thought.

"Yes," Vulcan replied simply. "I wish to verify something… Let's see the power that brought down Sailor Saturn."

Galaxia smiled. "It's been a while since I had a good, entertaining fight." She said, getting up from the throne. "Very well. I, Sailor Galaxia, accept your challenge." A dark chuckle escaped from her lips and she smiled cruelly. "But who are we trying to fool? You are nothing, let alone entertaining." And with the casual gesture of pointing her hand at him, the most powerful Senshi in the galaxy fired of a blast of her raw power, blowing away Vulcan's entire upper body, leaving only his smoking legs standing up on the floor. "Pathetic." Galaxia said, sitting back on her throne.

She raised an eyebrow, however, when she heard a strange hissing. The legs of the Saurian were still smoking, and seemed to be growing hotter by the minute, glowing cracks appearing at the top where the rest of the body had been blown off. Magma began to well up from Vulcan's remains, the searing molten earth rising up and spreading, taking on the shape of a Saurian, until Vulcan stood whole before her once again. "You were saying?" he asked coolly. He clenched his reformed fist and triggered his power. His hand seemed to explode with a volcanic eruption, his whole arm turning into the element he wielded, magma flowing forth, glowing, hot and dangerous.

Galaxia jumped to her feet, alarmed, although she kept her cool appearance. "Well aren't you full of surprises." She commented, rolling her eyes. "Perhaps you would indeed provide some entertainment."

"Don't flatter yourself, creature," Vulcan said calmly while glaring harshly at the Senshi. "If anything, it'll be you who might perchance entertain _me_." Then in the blink of an eye he struck, sending forth his molten arm, launching a powerful, giant fist of Magma at his foe. "Great Eruption!"

Galaxia shielded herself from the attack, surrounding herself with a cocoon of dark, chaotic power. She withstood it, and the magma fist passed her without harm, although her throne was utterly destroyed. Though the heat could not be blocked, and it was indeed scorching. Galaxia hissed in pain, but paid her body no heed, she could heal it later. She struck out with her own overpowering energy, blasting off the magma fist and Vulcan's arm, but he didn't even flinch, simply regenerated it, while he swung his other arm in an arc and fired off many volcanic projectiles. Galaxia returned those with more energy blasts, destroying every projectile.

Despite this, Vulcan still wasn't impressed. So far, this was nothing but a repetition of his battle with the Senshi of Death and Rebirth. Galaxia, not used to having long fights, was getting pretty annoyed by the fact it seemed to go nowhere. An annoyance Vulcan didn't share, in battle he didn't stop focussing on the fight until it was over, be the outcome good or ill. He activated his power once again, launching himself forward with the power of an eruption, his clawed hands ablaze with his volcanic might. Galaxia rushed forward to meet him, power radiating from her entire body, surrounding her and creating a wave of power in her wake. Just before the moment of the clash, Vulcan let out a roar and sent his right fist forward, a volcanic punch with deadly power and velocity. Galaxia managed to dodge it somewhat, but it still hit her side, easily melting her golden armour and burning her flesh.

In the brief moment that their eyes met, Vulcan smirked a tiny smirk. Then he whirled around and slammed his burning, searing tail at her, intending to hit her square in the stomach. Galaxia had managed to summon her sword, however, and parried the attack, cutting a part of the tail off. Thus Vulcan missed her, but as he landed on his clawed fleet, he had already reformed his tail. He didn't waste any precious second, opening his maw and firing balls of magma at his opponent. Galaxia blocked them with her sword and powers, but it was getting difficult. There was no choice, it seemed. For the first time in ages, she had met her equal. She had to defeat him, however. There was no other way, she had to go all out and assume her Chaos form.

The change in his opponent's appearance made Vulcan pause for a moment, but he recovered quickly and proceeded to play safe and attack from a distance for now. He reared his arms back, then thrust them forward, launching a tidal wave of magma. "Flood Basalt!" The Chaos Galaxia wasted no time and took off to the skies, spreading her black bat-like wings, and immediately fired a beam of pure chaos at Vulcan. Her attack blew the magma wave apart and struck the one who had fired it off, but Vulcan simply reformed again. No matter what, Galaxia couldn't bypass his elemental defence. Frustrated, Galaxia summoned a great ball of chaotic energy, intending to destroy all the magma she could see at once.

Vulcan narrowed his eyes. Despite everything, she wasn't to be taken lightly. He remembered well that Sailor Saturn had been able to last through his Planet Core Explosion, which had cost him the fight. He wouldn't make the same mistake. Instead, he placed his clawed hands on the invisible floor of the realm, grabbed it, and seemed to start pulling at it, his muscles tensing under the strain he put them under, though the reason why he did so wasn't clear. Galaxia was puzzled by this, but didn't let it stop her, firing her beam at Vulcan. At the same time, the Saurian seemed to have finished whatever he was doing. With a roar of strain and fury, he pulled something invisible up, throwing his hands in the air.

"Planet… Core…" he panted, visibly strained. "Eruption!" Pillars of magma, the like of which could usually be found in a planet's active core, shot up all across the battlefield, spraying deadly magma and searing heat everywhere, changing the area in an entirely volcanic, deadly region, full of acid volcanic gasses, searing magma and burning heat. Still the Magma shot up, and Galaxia was forced to dodge one coming from right below her, but this threatened to put her into the path of another eruption. Galaxia's great ball of energy seemed to do nothing. It did obliterate all the magma upon collision, but more pillars immediately shot up. Galaxia used all her skill and power to keep dodging those beams, knowing such a powerful attack simply couldn't last for long.

It didn't seem to end, however. Vulcan had turned himself into his element, merging with the magma, using it to empower himself once more. Then, with the next eruption, he was part of the magma that shot up to the heavens. He burst forth from the pillar, right next to Galaxia, and fired another Great Eruption. The Chaos Senshi tried to dodge that one, and engage in close combat with Vulcan. She successfully avoided his attack, and swung her sword, smiting him to the floor with a huge gap on his chest. Around them, the volcanic activity died down and faded away, and Vulcan climbed to his feet again, the slash closing quickly and neatly. Chaos Galaxia landed as well, glaring hatefully at Vulcan.

"How is that entertainment going for you?" he asked with a reptilian smirk, while he readied himself to continue the fight.

"You are a formidable foe, I give you that." Galaxia answered, narrowing her eyes. She also wasn't going to let her guard down. "Nothing I cannot handle, however." That made Vulcan laugh, long and harsh.

"Please do. Handle me, Senshi, if you can," he challenged. With a savage cry, Galaxia struck her sword into the ground, making it crack. The ground cracked all the way towards Vulcan, until a great beam of Chaos erupted right under his feet. She made sure the beam covered his whole body, leaving no body part. When her attack was done, all that remained was ash. Galaxia breathed heavily, scanning the area, making sure there was truly no sign of her foe.

She didn't realize that she was surrounded by ash. Rather, she did, but paid it no heed. Confident that her foe was gone, she reverted back to her normal form. "Well, that was interesting." She smirked. "I need a new palace, though…" Around her, the ash began to burn. Galaxia gasped, looking around frantically. She wasn't expecting that. "You…" She whispered in disbelief. "It can't be…"

Magma spilt forth from the burning ash, welling up, coming together, reforming Vulcan's body once again. His cold, reptilian eyes seemed to burn right into her. Galaxia staggered back. She tried to assume her Chaos form again, but she couldn't. She had used up too much energy, she should have stayed in that form if she wanted to keep fighting. But she let her guard down, and that was the end of her. Even though she was more powerful when it came to sheer, raw power, her moment of overconfidence cost her everything.

Vulcan saw the opening and didn't waste any time. His hand ablaze with magma, he lunged forward. "Dark Claw!" he hissed, striking with his magma hand at Galaxia's face. Even though her reflexes were good enough to avoid a direct blow, even a glancing blow was enough to tear of half of her face. Galaxia screamed in pain, and again fired a beam of power at him. Due to the shock of her body and the fatal wound she had received, her aim was poor, and managed to only blow a chunk out of his body. But even as that reformed by magma, Vulcan raised his other clawed hand and plunged it into her torso, making his searing hand explode inside of her chest, charring her insides to cinders.

Without a sound, Galaxia dropped to the ground, dead. And standing over her dead body was a lone Saurian of Magma, victorious despite the inferiority of his sheer raw power. But his impenetrable defence, his deadly element and his enemy's overconfidence and neglect had bought him his victory.

The images then blinked out, and the entire realm faded, leaving the Saurian family in empty white. Taken by awe by what they had just witnessed. Both the unbelievable power of Galaxia, but even more by the power of Vulcan who had been capable of taking a stronger foe down.

"I… take it… back…" Nightmare said slowly. "She's not pathetic." It was quite clear that without his elemental defence, Vulcan wouldn't have lasted long. And since of them all only Ignika was elemental, and he still didn't have much control of it, that seriously reduced their chances in a faceoff against the evil Senshi.

"…And yet she preferred to cheat." Gravitas said thoughtfully.

"Well, she wanted the Star Seeds, not a fight," Chameleon noted.

"True…" Traveller sighed. "They increased her power even more." She paused for a moment. "Though I have observed her style, and I must say, while her reflexes and powers are great, she doesn't have any finesse. She just… destroys in enormous quantities."

"Nothing new here." Chameleon shrugged. "Nobody teaches Senshi how to fight. You should've seen Haruka's so-called 'swordplay'."

"They have also no idea how to control their powers besides what comes naturally." Nightmare added. "Onee-chan… she simply sucked at it before I started training her." She glanced at her sister by blood. "What about Ami, sis? Have you taught her some things?"

Gravitas bowed her head. "…no." She said quietly. A frown appeared on her face. "There is little I could teach her. Ami is a long distance fighter, and always has been, and to teach her close combat would be… Futile and a waste of time." Pausing, she added: "She does not even have a weapon."

"True," Nightmare agreed. "It is indeed futile. Not all people have it in them to fight in close combat."

Chameleon was about to say something, but then he noticed Ignika wasn't really paying attention to the conversation, and looked deep in thought. "Lil' brother, what are you thinking of?" He asked curiously.

"I think I understand," the Child of Life replied slowly. The family looked at him, waiting for an explanation. He smiled a little. "I think I understand why we were shown this, and why it showed Vulcan, of all Saurians, fighting Galaxia."

"Oh? Why?" Traveller asked her little brother.

"It was trying to tell us something, a message that wasn't meant for us, but only we could understand. So it's up to us now to pass it on," the white haired boy smiled mysteriously. "Hotaru defeated Vulcan. Vulcan defeated Galaxia. What does that imply?" He looked at his family expectantly.

"Hotaru can defeat Galaxia." Gravitas gave the answer. "It's logical."

"I think so, too," Ignika nodded. "If only there wasn't that danger of losing her Star Seed. But should that threat be nullified…"

"It can? How?" Chameleon asked, looking at his brother. He didn't want to ever lose Makoto, and if it could be done with one hit fired by a cheating Senshi, what was the point?

"Not saying it can, only saying that if it could be nullified, then there's little reason why Hotaru can't win against Galaxia, and that means, by extension, neither should any other of our friends. It's all a matter of tactics, not raw power," Ignika answered. "Just like Vulcan, his power wasn't as great, but his defence was perfect, and he played it tactical, and he didn't have to fear losing his Star Seed."

"I… see…" Chameleon nodded.

"But ehm, our Senshi friends have anything but a perfect defence," Nightmare pointed out.

"True. But at least now we know where the problem lies." Traveller said.

Gravitas looked thoughtfully, thinking deeply about the situation. "Some of the Senshi posses powerful defensive shields, like Hotaru does. An elemental body is not needed. Sailor Galaxia is overconfident and arrogant, it is her downfall. If there is no threat of losing their Star Seeds, our Senshi friends are a match for her, and simply need to find an opening to strike her down. Hotaru and Vulcan are of equal power, so you do not need to have as much power as Galaxia to finish her." The Saurian of Gravity nodded curtly and firmly, having reached a conclusion. "Our Senshi friends have the power necessary to take her down. It is merely her ability to extract their Star Seeds that forms the danger."

Her family nodded, and then Chameleon got a bright idea. "Hey, we're supposed to help them fight her this time, no? Why don't we take all those bracelet beam hits ourselves? They have no effect on us anyway."

"That could work," Ignika agreed. "But it's not up to us, brother. This is something the Senshi have to face on their own. We just have to give them this message. Right now, their fear for her stems from past experience, and from the belief that they could never defeat her because they lack the power. But we now know they don't. It's up to us to share this with them, but after that, it's up to them to decide what to do with this knowledge, to believe it or not…"

"Right." Gravitas nodded. "But how do we give them the message?"

"Time to split up again and find them in their dreams?" Chameleon suggested. The others all stared at him in disbelief.

"He…" Nightmare sputtered. "He said something sensible!"

"Hey! I did say sensible things before!" Chameleon protested.

"When was that?" Traveller asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Wasn't my suggestion to take bracelet hits that don't affect us sensible right now, a few moments before?" The Saurian of Camouflage crossed his arms.

"That was just pointing out the obvious, it doesn't count," Nightmare jabbed.

"Well having to split up and look for them is also an obvious thing, yet for some reason it does count as sensible." Chameleon countered.

"Now you're not making any sense," Gravitas said calmly, sending her sister a small wink that only Nightmare could see.

"What? But I just repeated what you said about what I said!" Chameleon exclaimed.

"I didn't say anything of the kind," the Saurian of Gravity replied. "Nightmare did."

Chameleon sighed. "Yeah, whatever, doesn't matter who said it, but the point is: I do say sensible things sometimes!"

"Gravitas is joking, brother," Ignika giggled, rolling his eyes. "And enough fooling around, everyone, it's time to get to business and go help our friends."

"Right." Chameleon nodded. "So where do we go?"

"Through the doors, of course," Gravitas said tonelessly, pointing at the five doors that had appeared behind her oldest brother.

Chameleon turned around. "Oh. Let's go then."

"Yes, we have waited long enough. Our friends need us," Traveller nodded. The rest of the family nodded, and each went through a door. They didn't know where they would end up, but they were certain the dream would take them to where they had to be. It had taken them to the Senshi museum to learn what had to be learned, and now it would take them further to what had to be done next.

Of that, they were certain.

* * *

**Next chapter: Rebellion in dreamland!**

* * *

**Review replies:**

Neanda: I'm glad that the Saurians didn't fail to entertain. Hope you enjoyed this chapter as well. Thanks for the review!

Kuroui: As you saw this chapter, the Galaxia they saw was a hologram. ^_^ Thanks for reviewing!

LoveInTheBattlefield: Thanks for the review.

Rizwan Fariz: The update date hasn't changed. Thanks for reviewing!


	132. Rebellion in dreamland

_Mistakes of the Great Beings_

**132. Rebellion in dreamland**

Sailor Saturn and Pluto reeled back with the shock of the dream world shattering around them. Everything warped, a mess of colours and unclear shapes, until castle Charon was recognisable once more, as was Galaxia standing before them. The evil Senshi looked ready to kill them, again, and mother and daughter were getting desperate. They had been stuck in this situation for over ten times already, and every time it ended the same way: Galaxia killed them with so much ease, the dream world warped and reset itself, only for everything to happen all over again.

The only way out of this limbo was to defeat Galaxia. They realized it, but were powerless to do anything. They could not defeat her. She was the most powerful Senshi that had ever lived, aside from Usagi or Sailor Cosmos. Even Sailor Saturn's great destructive power was nothing compared to Galaxia's. They kept trying still, even though there was no chance of winning. Every single time, the evil Senshi just pointed her finger at them and ripped out their Star Seeds, ending their existence. There were times when they tried to dodge the beams, or try to deflect them, but no barrier the two could conjure up could save them.

Hotaru looked worriedly at her mama, holding her Silence Glaive with trembling hands. She wondered if it was useless, what they were doing. She wondered what the point could be about going through the painful experience of dying over and over again. The Senshi of Time wondered the same thing. Perhaps the point was to make them immune to those psychological attacks, but if so, it wasn't working. Death didn't become less horrifying, no matter how many times it happened. So what was the point? To defeat Galaxia? They couldn't do that.

"Silence Glaive Surprise!" Hotaru cried in desperation, raising her glaive high. The power of the attack managed to push Galaxia back for a bit, but failed to injure her as the Senshi conjured a powerful barrier of her own. But at the very least, Hotaru had bought them some more time.

"Dead Scream!" Setsuna followed with an attack of her own. It smashed into Galaxia's defence, and for a moment it seemed as if it was going to shatter the barrier, but then the evil Senshi retaliated with a powerful shockwave of her own that knocked mother and daughter off their feet.

Hotaru got back up and sent a beam with her glaive, charged with her destructive power the way Ignika taught her to do. This focussed attack seemed more effective than the all-out indiscriminate destruction of her Silence Glaive Surprise. It did break the barrier, at least. It only served to make Galaxia angry, apparently, as she fired off the attack used to extract Star Seeds. Both Senshi gasped and tried to dodge, but it was too late, the blasts were coming right at them. Hotaru shut her eyes firmly. She didn't want to see herself or her mama die anymore.

"Don't tell me you're giving up, Hotaru-chan," a familiar voice said suddenly. The two Senshi opened their eyes to see Traveller, who had appeared out of nowhere, taking the blast of Galaxia and surviving it effortlessly.

"Traveller!" Hotaru cried out in joy. The Saurian women glanced over her shoulder at the young girl she was the 'aunt' of, smiled and gave a short nod.

"Now get to your feet and defeat her, Michiru-san needs you," she said to Hotaru. Then she turned to Setsuna and extended her hand to help her to her feet. "Same goes for you, my friend."

"Defeat...?" Setsuna repeated, taking her hand and getting up. "But we can not..." Traveller raised an eyebrow and looked at her so intensely that Setsuna didn't finish that sentence.

"Rubbish, and you know it," Traveller said sternly. "You've all gone head to head with three Immoral Ones and came out on top, while each and every one of them was stronger than Galaxia could ever hope to be. But you dealt with them anyway. Now it's time to deal with her."

"But... but she..." Hotaru stuttered, and then cried out in fear as she noticed another deadly beam being fired by the evil Senshi. Traveller calmly intercepted it again, being unharmed once more.

"But she what? She's an enemy like any other. What is so different about her? The fact that she is powerful? So were the Immoral Ones, and still you fought," Ignika's oldest sister continued, still calm but stern. "This invincibility you believe her to posses is nothing but a product of your fears, Hotaru-chan. No enemy is unbeatable." After intercepting yet another beam, she said: "These beams are the only thing that makes her win against you. I'll take care of them." She smiled at her Senshi family. "You have the power. I know, I have seen it."

The two Senshi looked at each other. If this meant they would not be killed in one blow... Perhaps they did stand a chance. Traveller looked at them and sighed. "Would I lie to you?" she asked then, sounding offended.

"No..." Setsuna said.

"Auntie's right!" Hotaru exclaimed, gripping her Silence Glaive. "We can't just go down! We have to try to defeat her at least!"

"No, Hotaru-chan," Traveller corrected her. "It's like someone said in one of those 'moo vees': there is no trying. Either you do it, or you don't. So will you defeat her, and be free of the fear, or will you not and let her kill you for the rest of your life?"

Hotaru looked at her mama. She definitely didn't want to be killed over and over again! Setsuna nodded to her daughter and turned back to Traveller. "We'll do it." The Senshi of Time said.

The Saurian of Teleportation smiled again, satisfied. "That's what I wanted to hear. Now, let's get rid of her," she said, turning to face Galaxia for the very last time. The time had come to put an end to her haunting of Traveller's friends. The Saurian woman would see to that.

Hotaru attacked with a powerful beam from her glaive again, followed by Setsuna's Chronos Typhoon. There was no holding back now. They would give it their all, and not stop until their foe lay defeated at their feet. Traveller believed in them, believed that they could do it. And if the honest Saurian of Teleportation believed, then so would they.

Galaxia realized that she could not kill the Senshi with one blow as long as this new reptile youma was helping them. She drew her sword and charged at Traveller. The Saurian summoned her trident and caught the evil Senshi's sword between its prongs. The two were in a stalemate for a while, and it gave Hotaru an opportunity to sneak close to the Senshi of Chaos and strike one of her bracelets with her Silence Glaive, breaking it. She then jumped away just in time for Setsuna's Dead Scream to knock Galaxia back. Traveller nodded approvingly. Hotaru had succeeded in decreasing Galaxia's threat by half. She could probably teleport and take out the other bracelet, too, but knew she wasn't allowed. She was here only to be a passive participant in the battle, defending her friends against the unfair advantage the evil Senshi had.

The said evil Senshi was infuriated by this blow, and attacked the young Senshi with pure chaotic energy before charging at her. Hotaru knew she couldn't dodge, and raised a Silence Wall by pure instinct. The barrier blocked the energy attack, but it didn't stop Galaxia's charge. Hotaru knew the only thing she could do was use her Glaive as a weapon. Thinking back to Traveller's teachings, she swung her glaive in a graceful arc downward and knocked Galaxia's sword aside. Galaxia smirked and punched the young Senshi in the face while her glaive was still down, effectively knocking her to the ground. With that, she raised her remaining bracelet, knowing the reptile could not intercept a beam fired from such close distance.

Hotaru gasped, thinking the end was upon her, but Traveller was attentive and her reflexes lightning fast. In the blink of an eye she teleported in between Hotaru and her foe, catching the blast with her body.

"No, no more cheating," the reptile hissed. The evil Senshi grimaced.

"Ignorant fool..." She hissed, and then hit the reptile with full force of her chaotic powers. Traveller quickly warped herself to safety, giving Hotaru every room she needed. The young Senshi had charged her Glaive with the power of Ruin just like Ignika had taught her, and now delivered a direct hit with it, slashing Galaxia's body. The evil Senshi screamed as her body was literally split in half by the blast. Her face bore an expression of pure shock, but Hotaru herself could also barely believe what she had just done.

"Dead Scream." Sailor Pluto fired off her own last attack, the energy of the time mist obliterating the remains of her greatest enemy. The two halves of Galaxia disintegrated, as if her Star Seed had been ripped from her had she possessed one, and then she was gone.

For a while, the two Senshi stood in complete silence, barely believing what they just did. Especially Hotaru, who had fallen on her behind and sat on the floor, staring at the spot where Galaxia had been but a few seconds ago. The young girl didn't seem to be able to comprehend that she had effectively dealt the critical blow to the most powerful Senshi that had ever lived.

A quiet chuckle could be heard. "Told you so." Traveller said softly. She walked over to Hotaru, knelt down next to her and put an arm around the Senshi of Saturn's shoulders. She hugged Hotaru warmly. "Well done, Hotaru-chan…"

"I... we... we did it?" Hotaru muttered in shock, looking up at her Saurian aunt. Traveller returned her gaze and nodded.

"You certainly did," she confirmed with a smile. The world around them began to fade, dissolving into black emptiness, proving that they had indeed overcome their challenge. It was strangely comforting to know that, even for the Saurian, but she felt Setsuna and Hotaru weren't as relieved as they should be. This confused and worried her slightly.

"I just can not believe it." Setsuna explained quietly to her symbiosis partner. "Would you believe the enemy who killed you countless times before with a single blow... is actually no stronger than Hotaru? She was the most powerful Senshi in the galaxy..."

Traveller looked over her shoulder at her friend. "I'm nowhere near the power of an Immoral One, yet I do have a chance of defeating one if I am but skilled enough in combat. You are all warriors, too, so why would you be any different when faced with a stronger foe? In the end, the biggest threat of Galaxia came not from her sheer power, which I will admit is gigantic, but from her ability to extract your star seeds. Strip it from her, and she is a foe like any other. This you had to realize." She turned to Hotaru again. "You feared her, Hotaru-chan, because you thought she had defeated you all through superior skill in combat. It is something we believed to. But then this dream showed us the truth, and we realized what we had to do. And now you know as well, now you understand, don't you? She was no more skilled than any of you. She may have had greater power, but that means little. Her only advantage was that she could take your Star Seeds, which is nothing more but a cheat, and takes no skill. This we had to make you see."

Setsuna slowly nodded, realizing her point, but before she could say anything, Hotaru looked up at Traveller again.

"Traveller... You said Michiru-mama needed help... Didn't you?" The revelation that was presented to her, that Galaxia was not invincible and, in fact, merely a cheater was world-shaking, yes, but she couldn't dwell on it if her mama was in danger.

Traveller nodded grimly. "Indeed. It is something we cannot help her with, only you, my dear," she explained calmly. She caressed the side of Hotaru's face. "She needs you, like Haruka-san needed Ignika, which is why he went off to go to her…" The Saurian looked at her symbiosis partner again. "And we, my friend, should go look for Usagi-san. The others should join us there soon, if all goes well."

The two Senshi nodded. "Where should we go?" Hotaru asked. Traveller climbed to her feet and helped Hotaru do the same. The Saurian of Teleportation looked around, a knowing smile on her face.

"I'm sure the dream will take us to our destination," she replied. Suddenly, a blinding hurricane of myriads upon myriads of bright, glowing splotches of every single colour a human can imagine came flooding over them, and Hotaru had to shield her eyes from the brightness. When she opened them, her mama and 'aunt' were gone, while she herself remained in the blackness. However, she could hear Traveller say one last thing, the words sounding as if they came echoing out of nowhere.

"_Don't be afraid of what you'll see…_"

* * *

"Venus Love and Beauty Shock!" Sailor Venus cried, firing the attack, once again trying to at least damage the cursed bracelets on the evil Senshi's wrists. It was from them that Galaxia fired the attacks that took their lives, that much Minako had figured out by now, but the knowledge itself didn't seem to be enough. She and Rei had been trying desperately to overcome the foe that stood before them, but it seemed to be futile. How many times had they died now, only to have the dream reset itself? Five times? Six? Seven? She had lost count. Rei fared no better than her, firing attacks every time she thought she saw an opening. But, sadly, there was more to Galaxia's power than just the bracelets, and she repelled the attacks.

Minako tried again and again, she tried every trick her Saurian sister had taught her, but nothing seemed to help. It was useless, she knew it was. Why was she even trying? Galaxia was the most powerful Senshi in the entire universe. She was just a Senshi of Love powered by one planet. What could she possibly hope to achieve? Yet she had to achieve _something_, because the dream limbo just kept her doing this over and over again! Minako glanced at her friend, hoping against all hope that Rei might have one more idea they hadn't tried yet. That hope was crushed when she saw Rei being nearly killed again. The beam grazed her arm while she was dodging it, and while it was not enough to extract her star seed, the miko could still feel her power being disturbed. She grasped her chest in pain as she felt an otherworldly force tear at it seemingly from inside out.

Galaxia noticed that the Senshi of Mars was at her weak point right now, so she smirked and prepared to fire another beam. The evil Senshi was caught off guard, however, when Sailor Venus rammed into her side with an inhuman howl, knocking them both down to the ground. Minako was pretty much desperate by now, but she hit the evil Senshi with her fists anyway, not caring if her blows did nothing against Galaxia's armour.

Rei's eyes went wide, now was a perfect opening, she only needed to fire a Burning Mandala, and at least one of the bracelets would be gone, but the pain in her chest reminded her she could not do it. Several precious seconds later, Galaxia managed to throw Minako off herself, but not before receiving a very strong punch in the face. The Senshi of Love staggered backwards, then braced herself again for the next assault. Galaxia didn't waste time and fired a beam from her bracelets again. Minako and Rei closed their eyes, waiting for death.

Only it didn't come. Somebody stepped in between them and Galaxia and intercepted the blasts.

"Onee-chan, isn't it about time you quit this farce?" a familiar voice asked.

"Nightmare!" Minako exclaimed, overjoyed to see her little sister. The Saurian of Fear glanced over her shoulder and smirked.

"Why are you here?" Rei asked, sounding genuinely surprised.

Nightmare gave her a grin. "From the looks of it, to save your sorry butts, so that you can kick this woman's sorry butt." She glanced at Galaxia and sneered. The Saurian girl knew and understood that the evil Senshi had power, quite a bit of it, but she couldn't see her as anything but a fraud. She had gotten her power by stealing it, and in battle she relied on cheating again. No, the Saurian of Fear had no respect for her. She grinned as she saw Galaxia's cheek swelling from that punch Minako threw at her. "Don't you worry, Onee-chan. I'll make sure this pathetic excuse for a Senshi won't cheat. You just finish her off and then we can be done with all of this. It's not worth any of your time."

Minako smiled at her. "Got it!" She exclaimed, but then looked worriedly at her fellow Senshi. "Are you alright, Rei-chan?" She ran over to her and put a hand on her shoulder. There was a brief flash when Galaxia tried to claim their Star Seeds again, but Nightmare intercepted it once again, having none of that.

"I'm... fine." Rei said, getting on her feet. "I guess the disturbance can't last long." She smiled a bit at Minako, trying to convince her she was okay.

"Alright... Don't overwork yourself." Minako nodded at her. "And now let's finally kill this bitch to get it over with!"

"About time you two got your act together," Nightmare grumbled. "She's really not that special. Just end her already, for the Great Beings' sake!"

"Right, just make sure we don't get hit." Rei nodded, and the two Senshi dashed into different directions, circling Galaxia to get themselves a good shooting position. Nightmare unsheathed her Terror Katana and readied herself. She wouldn't attack, but if Rei and Minako split up, she would have to use her powers to reflect Galaxia's bracelet blasts, if she attacked them both at once. Nightmare had only one body, after all. Galaxia wasn't going to stand still and wait to be shot, though. She chuckled and dashed at Minako, hoping to fire a bracelet beam from close distance.

Nightmare waited, though her sword glowed red as she did so. She was ready for anything, and her eyes never left Galaxia. Minako saw through her plan, though, and fired a Venus Love and Beauty shock just before the beam was released. Her foe had sharp reflexes and darted to the side, but Rei had been expecting it and fired a Mars Flame Sniper at the spot where Galaxia would land. The attack hit its target, and Rei immediately fired a Burning Mandala to cut off the bracelets. Galaxia wasn't just going to let that happen, and threw a great blast of energy which completely overpowered Rei's attack, and the Senshi of Mars had to dodge it.

Minako had taken the opportunity Rei provided to swing her chain, sickle formed at its end, at the golden-armoured Senshi, hoping that, if energy attacks didn't work, maybe normal weapons did. This caught Galaxia off-guard, resulting in a nasty cut on her arm. She was so used to see those pathetic lower Senshi try their feeble blasts at her that being physically attacked felt strange and alien. Her cheek still glowed, and it stung. Minako smirked. Now this was more like it! She threw the other end of her chain around Galaxia's feet and yanked at it, making her fall. Behind her, Nightmare smiled approvingly. Minako had learned well, the Saurian girl thought. The blonde Senshi didn't give her foe a chance to recover from shock, for at the next moment she was on top of the evil Senshi, and hacked at her bracelet brutally with the sickle on the end of her chain.

The golden piece of jewellery shattered, giving the Senshi of Venus a great sense of satisfaction. No longer would Galaxia take any lives with that _thing_. satisfaction was short-lived, however, as a humongous blast of energy struck Minako and tossed her through the air like a ragdoll. Minako's eyes widened for a moment, and then she landed on the floor rather painfully. She coughed but climbed to her feet again immediately. She could feel the withering glare of Galaxia on her, but Minako stood tall and defiant.

It seemed so simple later, when they looked back on how it had ended. One moment Galaxia fired a blast from her one remaining bracelet at Minako, Sailor Venus, with Nightmare rushing forward to intercept. The next moment Galaxia froze in place as a flaming arrow, blinding white from its intense heat, stuck out of her chest, having her pierced from behind and going straight through where her heart and Star Seed were supposed to be. Behind her, Sailor Mars still stood with her raised bow, still posed as if readying her shot. A grim look covered her face, but her eyes held no longer fear or despair.

Galaxia fell down to the ground, dead. Her body crumbled away until it was naught but ash. Only then, when there was nothing left of the evil Senshi, did Sailor Mars lower her bow. Silence reigned for a while, until Nightmare exclaimed:

"See? What did I tell you? You totally beat that cheater." The Saurian girl casually put her katana back in its sheath, then walked over to her adopted sister and hugged her tightly. She gave Minako a wide smile.

Minako blinked, hugging her little sister almost absent-mindedly. "Yeah... We really did..." She said, a little too slowly because of the shock, then looked at Rei and smiled at her. It was a hesitant smile, as the belief that they had truly defeated the strongest Senshi ever had yet to sink in.

Rei smiled back at her. She was about to say something, or _try_ to say something at least, but didn't get the chance when she was tackled and hugged by Nightmare, who congratulated her as well. That caused her to chuckle lightly, and she hugged the Saurian girl back.

"So what happens now?" Rei asked as the world around them began to fade. Nightmare glanced up at her, then looked around and tapped her chin in thought.

"Well, since you both now get that there's nothing to fear, I think we're supposed to regroup to show moongirl the same thing," Ignika's youngest sister said.

"...Usagi is having trouble with her?" Minako asked in disbelief. "Wasn't she the one who defeated her in the first place?" Her Saurian sibling shook her head.

"Not like that," she explained. "I don't know the details myself… Ignika seemed to know more about it, and simply said we had to gather everyone before trying to reach the moongirl."

"Let's go then." Rei nodded firmly. Nightmare copied the gesture and turned around, not surprised at all when she suddenly found herself standing before a door. Casually, she opened it, and made a sweeping bow, gesturing for Minako and Rei to step through.

"After you two!" the Saurian grinned. The two chuckled at her antics.

"Thanks, imouto-chan." Minako smiled as the three went through the door. It closed behind them by itself, and then vanished in thin air.

* * *

"_Not good,_" Makoto thought as she desperately dove aside to avoid one of Galaxia's blasts, which had been fired from the Senshi's bracelets. One hit, and it would be over. Again. The Senshi of Lightning dared to spare a second to look at Ami, and let out a relieved sigh when she saw the intelligent girl evade the assault as well. How many times had they gone through this by now? Too many, as far as Makoto was concerned. She had met up with Ami and had been incredibly relieved to find a familiar face in this maddening, ever-changing world of dreams and deception. But that joy had been short lived when the dream had presented them with their next challenge, the very same one they had come for in the first place.

And so far, it wasn't going well. Not well at all.

"Sparkling Wide Pressure!" Makoto fired her attack, trying to get a hit on the enemy when she thought she saw an opening. Her aim was good, but Galaxia's reflexes were better, and she fired off an attack of her own, which completely overpowered Makoto's. Thinking the evil Senshi distracted, Ami took her chance and launched the strongest attack in her arsenal at Galaxia. Powerful torrents of water were sent to strike Galaxia as Ami played her Mercury Aqua Rhapsody. It was a good tactic, showing clearly that the Senshi of Mercury was not new to battle, but her opponent was just the same. It was as if Galaxia almost knew where the torrents would be and where not, as she danced between them with seemingly no effort. Makoto then added Jupiter Oak Evolution to the fray, hoping to make it a lot more difficult for Galaxia to keep dodging. Lightning was a lot faster than water, after all, and now there was a considerably bigger amount of beams to be hit by.

Galaxia smirked, however, and let her raw chaotic power envelop her. Moments later, her aura expanded in a brilliant explosion, completely disintegrating the attacks. The force of her strike knocked her two opponents to the ground, but before they even hit it, Galaxia had already fired two blasts from her bracelets at them.

"Oh, no you don't." A voice came, before the two beams vanished in thin air one after another. No, not so much vanished, it was more like they hit something invisible. The two Senshi looked up, confused, both by the sudden change of events as well as the voice. Then Ami suddenly felt a warmth build up gently in her chest, which grew stronger and stronger with each passing moment. She recognized it well, it was the warmth of a symbiosis bond, which could only mean…

"No more cheating," a cold, emotionless voice deadpanned, confirming the Senshi of Mercury's suspicions.

"Gravitas!" Ami exclaimed, smiling in relief despite the fact that they were still in battle. Her dear friend calmly walked up to her from behind, holding her razor-edged shield in her hand, firm and ready.

A moment later, Makoto was briefly hugged by an invisible ally. She smiled as she felt the bond flare in her. "Chameleon..." She said warmly. Said boy turned visible then, a grin stretching over his face from ear to ear as he looked deeply into her eyes. He kissed her briefly on the lips.

"Hey, missed me?"

Makoto smiled. "Of course I did..." She said gently. Chameleon returned her smile, but then turned back to Galaxia, shielding Makoto with his own body. His reptilian eyes never once left the evil Senshi, observing her every move. Next to him, he saw Gravitas doing the same for Ami.

"I shall hug you later, after you destroy her," the Saurian of Gravity told her friend. She glanced at Ami over her shoulder, a sudden look of uncertainty in her eyes. "If that is okay?"

"Why, of course it is." Ami assured her friend and partner. The silver-haired girl smiled a tiny bit, then nodded with her head at Galaxia.

"Well, then defeat her now, please."

"But..." Ami frowned. "That's what we've been trying to do that all this time... again and again..." She looked at her friend, almost pleadingly. "I don't think we can do it…"

"You can. I know it." Gravitas said firmly. "Without her ability to end you both in one attack, she is nothing more than a normal opponent."

"And we'll make sure she doesn't land a single hit with that cheating power of hers." Chameleon said assuringly, narrowing his eyes at the enemy. "But it's all we can do. You have to do the rest yourself, Makoto. And I know, _we know_, that you can do it. The both of you. We've seen it." He gave the two Senshi a confident smile. "So hurry up and end this fear for once and for all. You're needed elsewhere."

Makoto seemed encouraged by those words. She nodded at her lover firmly and looked at Ami, who hesitatingly nodded back at her. Gravitas tried to give her symbiosis partner some encouragement through their bond, but her attempts mostly failed since she wasn't sure how to give encouragement in the first place. Ami briefly felt to her that it was alright, and then the two Senshi rushed back into battle. The two Saurians stood back, alert and ready, prepared to intercept any attack from Galaxia's bracelets should it prove necessary.

"Jupiter Oak Evolution!" Makoto cried, filling the battlefield with condensed leaf-shaped bolts of lightning. Maybe her mate was right. He believed she and Ami could do it. And if he did…

"Mercury Aqua Rhapsody!" Ami fired her attack, backing Makoto up. She supported her friend with all her might, and though she trusted Gravitas' judgement, she did wonder why Gravitas was so certain that they could be victorious against an opponent that had defeated them countless times before.

Galaxia dodged their beams just as easily as she has done moments before, as if performing a complex, perfectly calculated dance. Only this time, Ami knew how to counter.

"Shine Aqua Illusion!" She cried, and the floor beneath Sailor Galaxia turned into slippery ice. It made the evil Senshi lose her balance for just a small moment, but Makoto saw the opening and attacked with a thunder dragon. Galaxia let herself fall flat on her back, and the attack went right over her. Not wasting time, the evil Senshi fired two beams from her bracelets, if not to hit Sailor Jupiter, then at least to make her dodge and win herself time to get up and focus. Fortunately Chameleon was alert and ready, and he quickly intercepted her attacks with his own body, coming out of it unharmed. Yet Galaxia didn't get a chance to get on her feet either – as soon as she did, Ami attacked her with a Mercury Aqua Rhapsody, knocking her back down with powerful torrents of water. Makoto then added a Sparkling Wide Pressure into the fray – the evil Senshi was in for quite a shock.

At least, she would have been if taking away the threat of her bracelets had made her powerless, which it hadn't. With a powerful burst of raw energy she overpowered the combined force of the two Inner Senshi, and unharmed she stood back on her feet. But the Senshi weren't going to let themselves be intimidated by it.

"Mercury Aqua Mirage!" Ami cried, engulfing Galaxia in a globe of water. Makoto followed up immediately and sent a blast of lightning into the globe, letting electricity course through the currents. A shocked scream came from within, and they knew the attack hit home. A few moments later, the globe exploded, leaving Galaxia out in the open again. Though damaged and injured, the Senshi was still not beaten, and now more furious than ever. Makoto didn't allow her any time to recover, dashing over to her and firing a Sparkling Wide Pressure from close distance. Her foe wouldn't have any of it, she blasted Makoto out of her way without holding back. The Senshi of Thunder cried out as she collided painfully with the floor.

With her out of the way, Galaxia went after Ami. To prevent her from doing so, Ami cast Sharbon Spray, shrouding the battlefield in thick fog. The only reason she hadn't done so before was that it would limit Makoto's vision, but now that she was out of battle for a while, Ami could use the fog to her advantage. Gravitas approved of Ami's tactic, even if it made guarding her from Galaxia's assault a tad more difficult than it had to be. It made protecting herself easier for Ami, however, for she could now freeze any part of the fog into a wall if she wanted to. The Senshi of Mercury activated her visor and tried to think up a strategy that could lead to her winning. She had control over the battlefield now, so logic dictated that she had the advantage. A few beams fired in her direction, the beams that she barely managed to avoid, reminded her that her opponent was no easy target either. She tried to think back quickly to previous battles against foes that were just as threatening to her, and how she had one those fights. Fighting all those Saurians had, after all, forced her to come up with new and innovative ways of dealing with unexpected combat situations. Smiling, Ami set to work.

Using her powers, the intelligent young woman created a wall of ice, thick and polished like a mirror, then ran from it, firing an attack at Galaxia in order to lure her towards her. Oddly enough, the tactic seemed to work as she heard the evil Senshi running closer towards her. Ami smiled and made another wall, before running off in another direction. When Galaxia reached it, Ami fired yet another attack, forcing the evil Senshi to chase her even further. So far her plan seemed to work and Galaxia didn't seem to suspect anything yet. She had to keep it that way.

Galaxia cursed under her breath. If it wasn't for this accursed fog... She didn't finish her thought as she was greeted by another ice wall, her own deformed reflection scowling at her. She didn't understand the meaning of it. A trick of the little flea, perhaps? That was when another attack came flying at her, hitting her in the back. It wasn't very powerful, it only made her stagger, but it annoyed her to no end. Furious, she rushed in the direction the attack came from. In her haste she almost ran face-first into another wall of ice. That insolent...! She felt an incredible urge to let her energy go and blast it all to oblivion. Perhaps she just should and end all of this nonsense in one attack. With an outraged cry, she made a great force of Chaos gather around her, then let it all explode, sending waves of energy in all directions. That was when Ami sprung her trap.

She dispelled all the fog, and Galaxia found herself surrounded by countless mirrors of ice. The reflective surfaces made by the Senshi's magic sent her attack right back at her. Thus Galaxia was struck by her own waves, which were so powerful they went through her, only to be reflected again and hit her once more, this continuing on until Ami's mirrors couldn't handle the pressure anymore and shattered. Galaxia fell to her knees, wounded greatly by her own attacks. Her whole body screaming in pain, but she was not going to give up yet. Snarling, she suddenly fired two blasts from her bracelets, but she might as well not have done so, as Gravitas reacted quickly and stopped the attack. The evil Senshi let out a furious cry of dismay, and tried to bring up the strength to rise once more. That's when she felt a hand on her shoulder, and when she turned her head, it was to see Sailor Jupiter standing behind her.

Next thing she knew was excruciating pain in her heart as she got a Sparkling Wide Pressure right into her chest. And then it all ended, as Galaxia fell to the floor and didn't move anymore.

"Told you." Chameleon grinned, as he watched the evil Senshi crumble to dust and fade away. Makoto just smiled back at him, then looked at Ami, who looked a bit shocked. Gravitas noticed it as well, and went up to her partner, feeling a tad worried.

"We really beat her..." Ami whispered. The Saurian of Gravity nodded, and placed a hand on Ami's arm.

"Yes, you did," she confirmed. "Did we not say you could?"

"Yes... But... it's still hard to believe." Ami admitted.

Gravitas frowned. "But… you just did it. How can you have difficulties believing something that you just did with your own two hands? That doesn't sound… logical."

Ami chuckled. "I guess..." She whispered warmly and leaned closer to her symbiosis partner, feeling the comfort of their bond. Gravitas smiled a bit, and her frown disappeared when she felt Ami reach out through their symbiosis. Hesitatingly, the Saurian girl gave the Senshi a hug. Ami readily hugged her back.

"So, what now?" Makoto asked as the world began to fade around them.

Chameleon walked up to her and, once he stood next to his mate, gave her a serious look. "Now you both have to meet up with the others. There's one last thing that needs to be done. Your Princess needs your help, Makoto." Makoto nodded readily.

Gravitas, reluctantly, stopped hugging Ami and looked her in the eye. "You too, my friend."

"I will help her." Ami nodded as well. The Saurian nodded and stepped aside so Ami could pass. Ami walked past her towards the door that appeared from nowhere just in front of her. Makoto came up next to her, and spared a moment to smile at her friend.

"Ready?"

"Yes." Ami smiled back. She took Makoto's hand in her own, and together they went through the door. Chameleon and Gravitas watched them go in silence. Once the door had closed behind their Senshi friends and vanished, the Saurian of Camouflage turned to his sister.

"That went better than I expected. They've grown a lot since we arrived. In terms of combat expertise, I mean," he said. His younger sister nodded.

"True. But then again, their opponent was only a Senshi, and nothing more."

"Can't argue with you there," he shrugged in reply. Then he smiled, for a new door had appeared in this air right next to the two adopted siblings. "Well then, I think that's our cue! We'd better move on to the last stage as well, sister."

"Yes," Gravitas replied simply. She gestured at the door. "Lead the way, brother. I read that a true human male worthy of the name opens the door for a woman. And protects her from danger."

"As if you need protection," her brother smirked, but he nonetheless opened the door for his sister, and together the two Saurians passed through, heading towards what was to be the final challenge of the dreamworld.

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**Next chapter: Children of the damned!**

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**Review replies:**

Kuroui: Actually, Vulcan *can* be harmed. The fact that Hotaru defeated him should be proof enough of that. But his state as an Elemental is indeed a defence that is extremely difficult to bypass. He's a Saurian at the pinacle of his strength, after all. Ignika learned how to become elemental recently, as well, however, in chapter 66. Thanks for the review.

LoveInTheBattlefield: Thanls for the review.


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